Roast beef help

[Igotta]

I love roast beef, it's my favourite thing but I just can't cook it myself. It's always chewy and tasteless.

I've got a nice joint from Waitrose today in the reduced bit which lasts until tomorrow.

Is there any idiots guide to roasting or any tips to make it nice please?

Thanks very much

What cut is your meat?

Do you have a slow cooker or pressure cooker?

Depends on the cut and the size...

Pat it dry when you unpackage it, then cover in mustard powder and seasoning. Put in into a really hot oven for the first 20 mins then turn it down for the rest of the time. Take it out a bit earlier than you think, cover with foil and a tea towel on top to keep the heat in, then and rest for a good 30 mins at least.

General tips though

Let it come up to room temperature before it goes in the oven
Plenty of salt, lots of it.
Get your oven hot, at least 200c. Let it seal the meat for about 20mins then chuck some foil over it for the rest

Just make sure you use the correct timings for the size and cut you have.

Are you slicing it the correct way - against the grain?

Get the biggest piece you can eat and don't cook it for long at all. If it's smallish I'd seal the outside in a frying pan then cook s at 200.
We buy a big piece that does dinner for 6 with half left over and cook it for an hour

I cooked a joint of beef today. I place a cup full of water at the bottom of the slow cooker. Place beef in and stock cube. 4 hours on high it comes out beautiful everytime.

It's just over 1kilo and it's topside.

Thank you for all your help so far.

Let us know how it goes

Slow cooker every time! But I love how you get it medium rare in restaurants for Sunday lunch,..I’ve not mastered how to do that unfortunately!

Topside won’t work for slow cooking - that’s for cheaper, chewier cuts

Cook it hot and quick - 40-50 mins Max for 1kg for medium. Heat oven to 200C and turn down to 180 when you put it in.

Put it on a bed/trivet of veg - onions, carrots, leak tops, whatever you’ve got

Topside is a great cut for a rare or medium rare roast beef, cook it in the oven not in a slow cooker.
Have a look on the BBC Food on their News website, they have a very good Roast Guide which gives cooking times/temperatures/cuts of meat/how rare etc etc.

Take your meat out of the fridge at least an hour before you put it in the oven.
I don’t salt mine before cooking, as I think it dries the meat out, but I do pepper and mustard it. Baste well several times during cooking, rest at the end of cooking, I usually do about 20 minutes. Carve beef thinly and evenly, topside is an easy joint to carve.

Use the pan juices for gravy, I usually add a chopped up onion or two to the roasting dish while the meat is cooking, to help with flavour & colour for the gravy.