Perfectly Cooked Roast Beef Recipe (2024)

Here’s the simple, easy-to-remember formula to cook a beef roast, the result is perfectly cooked roast, whether you want it cooked rare or medium rare or medium or well done. The choice is yours, the formula takes all the guesswork out of how long to cook roast beef. Better still? The hands-on time is five minutes. Still better? There’s no added fat, really letting good meat take center stage.

Real Food, Fresh & Family-Tested. Perfect for Sunday Dinners & Holiday Meals. Low Carb. Low Fat. High Protein. Weight Watchers Friendly. Naturally Gluten Free. Whole30 Friendly.

Short & Sweet But It Works.

A terse recipe caught my eye about five years ago. The technique was dead simple.

The original recipe read: "Cook the roast for 5 minutes per pound at 500 degrees. Then turn off the oven and let the meat finish cooking for two hours."

Trust me. Two hours is way too long unless you like meat beyond well-done. Still, the basic process works. You just have to trust it – and your meat thermometer!

So here's how the corrected recipe goes: "Cook the roast for 5 minutes per pound at 500 degrees. Then turn off the oven and let the meat finish cooking until the internal temperature reaches the desired temperature for rare, medium rare, medium, medium well or well, however you like your beef cooked."

Cooking with My Mom

Does this happen to others? All week long, I've been "cooking" with my mother. She's been gone for more than ten years now and I've never before felt her "sense" in the room.

But perhaps it's because this recipe for Perfectly Cooked Roast Beef kicks off an entire menu, the one Mom so often chose for our Christmas dinner when my sister and I were growing up.

It was her idea of a traditional English Christmas dinner, a tribute to her own English-born father. It would make for an easy festive New Years Eve menu, too!

How to Cook a Beef Roast

The detailed recipe is written in traditional recipe form below but here are the highlights. You can do this!

PICK THE RIGHT CUT This roast is going to roast for a relatively short time, that means you want a more tender piece of beef. That means a sirloin tip (our favorite), eye of round roast, ribeye roast. Me, I find meat cuts so confusing, all those different names. But butchers are friendly folks, just ask, they'll help! This piece from the Beef Board is also helpful.

Avoid the the tenderloin. It's a tender cut but is just too precious to oven roast.

Avoid these cuts, the brisket, a chuck roast, a bottom round roast. These are good cuts, they just need slow cooking. If you already have one of these cuts, consider these great recipes. For brisket, try Real-Food Brisket. For a chuck roast, try Slow-Cooked or Slow Cooker Pot Roast.

MAKE SURE IT'S FULLY THAWED If you keep meat in the freezer, the biggest challenge is getting it out to thaw soon enough. Allow two or three days for a roast to thaw safely in the refrigerator; just be sure to put it in a ziplock bag because meat packaging always leaks, what a mess it can make. If you're short of time, immerse the roast (still in its packaging, assuming it's sealed in airtight plastic) in a large bowl of cold (yes, cold) water for several hours, even early in the day of cooking. Once it's thawed, refrigerate the roast until it's time to start prepping and/or cooking.

WEIGH THE ROAST This is the crucial step for it determines how long the roast will cook at high heat. You do have a kitchen scale (affiliate link), right? I use mine #EverySingleDay.

Now do a little math. Multiply the weight of the roast in pounds by 5, for example a 4 pound roast x 5 = 20. This means that the roast will be start off in the hot oven for 20 minutes.

PREP THE ROASTING PAN No special pan is required, just one that has sides to hold in juices and is big enough to hold the roast with room to spare so the oven's hot air can circulate freely around the meat. I usually use a half sheet pan (affiliate link). For easy clean-up later, line the pan with foil. A cast iron skillet would work too, no need to line it.

