Roast Beef
Cooking Skills: Beef and Steak 1
Chapter 4 · Roast Beef
Skill goal
Roast, rest and carve a joint of beef, and make Yorkshire puddings and gravy.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
A roast is a big piece of beef cooked in the dry heat of the oven. Because it is large, the outside is done long before the middle, so the oven starts hot to brown the outside and then drops so the heat reaches the middle gently. The joint then rests for 20 to 30 minutes so the juices settle, and that is also when the gravy, the Yorkshire puddings and the vegetables are finished. For roast potatoes, see Cooking Skills: Potatoes 1, chapter 3.
The method
- Take the joint out of the fridge about an hour ahead, and salt it earlier still if you can.
- Start hot, then turn down, to brown the outside and cook the middle gently.
- Use a thermometer. It is more reliable than the clock.
- Rest 20 to 30 minutes, loosely covered. The temperature rises a few degrees.
- Carve across the grain with a sharp knife.
| Cut | Best doneness | Take out at (approximate) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topside or silverside | Medium-rare to medium | About 52 to 57°C | Lean: don't overcook; slice thinly |
| Sirloin joint | Medium-rare | About 50 to 54°C | Tender, with a fat cap |
| Rib joint (boneless or on the bone) | Medium-rare | About 50 to 54°C | Rich and marbled |
| Brisket | Slow-cooked, not pink | Cook until tender | See Cooking Skills: Beef and Steak 1, chapter 5 |
Hot oven, rare beef and carving
Hot oven and hot tins: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and put hot tins on a heatproof surface. A roasting tin of hot fat is heavy and hot, so never carry it across a busy kitchen, and keep children out of the way.Whole cuts and mince: germs sit on the outside of a whole piece of beef (a steak or a joint), and searing the surface deals with them, which is why a steak can be served rare. Mince, burgers, sausages and rolled or tenderised joints can have germs all the way through, so they must be cooked right through (no pink, juices running clear, about 71°C in the centre). Rare beef is not recommended for very young children, older people or anyone with a weakened immune system, and the advice for pregnancy depends on the cut, so check current NHS and FSA guidance.
Carving: carve on a board with a groove or a tray for the juices, steady the joint with a carving fork, and use a long, sharp knife. Cut across the grain in slices about 5 mm thick, using long, smooth strokes rather than sawing, and keep your free hand behind the fork.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
A roast topside
A good first roast: a lean, affordable joint that is best served pink and sliced thinly. Lean beef dries out if you overcook it, so use a thermometer and take it out early.
Ingredients (5 portions)
- 1 kg topside or silverside joint, tied
- 1 tbsp sunflower or rapeseed oil
- 1 tsp English mustard powder
- 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1 onion, thickly sliced
- Take the beef out of the fridge about 45 minutes before cooking. Heat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan). Rub the beef with the oil, mustard powder, salt and pepper and sit it on the onion slices in a roasting tin.
- Roast for 20 minutes, then turn the oven down to 180°C (160°C fan) and roast for about 40 to 50 minutes more, until the centre is about 52°C for medium-rare or 57°C for medium.
- Lift the beef onto a board, cover loosely with foil and rest for 20 to 30 minutes. Carve thinly across the grain.
Hot oven, thermometer, resting and carving
Hot oven and hot tins: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and put hot tins on a heatproof surface. A roasting tin of hot fat is heavy and hot, so never carry it across a busy kitchen, and keep children out of the way.Roasting times: the usual guide is about 20 minutes per 500 g plus 20 minutes for medium-rare, and a little more for medium, but a thermometer is better. Joints vary in shape and ovens vary in heat, so take a reading about 30 minutes before the time is up. Take the joint out about 5°C below your target, because it will rise as it rests.
Resting: after cooking, leave the beef on a warm plate or board, loosely covered with foil, for about 5 minutes for a steak and 20 to 30 minutes for a joint. The juices settle, so they stay in the meat instead of running onto the board, and the centre rises a few degrees as it rests.
Carving: carve on a board with a groove or a tray for the juices, steady the joint with a carving fork, and use a long, sharp knife. Cut across the grain in slices about 5 mm thick, using long, smooth strokes rather than sawing, and keep your free hand behind the fork.
