Monday, October 10, 2011

If you're a vegetarian, you might want to skip this one

Beef - it's what's for dinner






OK, OK, OK, I got a little carried away. But this was a seriously good piece of meat.

I state here, without apology, that we really like roast beef.
My grandmother was born in England, so maybe it's genetic.
 We often have a traditional sirloin roast for Christmas dinner and splurge on rib roasts when I can find a good sale, but this roast, from a boneless New York strip, may the best one.
Ever.
Yes, I know it has fat on it, if it didn't it would taste like shoe leather and be tough as nails. The cooking method I used, the first one below, calls for searing the meat before roasting it slowly at a very low temperature so a lot of the fat ends up in the searing pan.
I will get to how we ended up roasting NY strip in the next post, but even if you can't find it on sale, this is one of those things that you are just going to have to try at least once.



http://www.themeatsource.com/striploinroast.html
Cooking Instructions

Strip loin roast can be cooked at different temperatures with different results. We discuss two ways that yield good results. The first way is our favorite, there is a little more work involved and it takes a little longer but its worth it. The second method is a quicker and easier method which will please most but not quite as juicy from center to outer edge.

Cooking Method 1
Many of the finest restaurants that serve strip loin roast use low temperatures to achieve those great juicy beefy flavors. In our experience cooking at higher temperatures of the 350-450 degree range will cause a roast to dry out on the outer parts and shrink anywhere form 3/4 to 1lb or more depending on the size of the roast by the time its done cooking.
A low temperature of 250 degrees will cook roast beef evenly through from the center to the outer edge without any drying out, leaving the meat tender and juicy. You might be concerned about the possibility of bacteria and it has been shown that cooking a roast this way is actually safe but to have piece of mind there is a way to solve this and at the same time give the roast a nice brown surface. Bacteria grows from the outside and a way to get rid of bacteria is to sear the roast first. Searing the roast will seal in the juices and look very appealing when being served.

1. An hour before cooking, remove the roast from the refrigerator to bring to room temperature.


2. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and set the rack to the lower middle position. Take a heavy bottomed roasting pan and set the pan on 1 burner or 2 burners if you have a large pan and set the temperature to medium-high. Once the pan is hot sear the roast on all sides for 1.5 - 2 minutes per side. A large heavy skillet can also be used to sear the roast.
3. Carefully remove the roast, set a wire rack in center of the roasting pan and place roast fat side up on the rack. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook uncovered.
4. Roast the meat to a temperature of 135-140 degrees (medium-rare) for maximum flavor and tenderness or 140-150 degrees (medium) but no more, anything more will begin to dry out the roast. Depending on the size of the roast it will take 25-30 minutes per pound, so you must have an instant-read thermometer to make sure you don't overcook. Remove roast from oven and tent with foil. Let it rest at least 15- 20 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute themselves evenly throughout the roast. When cooking at 250 degrees the roast will only rise another 2-4 degrees or so during the resting time. Cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices on platter and serve.

Below is a cooking chartfor roast beef recipe. Remember you should always use an instant-read thermometer to check the doneness of a roast. In method A because a temperature of 250 degrees is used the temperature will only rise about 2-4 degrees during resting time.
DonenessDescriptionMeat Thermometer Reading
RareRed with cold, soft center125-130 degrees
Medium-RareRed with warm, somewhat firm center135-140 degrees
MediumPink and firm throughout140-150 degrees
Medium-wellPink line in center, quite firm150-155 degrees
Well-doneGray-brown throughout and completely firm160-165 degrees


Cooking Method 2
The second method is a non-risky way to cook a strip loin roast, it may not give you the most tender, juiciest roast but will still be a nice roast.
1. An hour before cooking, remove the roast from the refrigerator to bring it to room temperature.
2. Preheat oven to 450°F. Season with salt and pepper, place meat fat side up on rack in roasting pan uncovered. Roast meat 15 minutes.
3. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and roast for about 15-18 minutes per pound. Roast meat until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of meat registers 135-140°F (medium-rare), which will give you maximum flavor and tenderness or 140-150°F (medium) but no more, anything more will begin to dry out the roast. Remove from oven, tent with foil and let stand at least 15-20 minutes.


The internal temperature will rise about 5-10 degrees during resting time. Remove the strip loin roast 5-10 degrees before the desired doneness. Remember you should always use an instant-read thermometer to check the doneness of a roast.

3 comments:

Wm. said...

I never want my roast beef any other way.

Anonymous said...

Hi Jill, Cant beat a good roast beef at anytime- Good for you that your familiy can enjoy a decent meal-Love it!
Hope you use good old horserhadish sauce or hot Enhlish mustard for relish yummy!

Jill said...

Is that you, Cousin Brian?I got the roast beef gene but not the mustard and horseradish, I'm afraid.