I have made around 20 roast beefs in the past 2 months and I feel like I can officially declare that I have figured out how to make this very well. A great roast beef should be tender, moist, and basically melt in your mouth. I tried numerous techniques and recipes, including the roast at 500 degrees for 20 minutes then turn off your oven for 2 hours recipe. They all produced a decent roast, but none a great one. I finally decided to do what I do best and delve into the details and the science of this and I came out with much more knowledge about cooking beef and a foolproof roast beef recipe.
This recipe is based off of the cooksillustrated roast beef recipe. I originally used the CI recipe but the results varied from bad to average. The recipe did have a general explanation of the science behind roasting beef, but it didn't really click for me until I started to experiment.
My understanding of it is this: the beef has natural tenderizers in it that work to break down the beef until it reaches 122 degrees, at which time all the tenderizing stops. The closer you get to 122 degrees, the more active these chemical tenderizers are.
My first initial thought was, LOW AND SLOW. I put my oven to it's lowest possible temperature of 170 degrees, seared off the beef, then let it roast. By the time the internal temperature reached 115 degrees, the temperature was climbing very slowly so I increased the heat to 200 and finished it off. The resulting roast beef was?.... average. Not only that, it took 4 1/2 hours for a 2 lb 12 oz roast (small size). I repeated this process a few times, but the resulting beef was always relatively dry and chewy.
I then thought to myself, let's just keep the oven temperature at 170 degrees until the beef reaches 122 degrees, so that I extend the time as much as possible that the beef is in that crucial tenderizing zone of 100-122 degrees. I kept the oven at 170 degrees for the entire time until the beef registered 122 degrees, then finished it off at 200 degrees. The result?....better. Presentable and tasty, but I wanted it to be even moister and more tender.
I then had a thought, what if time wasn't as important during that tenderizing window of 100-122 degrees, as the "severity of heat". I already put my oven to it's lowest temperature of 170, but that still didn't produce what I wanted.
The CI recipe did instruct to turn off the oven completely, as do some recipes on the internet, but none of them really explain the purpose of that other than to assume that the residual heat of the oven will finish cooking the beef.
But by turning off the oven completely, you remove a direct heat source just inches away from the beef. By roasting the beef in the tenderizing zone, with no direct, severe heat source present, and with the oven at basically the lowest possible temperature to achieve an internal temperature of 122 degrees, this proved to be the most effective in tenderizing the beef during that 100-122 degree window.
I abandoned the low and slow technique and decided to focus solely on this new concept and the resulting roast beef was super moist and tender. Not only that, I shaved off 1 hour and 30 minutes off the low and slow method.
Digital meat probe thermometer: don't bother making this if you don't have one of these. you need to be able to monitor the internal temperature WITHOUT OPENING THE OVEN DOOR. invest in one of these. they are only 20 bucks and very useful.
Dry brining: cooksillustrated uses this technique to flavor and tenderize the beef but I don't feel this is necessary. The 24 hour brine did little to nothing to improve the tenderness of the beef, and while I initially felt it did season the beef better, by over seasoning the beef slightly just before you sear then roast it, the resulting roast beef was well seasoned.
Searing: It's basically been proven that the age old rule that searing locks in moisture and juices is a myth. That being said, I tried making one roast beef by just adding it directly into the oven without any searing, and it was by far the driest roast beef I made. Perhaps there were other factors that contributed to the dryness, but I basically decided after that dry roast that I would always pre-sear before roasting and it hasn't failed me yet.
Doneness: I honestly feel that doneness in this case is not that important. I have roasted it from border line rare to well done and it basically came out dry and chewy every single time. It was only after I figured out this recipe did it become moist and teneder. That being said, my preferred doneness is 136 degrees. I then allow it rest for 30 minutes, during which time the internal temperature increased to 140 before dropping back down to 136. The beef has a nice redness to it without being too raw looking.
ingredients:
1. Eye round roast (2.5-4.5 lbs) - approx. 60 min per lb
2. Kosher salt
3. Black pepper
4. Vegetable oil
5. An oven safe skillet
6. Wire rack to cook the roast on
7. Tongs
gravy:
8. 4 TBL of butter
9. 1/4 cup of ap flour
10. 3-4 cups of beef stock
11. 2 tsp of drippings if available
horseradish cream sauce:
12. 1/2 cup of heavy cream
13. 3 TBL of horseradish (mine comes minced in a bottle in vinegar. I can't speak for fresh horseradish)
14. salt and pepper
recipe:
1. Whisk 1/2 cup of heavy cream in a bowl until it thickens slightly to a sauce consistency, 1-2 minutes. Add in horseradish, a pinch of salt and pepper and mix. Taste and adjust to your taste. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
note: - Most horseradish sauce recipes call for more horseradish, but I found that to be too overpowering. But you can add more if you desire. I tried eating the roast with only the horseradish sauce, but found it to be too contrasting in flavor. With the gravy however, the marriage of the horseradish and savory gravy worked well together.
