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If you are fortunate enough to remember the charms of Sunday-dinner-style roast beef — browned on the outside and tender, juicy and pink throughout — you probably also can recall that it took considerable effort to make it happen, with no guarantee that you bought the right hunk of meat or could achieve consistently good results.
But the fact is, you can produce perfectly cooked roast beef while you sleep, even with an array of beefy-tasting cuts, from pricey prime rib to affordable round roast. Slow roasting at a low temperature is the way to go. Butchers, chefs and meat experts agree that it’s easy to do in basic home ovens. No fire-breathing, commercial-quality ranges are required.
“Roasting slowly is where all the good stuff happens,” says Jim Swenson, who has been executive chef at the National Press Club in Washington for 17 years. He prefers the slow-low approach for roasts and vegetables — where the carrots, celery and onion caramelize along with the meat — because “the vegetables bloom into richer and more mellow flavors. You really taste it when you use them to make the sauce or gravy.”
By primitive, traditional or high-tech methods, slow cooking is a culinary fundamental. “Man has been doing this since there was cooking, whether it was done in a cooking pit covered with banana leaves or in an oven,” says Gerard Bertholon, a chef and an executive at Cuisine Solutions in Alexandria, Va. The company uses microprocessor-controlled equipment to produce food by the sous vide technique, in which vacuum-sealed foods are cooked in a low-temperature water bath. The process preserves and intensifies flavor and texture.
Restaurateur and chef Michel Richard, known for his creative and modern approach to cooking, describes the best way to roast in one word: “slowly.”
Walk through Richard’s Washington kitchens at Citronelle and his bistro, Central, and, as you might expect, you will see chefs and cooks chopping, prepping and checking stovetops. You also will see specialty “combi” ovens that apply the science of slow cooking by combining moist and dry heat. How slow and low does Richard go in his kitchen? Try 72-hour short ribs cooked at 138 degrees.
A combi oven, such as Winston Industries’ CVap (short for controlled vapor technology), has a dual system that uses moist vapor heat to control food temperature and dry-air heat to control moisture evaporation. The CVap’s inventor, Winston Shelton, has become an expert on cooking and, at age 84, lectures before culinary school faculties without notecards.
Roasts are about 75 percent moisture, Shelton explains, with the water bound up in the cells, waiting for the heat that will release it during cooking. “Too much heat has the effect of squeezing a sponge; or in this case, the sponge is squeezing itself,” he says. “As the heat increases, the proteins shrink and the moisture is forced out either into the pan or evaporates completely. The result is a dense and dry roast. However, if we use our knowledge of moisture in meat to manage the heat and evaporation during cooking, we produce a tender and juicy roast.”
Home cooks don’t have access to combi ovens. But for slow-low roasting, they don’t need them. According to Howard Richardson, executive chef at Winston Industries, the significant action occurs when the meat’s internal temperature is between 100 and 140 degrees.
“At approximately 100 degrees, the strands of proteins that make up the muscle and connective tissues begin to cook but also unwind,” he says. “The water and juices are released at around 120 degrees, and the collagen in the connective tissue in meat begins to melt and gelatinize at around 140 degrees. While our (combi) ovens can target and hold the heat at very specific temperatures in this range, you can use your own oven to create a beneficial combination of low temperature and time and achieve excellent results.”
Slow-low roasting maximizes the taste of a whole beef tenderloin and prime rib roast, but the great secret and value of such a method is that it will tenderize and bring out the beefiest flavors of the less-expensive shoulder, round and rump roast cuts.
However, not every inexpensive cut of meat or roast found in your grocer’s meat case will benefit from this approach. A knowledgeable, customer-friendly butcher can guide you through.
“Buy the right roast and the roast will do the rest,” says Sam Haddad, who heads the meat department at Giant Food in Potomac, Md. “We sell a lot of what people call pot roasts, but what is best for your Crock-Pot or slow cooker is different than the cut of meat you want to roast in your oven.”
