Roast Beef Cooking
One of the most popular meals in the UK is roast beef. The process of roasting is ideal for large pieces of meat as the long cooking time ensures that the heat can penetrate all the way through the joint. Some of the cuts are better for roast beef cooking than others, in particular the fore ribs, sirloin, topside, silverside, top rump and brisket. The fore ribs are one of the best and because of this it is often one of the most expensive, normally roasted on the bone it has a good layer of fat, ideal for roasting as it stops the meat drying out. Sirloin is ideal if you prefer a smaller cut as it can be boned and rolled so the butcher can sell it in smaller joints, because it has less fat you may find that it is even more expensive than the fore rib. Topside, silverside and top rump are the joints that you will normally see tied with string and are the ideal roasting joints. Brisket is from the breast of the cow and benefits from longer cooking to break down some of the more fibrous pieces.
When using any of these joints for roast beef cooking they will all benefit from some seasoning. This can be as simple as salt and pepper but you may like to try grinding some salt, pepper, garlic, oil and whatever herbs you have handy, together in a pestle and mortar and then rub it onto the joint the night before and leave it in the fridge to marinate, or if you do not have much time on your hands You Can rub it into the joint just prior to cooking. It is worth the effort as it flavours the meat and the oil will help to tenderise it.
When roasting ideally you should use a tin that is not too deep, but is deep enough to be able to make gravy in when the joint has finished roasting. It also means that any sides of the meat won’t be shielded from the tin if it is too deep, preventing it from cooking evenly. The time you take to cook it will depend on your preference of how rare you like your meat. Roast beef cooking times can vary depending on the size of the cut but a general rule of thumb is nine minutes if you prefer your beef rare, fourteen minutes for medium and eighteen minutes for well-done.
If you are uneasy about roast beef cooking times and the temperature to cook it at you can invest in a meat thermometer. This is a thermometer with a spike that you insert into the meat, leave for a minute and then take a reading to see if it is at the temperature you require. They are not expensive and will come in handy for other meats too, especially chicken which you should always check is cooked thoroughly. The read out indicates not only the temperature but also the different types of meat relative to that temperature.