2. Take out your eye round roast and leave it out at room temperature for 2 hours. While this step isn't completely necessary, be aware that the roasting time can be increased by an extra 30 minutes and the doneness of the beef be more inconsistent if you skip this step. Try to rest it at room temperature for at least 1 hour.
3. 20 min before the roast will finish resting, adjust the oven rack to the lower middle position, place a skillet on the rack, then place a wire rack on top of the skillet. We will be roasting on top of the wire rack with the skillet under it to catch any drippings. Heat oven to 225 degrees farenheit.
4. After the beef has finished resting, measure out 2 tsp of kosher salt (1 tsp table salt) per lb of beef. Pat beef dry with paper towel, then season all sides, including flat side of top and bottom ends, with 3 solid layers of salt. This liberal amount of salt may seem like a lot, but the resulting roast beef will not be too salty and will be well seasoned.
5. Place another skillet or cast iron pan over high heat with no oil. Pour a little vegetable oil over the beef, just enough to cover the surface of the beef, and rub the entire surface with your hands, making sure the entire surface has been coated with oil.
6. Place roast onto skillet and sear every side, including flat surface of the top and bottom ends, for about 45-60 seconds per side, until a brown crust has formed. You do not simply want a gray darkening of the surface, you really want to form a brown, crusty surface. Check the beef for any hard to reach angles that may not have been seared, and use tongs to hold and press beef into the skillet to sear any spots that you may have missed.
7. Place roast onto clean surface then generously season every side, including the flat side of the top and bottom ends, with cracked black pepper.
8. Insert the thermometer lengthwise into the beef so that it runs parallel to the length of it. Insert it into the exact center of the thicker side of the beef, but DON'T push thermometer too deep. Try to get the tip into the dead center of the beef.
note: - I initially pushed the thermometer as deep as I could into the beef, believing for some reason it took the overall temperature of the beef. This is not the case. Only the tip of the thermometer reads the temperature, so get it as close to center of the beef as possible, and don't push it in too deep.9. Turn the roast so that the fat cap is up, grab the beef with tongs, quickly open the oven door and place it into the center of the oven onto the wire rack. Quickly close the oven door and check the internal temperature. Depending on how thick the beef was and how long you let it rest, the temperature could be anywhere from 45-65 degrees.
10. Roast at 225 degrees farenheit until the internal temperature reaches 105 degrees. As soon as it hits 105, TURN OFF THE OVEN.
11. Wait until the internal temperature reaches 122 degrees, then turn the oven back on up to 225 degrees. Roast until the internal temperature reaches 136 degrees.
12. As soon as the beef reaches 136 degrees take it out of the oven but DO NOT REMOVE THE THERMOMETER. Removing it early will actually allow juices to escape through that hole, plus we want to continue to monitor the temperature of the beef. Place it onto a cutting board or large plate to rest. The internal temperature should continue to rise to around 140 degrees before it starts to drop. You want to wait until it drops back down to 136 before slicing into it which could take anywhere from 30-45 minutes. Cutting into the beef too early will cause you to lose significantly more liquid and moisture than if you let it sufficiently rest first.
note: - Blood will leak out of the roast as it rests and potentially make a mess. What I do is I place a folded paper towel under the beef as it rests, then replace it with a fresh one after 15 minutes.
13. While the roast rests, using a kitchen towel, transfer the skillet from the oven to the stove and heat over medium heat. Keep the kitchen towel on the handle so you don't accidentally burn yourself.
14. You want only a maximum of 2 tsp of drippings (1/2 tsp per TBL of butter) because too much will make the gravy too salty. Discard any excess drippings. Add 4 TBL of butter and whisk until fully melted. Add the flour 1 TBL at a time, whisking until it is fully incorporated before adding in more flour.
15. After all the flour has been incorporated, add in the beef stock, 1 TBL at a time, whisking vigorously until well incorporated before adding in more stock. Only after the gravy becomes completely smooth can you add the stock, 1/4 cup at a time, until it becomes the consistency you want the gravy to be.
16. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Keep the gravy on low heat or else it will completely separate. If a skin forms on top while it rests, just mix well with a whisk. If serving in a gravy boat, microwave ONLY the gravy boat for 3 minutes so it becomes very hot, give the gravy one final whisk, then pour it into the boat just before you cut the beef and serve.
17. After the beef has finished resting, use a very sharp chefs knife and cut slices as thin as you possibly can. If you are worried about the appearance of blood, you can use a paper towel to wipe up any excess. Serve immediately with gravy to pour over and a dollop of horseradish cream sauce.
note: - this goes great with roasted potatoes on the side, which you can roast while the beef rests.
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