Asked which less-expensive cut would work best for the slow-low method of roasting, Haddad reached for a boneless shoulder roast.
Chefs Richard and Swenson and Central chef Cedric Maupillier agree with the choice. Maupillier says that “because the shoulder is richer, with more fat, it needs to be cooked a little longer. Around 138 to 140 degrees is perfect for a medium-rare to medium shoulder roast.”
Although the slow-low method takes about 2 1/2 hours per pound at 170 degrees, it won’t cost you extra time. A three- to four-pound roast can be placed in the oven to cook overnight. The temperature is so low that nothing will burn, and by the morning the roast will be done. Let the meat rest on the counter, tented with aluminum foil, while you get ready for work. Wrap the roast and any vegetables tightly, and refrigerate. When you get home from work, make the gravy from the roasted vegetables while the meat is reheating.
Here are tips to keep in mind when slow-low roasting:
• To develop a caramelized crust, sear the roast, either in a dry pan or with a small amount of canola or peanut oil (not olive oil, which may hinder further browning in a low-temperature oven).
• Place the roast fat side up in the pan so it self-bastes.
• Because low-temperature roasting creates virtually no carry-over cooking effect, roast the meat to the desired internal temperature. (In high-heat roasting, the temperature of the meat continues to rise for several minutes after it is removed from the oven.)
• Tent the resting roast with foil and allow 10 to 15 minutes before carving, so the meat’s juices will return to the center; slice the meat against the grain.
• Before reheating the meat, slice it thinly. Reheat at the same temperature at which the roast was cooked.
SLOW-ROASTED BEEF
8 to 12 servings
The method
Sear, then roast slowly at a low temperature.
In general, roasts cooked using the slow-low method will follow the doneness temperature guidelines of 125 degrees for rare, 130-135 for medium-rare and 140 for medium; that is particularly true of roasts from the rib or loin, especially the tenderloin. However, when you are roasting shoulder, round or rump roasts, the doneness temperatures should be adjusted 5 degrees higher; for best results, cooking beyond 145 degrees is not recommended.
For narrower-shaped cuts of beef, such as eye of round, roast at 170 degrees for 2 hours per pound.
Meat that has been seared or covered with olive oil might not brown as well in slow-low roasting; if you would like to use some fat, try 1 tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil or bacon fat in the skillet.
(Adapted from Jim Swenson, executive chef at the National Press Club in Washington)
Ingredients
For the meat
4- to 6-pound beef roast, such as a boneless shoulder roast, top round roast or eye of round roast
For the meat and sauce
Kosher salt or celery salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 carrots, trimmed, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
4 ribs celery, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 onions, quartered
1 head garlic, top 1/2-inch trimmed off to expose the cloves
For the sauce
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup store-bought or homemade low-sodium beef broth
Directions
For the meat: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Have ready a large roasting pan and a skillet large enough to hold the roast.
Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Heat a dry skillet over medium-high or high heat. Season the meat with salt and pepper to taste, then sear on all sides until well-browned.
Spread the peeled and cut vegetables in a single layer on the bottom of the roasting pan or on a flat rack inside the pan, then place the roast on top, fat side up. Place in the oven and reduce the temperature to 170 degrees. Cook for 2 1/2 hours per pound (for medium-rare).
Transfer the roast to a platter or cutting board, tent loosely with aluminum foil and allow to rest for at least 15 to 20 minutes before carving. (At this point, the cooled roast can be covered and refrigerated to carve later.) When ready to carve, discard the fat layer and cut the meat against the grain into thin slices.
For the sauce: Discard the garlic’s papery skin and peels; combine the carrots, celery, onion and garlic cloves to taste in the bowl of a food processor; pulse just until finely chopped. (This also can be done by hand.)
Combine the wine and broth in a medium saucepan over medium heat until just bubbling at the edges. Add the chopped vegetables and stir to mix well; let the mixture return to bubbling at the edges and cook uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the solids; return the sauce to the saucepan. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper; for a slightly richer flavor, cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce the liquid. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve the sauce on the side with the warmed slices of roast beef.
