Easy Roast Beef Recipe for a traditional Sunday Roast Dinner or other special occasions throughout the year. This topside joint is cooked in the oven until tender and melting in the mouth. No need for fancy ingredients, this recipe is simplicity at its best.
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What is a Sunday Roast
A Sunday Roast is the traditional main course in the UK usually served on a Sunday or any other special occasions. It consists of roasted meat -with beef being the most popular choice, although pork or game can be served too. Roast Chicken, Roast Ham or roast turkey are other good options.
The usually side dishes served with the roast are roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes, roasted or boiled vegetables (carrots, greens, etc), Yorkshire puddings, gravy and the list can go on and on.
I absolutely love a good carvery, and the Sunday Roast is such a fantastic meal - I could have it any day of the way and not have enough of it at all. And making it at home, although it might seem as time consuming, it's actually so easy.
Getting the cooking time right is crucial, depending how you like it, you can get rare, medium or well done roast. I must admit I am not a big fan of the bloody roast, I much prefer medium to well done. Let's see how to make it!
Roast beef cooking time
As with any roast, we can't just throw it in the oven and hope for the best. The temperature and cooking time are very play a crucial part if you want a perfectly tender roast beef that is done to your liking.
The golden rule here is: always start roasting the meat at a high temperature: 220 degrees Celsius (430 Fahrenheit) for the first 25 minutes, then lower it to 180 degrees Celsius for the remaining time.
The cooking time depends very much on the weight of the joint, for a rare roast this has to cook for 20 minutes per pound (450 g), for a medium roast 25 minutes per pound, and for well done 30 minutes per pound.
My roast beef weighed 1.5 kg (so about 3 pounds), I cooked it for 75 minutes, the first 25 at 220 degrees C, then 180 degrees C for 50 minutes.
Very important here is the resting time: once the roast comes out of the oven, wrap it with kitchen foil, and leave to rest for at least 20 minutes. In this way the meat will become really tender and the juices come out.
Expert tips
For this roast I used a topside joint, but any other cut can be cooked the same way. Do make sure the meat if out of the fridge for at least 30 minutes before cooking it, best to have it at room temperature to ensure an even roasting.
If the cut you use is not very fatty, to prevent it from drying out in the oven add half a cup of water in the baking tray, the water mixed with the juices released by the roast will be perfect for basting and later on making gravy.
I used only salt and pepper for seasoning, and a splash of vegetable oil, and for my that was the perfect roast. I quite like a good old plain roast, but you can, of course, add any herbs of your choice, or other seasoning. A marinade is not needed here, unless you want add more flavour.
This joint is more than enough for at least 6 people, and there will also be leftovers, which can be transformed into delicious dishes - more about it in future posts. Do give this roast a go, it really is the best!
What to do with leftover roast beef
Leftover Roast Beef Cottage Pie
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Easy Roast Beef Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 topside beef joint (1.5 kg, 3 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius (430 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Arrange the beef joint on a baking tray, drizzle with oil and season well with salt and pepper.
- Roast for 25 minutes, then lower the temperature to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit) for the remaining 50 minutes.
- Baste occasionally- if the cut of beef used if not very fatty, add half a cup of water to the tray to prevent the meat drying out.
- When it's one, remove from the oven, cover with kitchen foil, and leave to rest for at least 20 minutes before carving.
Notes
- For this roast I used a topside joint, but any other cut can be cooked the same way. Do make sure the meat if out of the fridge for at least 30 minutes before cooking it, best to have it at room temperature to ensure an even roasting.
- If the cut you use is not very fatty, to prevent it from drying out in the oven add half a cup of water in the baking tray, the water mixed with the juices released by the roast will be perfect for basting and later on making gravy.
- I used only salt and pepper for seasoning, and a splash of vegetable oil, and for my that was the perfect roast. I quite like a good old plain roast, but you can, of course, add any herbs of your choice, or other seasoning. A marinade is not needed here, unless you want add more flavour.
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