Slow and Easy goes the Beef

My sons love Roast Beef. But cooking it to the perfect doneness can be a challenged. My family likes their beef medium rare, which is about 135 degrees to 145 degrees. I’ve done the research and tried many different ways to prepare it, but only one way really results in a perfectly done Roast Beef. It’s the slow-roasting method.

Now, many slow-roasting recipes will tell you to brown the roast in an ovenproof skillet prior to roasting. I think this defeats the whole purpose of roasting. I roast meats to save myself work, not make more. Instead, I employ a slow-roasting method with an oven sear finish. You get even cooking with a lovely, browned crust. (Maillard browning at its best;-)

But what cut of meat is best? It all depends on what you want. Eye round will give you a very lean roast beef with little liquid to make gravy, but it does slice exceptionally well. Bottom-round roast has excellent flavor, lots of liquid and some fat to make gravy, but it’s not as easy to slice. Sirloin Tip roast is a great choice for flavor and leanness, but is often more expensive. Regardless of the type of roast you use, be sure to get a roast that is relatively the same size at both ends and in the middle. Tip roast, eye rounds and bottom-rounds, often, get cut into odd, triangular shapes which will cook unevenly. Also, the larger the roast, then the easier the cooking will be. What? Crazy woman, what are you talking about? Yes, a larger roast will cook more evenly, so I encourage you to avoid the 1-2lbs eye round that is on sale. Buy it, if you like, but use it for something else, not roast beef. I usually recommend buying a roast that is at least 4 lbs. You can freeze leftover or use them in soups, stews or stroganoff.

When making Roast beef, I recommend roasting potatoes and vegetable to serve alongside, so everything can be done in the oven. And for meal two, make some instant mashed potatoes and frozen veggies cooked in the microwave to give a new take on leftovers. For a completely new meal on the third night, use some of the leftovers in my Szechuan Noodle Toss. Use any remaining meat for a Steakhouse salad or Roast beef wrap for lunch. Below is my recipe for slow-roasted Roast Beef. Mangia!

Slow-Roasted Beef• @ 4 pounds beef sirloin tip roast or eye round or bottom-round
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 2 tablespoons olive or cooking oil
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1 cup water

Preheat oven to 200° F. Rub roast with olive oil. Then, season the roast on all sides with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme and paprika. Pat gently with your hands to help the herbs adhere. Place roast on top of broiler pan. Place in oven and roast until an instant read thermometer inserted in the center registers 130° for rare, about 3 hours. Remove roast from pan; cover lightly with foil and let rest about 15 minutes. Add water to bottom of broiler pan to loosen up the fond (the brown, crusty, yummy bits on the bottom of the pan that you’ll use to make gravy.) Turn oven to 500 degrees. After the meat has rested for 15 minutes, remove foil and add it back to the oven. Cook for an additional 10 minutes to brown the roast. After searing, remove meat and allow resting for an additional 10 minutes. Remove meat to a cutting board. Take the bottom part of the broiler pan and pour the liquid in bottom into a gravy separator to remove the fat. Be sure to use a rubber spatula to scrape all the bits off the bottom, as they provide most of the flavor for your gravy. Set aside. In a small saucepan, heat 2 Tablespoon of butter until melted. Add 2 Tablespoons of all-purpose flour to the butter and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to make a paste and incorporate all the flour into the butter. (You have just made a roux, a base for gravy. Pat yourself on the back;-) Add ½ cup of red wine and 1 ½ cups of the reserved liquid from the broiler pan to the roux, stirring until fully incorporated. Continue to cook until the gravy thickens up. Meanwhile, thinly slice the beef across the grain. Serve with gravy on the side.

Steakhouse Salad (serves 2)

2 cups of mixed greens
¼ red onion, sliced thin
2 oz. of button or cremini mushrooms, sliced thin
1 tomato, cubed or a few grape tomatoes for each salad
1-2 leftover, cold roasted potatoes, cubed (optional, but yummy, if you have any leftover)
Salt and pepper to taste on the vegetables
8-10 slices of roast beef cut into strips
1 cup of croutons, split evenly between the two salads
4 Tablespoons of your favorite dressing

Mix vegetables together with salt and pepper. Plate in salad bowls. Top each salad with roast beef strips and croutons. Serve with dressing on the side. I like Bleu cheese with this salad for an authentic Steakhouse flavor, but Caesar, Ranch and Japanese Ginger Dressing, also, work well here.