Feeling like the thought of a Monday is going to start ruining your Sunday? Think again. A decent Sunday roast is enough to cheer anyone up and it’s a great opportunity to catch up with friends and family before a new week begins.
Cooking a roast doesn’t have to be difficult or time consuming. So many supermarkets now offer good joints of meat already prepared and flavoured ready for the oven. However, if you want to do it yourself, here’s the perfect recipe for rib of beef.
The perfect roast rib of beef
The preferred choice is rib of beef, but fillet and sirloin work just as well too. If you go with a rib, leave the bone in – it will help with the taste and if you want to create a masterpiece, ask your butcher to expose the ends of the bones for you. It will look stunning once cooked.
The thick covering layer of fat adds real flavour to the meat and can be removed before serving so don’t worry about it. Plus any marbling through the meat will intensify the flavour further.
The recipe used is from The Times from Roast: A Very British Cookbook by Marcus Verberne and is an absolute winner.
Ingredients
1 well-hung 3-bone fore rib of beef
2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
1 leek, roughly chopped
1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
Roast potatoes, to serve
Yorkshire puddings,to serve
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 220C/gas 7. Score the covering fat of the beef in a criss-cross pattern to a depth of about 5mm. Season thoroughly with salt and pepper and rub the seasoning into the scored fat. Don’t be shy with the salt.
2. Place the fore rib in your largest roasting tray, resting it on the flat chine bone with the ribs pointing upwards. Place in the oven and roast at this high temperature for the first 25 mins before turning the oven down to 160C/gas 3. This initial blast on a high temperature will seal the outside of the beef so that it retains its juices as it roasts.
3. When you turn down the oven, remove the beef. You will notice that the fat has started to render out of the joint. Add the vegetables to the roasting tray, placing them around the joint, and mix them in the fat, coating them well. Place the beef back into the oven to roast for the weight-specified time (if you like your beef rare, calculate 14 mins per 500g, and scale up to 20 mins for well done).
4. Check the vegetables after 15 mins and give them a stir so they caramelise evenly. Remove the vegetables after about 30-35 mins, once nicely browned, and place them to one side for the gravy.
5. Once the beef is ready, remove it from the oven to rest in a warm part of the kitchen for a good 15-30 mins. A three-bone joint should rest for at least 15 mins and five-bone joints about 25-30 mins.
Quick win: Before your guests are due to arrive, ensure your dishwasher is clean and empty so you can throw in the pots and pans as you’re cooking.
Sit back, tuck in and enjoy.