Level 2 · The centrepiece
A rib or sirloin joint
A prime joint with a layer of fat and plenty of marbling. It is tender, so it should be served pink, and salting it ahead gives a deeply seasoned crust.
Ingredients (7 portions)
- 1.5 kg boneless sirloin or rib joint
- 2 tsp flaked sea salt
- 1 tbsp sunflower or rapeseed oil
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 30 g butter
- Salt the beef all over a few hours ahead (or the night before) and leave it uncovered in the fridge. Take it out about 1 hour before cooking and pat it dry.
- Heat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan). Rub the joint with oil, pepper and flour, which helps the crust. Put it in a roasting tin and roast for 20 minutes, then turn down to 180°C (160°C fan).
- Roast until the centre is about 50 to 52°C for rare to medium-rare (about 1 hour more for 1.5 kg, but check). Dot with butter, rest for 30 minutes and carve in thick slices.
Hot oven, thermometer and resting
Hot oven and hot tins: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and put hot tins on a heatproof surface. A roasting tin of hot fat is heavy and hot, so never carry it across a busy kitchen, and keep children out of the way.Roasting times: the usual guide is about 20 minutes per 500 g plus 20 minutes for medium-rare, and a little more for medium, but a thermometer is better. Joints vary in shape and ovens vary in heat, so take a reading about 30 minutes before the time is up. Take the joint out about 5°C below your target, because it will rise as it rests.
Resting: after cooking, leave the beef on a warm plate or board, loosely covered with foil, for about 5 minutes for a steak and 20 to 30 minutes for a joint. The juices settle, so they stay in the meat instead of running onto the board, and the centre rises a few degrees as it rests.
Carving: carve on a board with a groove or a tray for the juices, steady the joint with a carving fork, and use a long, sharp knife. Cut across the grain in slices about 5 mm thick, using long, smooth strokes rather than sawing, and keep your free hand behind the fork.
Whole cuts and mince: germs sit on the outside of a whole piece of beef (a steak or a joint), and searing the surface deals with them, which is why a steak can be served rare. Mince, burgers, sausages and rolled or tenderised joints can have germs all the way through, so they must be cooked right through (no pink, juices running clear, about 71°C in the centre). Rare beef is not recommended for very young children, older people or anyone with a weakened immune system, and the advice for pregnancy depends on the cut, so check current NHS and FSA guidance.
Level 2 · Batter
Yorkshire puddings
Yorkshire puddings are just a batter, and they rise because the fat is smoking hot and the oven is hot.
Ingredients (12 portions)
- 100 g plain flour
- 3 Lion-marked eggs
- 150 ml milk
- 1 pinch salt
- 4 tbsp sunflower or rapeseed oil, or beef dripping
- 12-hole bun or muffin tin
- Whisk the flour, eggs, milk and salt until smooth, add 2 tablespoons of water if it is thick, and rest it for 30 minutes. It should be like thin cream.
- Heat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan). Put a little oil in each hole of the tin and heat it in the oven for 10 minutes, until smoking.
- Pour the batter quickly and carefully into the holes (about two thirds full) and bake for 20 to 25 minutes without opening the door. Serve at once.
Smoking fat, eggs and allergens
Yorkshire puddings: the fat in the tin must be smoking hot for the batter to rise, which makes it dangerous. Heat the tin in the oven, take it out with oven gloves, pour the batter in quickly and carefully and close the door at once. Don't open the oven for the first 20 minutes or they will sink.Eggs: use eggs with the British Lion mark, and wash your hands after handling raw egg. The Yorkshire puddings in this chapter are fully baked.
Allergens: beef itself is not a common allergen, but stock cubes and gravy granules often contain celery, gluten or soy, and sauces may contain milk (butter, cream) and mustard. Check every label, and swap in plant butter or gluten-free flour where needed.
Level 3 · Gravy
Gravy from the tin
The best gravy comes from the roasting tin: the brown bits and the fat are what make it taste of beef. A little flour thickens it, and the cooking water from the vegetables adds flavour.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 1 tin roasting tin with the beef juices and fat
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 400 ml beef stock (low-salt), hot
- 100 ml water from boiled vegetables (optional)
- 1 tsp mustard or redcurrant jelly (optional)
- After the beef comes out to rest, pour off all but about 1 tablespoon of the fat and set the tin over a low heat on the hob. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, scraping up the bits.