But the fact is, you can produce perfectly cooked roast beef while you sleep, even with an array of beefy-tasting cuts, from pricey prime rib to affordable round roast. Slow roasting at a low temperature is the way to go. Butchers, chefs and meat experts agree that it’s easy to do in basic home ovens. No fire-breathing, commercial-quality ranges are required.
“Roasting slowly is where all the good stuff happens,” says Jim Swenson, who has been executive chef at the National Press Club in Washington for 17 years. He prefers the slow-low approach for roasts and vegetables — where the carrots, celery and onion caramelize along with the meat — because “the vegetables bloom into richer and more mellow flavors. You really taste it when you use them to make the sauce or gravy.”
By primitive, traditional or high-tech methods, slow cooking is a culinary fundamental. “Man has been doing this since there was cooking, whether it was done in a cooking pit covered with banana leaves or in an oven,” says Gerard Bertholon, a chef and an executive at Cuisine Solutions in Alexandria, Va. The company uses microprocessor-controlled equipment to produce food by the sous vide technique, in which vacuum-sealed foods are cooked in a low-temperature water bath. The process preserves and intensifies flavor and texture.
Restaurateur and chef Michel Richard, known for his creative and modern approach to cooking, describes the best way to roast in one word: “slowly.”
Walk through Richard’s Washington kitchens at Citronelle and his bistro, Central, and, as you might expect, you will see chefs and cooks chopping, prepping and checking stovetops. You also will see specialty “combi” ovens that apply the science of slow cooking by combining moist and dry heat. How slow and low does Richard go in his kitchen? Try 72-hour short ribs cooked at 138 degrees.
A combi oven, such as Winston Industries’ CVap (short for controlled vapor technology), has a dual system that uses moist vapor heat to control food temperature and dry-air heat to control moisture evaporation. The CVap’s inventor, Winston Shelton, has become an expert on cooking and, at age 84, lectures before culinary school faculties without notecards.
Roasts are about 75 percent moisture, Shelton explains, with the water bound up in the cells, waiting for the heat that will release it during cooking. “Too much heat has the effect of squeezing a sponge; or in this case, the sponge is squeezing itself,” he says. “As the heat increases, the proteins shrink and the moisture is forced out either into the pan or evaporates completely. The result is a dense and dry roast. However, if we use our knowledge of moisture in meat to manage the heat and evaporation during cooking, we produce a tender and juicy roast.”
Home cooks don’t have access to combi ovens. But for slow-low roasting, they don’t need them. According to Howard Richardson, executive chef at Winston Industries, the significant action occurs when the meat’s internal temperature is between 100 and 140 degrees.
“At approximately 100 degrees, the strands of proteins that make up the muscle and connective tissues begin to cook but also unwind,” he says. “The water and juices are released at around 120 degrees, and the collagen in the connective tissue in meat begins to melt and gelatinize at around 140 degrees. While our (combi) ovens can target and hold the heat at very specific temperatures in this range, you can use your own oven to create a beneficial combination of low temperature and time and achieve excellent results.”
Slow-low roasting maximizes the taste of a whole beef tenderloin and prime rib roast, but the great secret and value of such a method is that it will tenderize and bring out the beefiest flavors of the less-expensive shoulder, round and rump roast cuts.
However, not every inexpensive cut of meat or roast found in your grocer’s meat case will benefit from this approach. A knowledgeable, customer-friendly butcher can guide you through.
“Buy the right roast and the roast will do the rest,” says Sam Haddad, who heads the meat department at Giant Food in Potomac, Md. “We sell a lot of what people call pot roasts, but what is best for your Crock-Pot or slow cooker is different than the cut of meat you want to roast in your oven.”
Asked which less-expensive cut would work best for the slow-low method of roasting, Haddad reached for a boneless shoulder roast.