- Add the hot stock a little at a time, stirring or whisking so there are no lumps, then the vegetable water if you are using it. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, until it coats a spoon.
- Stir in any resting juices from the board, add the mustard or jelly if you like, taste, season and strain into a jug.
Hot tin, hot gravy and allergens
Hot fat in the tin: the roasting tin and the fat in it are extremely hot. Pull the shelf out to lift the tin, rest it on a heatproof surface, use dry oven gloves (a damp glove conducts heat) and keep children and pets out of the kitchen.Hot gravy: gravy boils and splashes. Add the stock gradually, stir with a whisk or wooden spoon and pour it into a jug with care.
Allergens: beef itself is not a common allergen, but stock cubes and gravy granules often contain celery, gluten or soy, and sauces may contain milk (butter, cream) and mustard. Check every label, and swap in plant butter or gluten-free flour where needed.
Experiments
Experiment
Clock or thermometer
Check the middle.
- Cook one joint by the time guide only, and check its centre with a thermometer at the end. Next time, cook by temperature.
Look for: The time guide gets you near, but it can be 10 to 15 degrees out. A thermometer shows how much your oven and your joint differ from the guide.
Experiment
Resting time
None, 10 and 30 minutes.
- Carve slices from the same joint at once, after 10 minutes and after 30 minutes, and compare the juices on the board.
Look for: The unrested slices leak juice and look paler; after 30 minutes the meat is moist and evenly pink. Rest it under foil, and use the time for gravy.
Experiment
Cold or room temperature
Straight from the fridge or 1 hour out.
- Roast two small joints the same way, one straight from the fridge and one after an hour on the side.
Look for: The room-temperature joint cooks a little more evenly. The difference is smaller than people think, but a joint that is very cold in the middle needs longer.
Experiment
Carving thickness
Thick and thin.
- Carve some slices 1 cm thick and some 3 mm thick, across the grain.
Look for: Thin slices taste more tender, especially from a lean joint. Slices cut with the grain are chewy however thin they are.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roast topside | ||||
| Rib or sirloin joint | ||||
| Yorkshire puddings | ||||
| Gravy from the tin | ||||
| Clock or thermometer | ||||
| Resting time | ||||
| Cold or room temperature | ||||
| Carving thickness |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Roast is grey and dry | Overcooked, or too lean for the time | Use a thermometer; take it out earlier; slice thinly |
| Outside burnt, middle raw | Oven too hot, or joint too cold | Start at 220°C, then turn down; bring the joint to room temperature |
| Meat is tough | Carved with the grain, or the wrong cut | Slice across the grain; braise tough cuts |
| Yorkshires didn't rise | Fat not hot enough, or the door opened | Heat the fat until smoking; don't open the door |
| Lumpy gravy | Stock added too fast | Add it a little at a time, or strain the gravy |
| Gravy is bland | No browned bits or weak stock | Scrape the tin, use a good stock and season at the end |
Hot oven, hot fat and leftovers
Hot oven and hot tins: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and put hot tins on a heatproof surface. A roasting tin of hot fat is heavy and hot, so never carry it across a busy kitchen, and keep children out of the way.Hot fat in the tin: the roasting tin and the fat in it are extremely hot. Pull the shelf out to lift the tin, rest it on a heatproof surface, use dry oven gloves (a damp glove conducts heat) and keep children and pets out of the kitchen.
Leftovers: cool cooked beef quickly (within about 1 to 2 hours), cover it and keep it in the fridge for up to about 2 days (general guidance). Reheat until it is steaming hot all the way through, and reheat it only once. Don't leave cooked beef standing at room temperature for longer than 2 hours.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can roast a joint and check it with a thermometer.
- I rest a joint for 20 to 30 minutes before carving.
- I can carve across the grain in thin slices.
- I can make Yorkshire puddings with very hot fat.
- I can make gravy from the roasting tin.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Beef and Steak 1, chapter 5 is Braising and Stews: making tough cuts tender.