Chefs Richard and Swenson and Central chef Cedric Maupillier agree with the choice. Maupillier says that “because the shoulder is richer, with more fat, it needs to be cooked a little longer. Around 138 to 140 degrees is perfect for a medium-rare to medium shoulder roast.”
Although the slow-low method takes about 2 1/2 hours per pound at 170 degrees, it won’t cost you extra time. A three- to four-pound roast can be placed in the oven to cook overnight. The temperature is so low that nothing will burn, and by the morning the roast will be done. Let the meat rest on the counter, tented with aluminum foil, while you get ready for work. Wrap the roast and any vegetables tightly, and refrigerate. When you get home from work, make the gravy from the roasted vegetables while the meat is reheating.
Here are tips to keep in mind when slow-low roasting:
• To develop a caramelized crust, sear the roast, either in a dry pan or with a small amount of canola or peanut oil (not olive oil, which may hinder further browning in a low-temperature oven).
• Place the roast fat side up in the pan so it self-bastes.
• Because low-temperature roasting creates virtually no carry-over cooking effect, roast the meat to the desired internal temperature. (In high-heat roasting, the temperature of the meat continues to rise for several minutes after it is removed from the oven.)
• Tent the resting roast with foil and allow 10 to 15 minutes before carving, so the meat’s juices will return to the center; slice the meat against the grain.
• Before reheating the meat, slice it thinly. Reheat at the same temperature at which the roast was cooked.
SLOW-ROASTED BEEF
8 to 12 servings
The method
Sear, then roast slowly at a low temperature.
In general, roasts cooked using the slow-low method will follow the doneness temperature guidelines of 125 degrees for rare, 130-135 for medium-rare and 140 for medium; that is particularly true of roasts from the rib or loin, especially the tenderloin. However, when you are roasting shoulder, round or rump roasts, the doneness temperatures should be adjusted 5 degrees higher; for best results, cooking beyond 145 degrees is not recommended.
For narrower-shaped cuts of beef, such as eye of round, roast at 170 degrees for 2 hours per pound.
Meat that has been seared or covered with olive oil might not brown as well in slow-low roasting; if you would like to use some fat, try 1 tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil or bacon fat in the skillet.
(Adapted from Jim Swenson, executive chef at the National Press Club in Washington)
Ingredients
For the meat
4- to 6-pound beef roast, such as a boneless shoulder roast, top round roast or eye of round roast
For the meat and sauce
Kosher salt or celery salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 carrots, trimmed, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
4 ribs celery, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 onions, quartered
1 head garlic, top 1/2-inch trimmed off to expose the cloves
For the sauce
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup store-bought or homemade low-sodium beef broth
Directions
For the meat: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Have ready a large roasting pan and a skillet large enough to hold the roast.
Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Heat a dry skillet over medium-high or high heat. Season the meat with salt and pepper to taste, then sear on all sides until well-browned.
Spread the peeled and cut vegetables in a single layer on the bottom of the roasting pan or on a flat rack inside the pan, then place the roast on top, fat side up. Place in the oven and reduce the temperature to 170 degrees. Cook for 2 1/2 hours per pound (for medium-rare).
Transfer the roast to a platter or cutting board, tent loosely with aluminum foil and allow to rest for at least 15 to 20 minutes before carving. (At this point, the cooled roast can be covered and refrigerated to carve later.) When ready to carve, discard the fat layer and cut the meat against the grain into thin slices.
For the sauce: Discard the garlic’s papery skin and peels; combine the carrots, celery, onion and garlic cloves to taste in the bowl of a food processor; pulse just until finely chopped. (This also can be done by hand.)
Combine the wine and broth in a medium saucepan over medium heat until just bubbling at the edges. Add the chopped vegetables and stir to mix well; let the mixture return to bubbling at the edges and cook uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the solids; return the sauce to the saucepan. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper; for a slightly richer flavor, cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce the liquid. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve the sauce on the side with the warmed slices of roast beef.