PREP THE ROAST Pat the roast dry with paper towels, just taking off the wetness from the outer surface. This lets the meat rub adhere to the roast better. Now use your hands to pat the whole roast, top to bottom, side to side, with a meat rub. Which meat rub? Check your spice cupboard, you probably have one. Even if it's labeled for chicken or pork, go ahead, use it. Do look at the ingredient list. If salt is the first ingredient, the beef juices you might want to use for making gravy will be very salty. I try to use a salt-free meat rub, then add my own much small amount of salt to the rub before rubbing it onto the meat.

INSERT A MEAT THERMOMETER Insert the probe of an oven-safe meat thermometer deep into the roast. This is the digital thermometer I use for meat, breads, even custard.

LET THE ROAST WARM UP A BIT, OPTIONAL The roast is now ready for the oven but if you like, let it rest at room temperature for a couple of hours. It's always interesting to note how the internal temperature only comes up a degree or two. In my experience, letting the roast warm up a bit doesn't shorten total the roasting time.

ROAST at 500F for 5 MINUTES PER POUND. Heat the oven to 500F, that's an unusually hot oven but don't worry, the technique really works. Then put the roasting pan into the oven on the middle rack, carefully situating the timer so that you can see the temperature changing as the roast cooks.

Set the timer for five minutes for every pound. In the example we're working with, a four pound roast would roast at 500F for 20 minutes.

TURN OFF THE OVEN. LEAVE THE MEAT INSIDE. DON'T OPEN THE OVEN DOOR! The oven will remain hot for a long while, letting the meat finish cooking to its safe internal temperature without being blasted by heat. This means the meat will cook more evenly, outside to inside.

How long will it take for the roast to finish? That depends. Cooking to a "rare" temperature will take less time than to a "well done" temperature. Estimate about 45 minutes for rare meat, about 60 minutes for medium rare meat. But do use a thermometer, that removes the uncertainty.

ONCE DONE, REMOVE FROM THE OVEN Remove the roasting pan from the oven and place a piece of foil around the roast to keep the outer surfaces hot. Let the meat rest at least 5 minutes before slicing. But the real value here is that the meat will hold and stay hot for a good 30-45 minutes. That's valuable time for sorting out the rest of the meal!

SLICE & SERVE This roast is especially wonderful when sliced thin. If you have an electric knife tucked away somewhere, dig it out.

For Example, a Large Roast.

With my last roast, I kept track of the specifics, just to provide a guideline.

This roast weighed 4-1/2 pounds. So I cooked it at 500F for 22 minutes (five minutes per pound), then turned off the oven until the internal temperature temperature reached the desired doneness. I was shooting for 135F, medium rare, but lost track of the cooking progress and the temperature got up to 144F. Into the details? Here you go.

• CUT – Boneless top sirloin
• WEIGHT – 4-1/2 pounds
• INTERNAL TEMP GOING INTO THE OVEN – 30F
• TIME AT 500F – 22 minutes, that's 4.5 pounds x 5 minutes per pound
• ADDITIONAL TIME TO REACH 144F – 60 minutes (I was aiming for 135F but didn't watch carefully enough, gauge from the photos how "pink" the meat is at 144F)
• TEMP AFTER 30-MINUTE REST – 140F, covered with foil in 70F kitchen

For Example, a Smaller Roast.

And for comparison, here's what happens with a smaller roast.

This roast weighed 2.7 pounds. So I cooked it at 500F for 14 minutes (five minutes per pound, rounded up), then turned off the oven until the internal temperature temperature reached the desired doneness. I was shooting for 140F.

• CUT – Boneless top sirloin
• WEIGHT – 2.7 pounds pounds
• INTERNAL TEMP GOING INTO THE OVEN – 48F (after resting on the counter for about 90 minutes)
• TIME AT 500F – 14 minutes, that's 2.7 pounds x 5 minutes per pound and rounded up
• ADDITIONAL TIME TO REACH 140F – 60 minutes
• TEMP AFTER 30-MINUTE REST – 140F, covered with foil in 70F kitchen

What Makes This Recipe Special

• Removes all the guesswork from cooking a roast
• Employs a simple technique that really brings out beef's flavor and a roast's tenderness
• Requires no special equipment except a digital meat thermometer
• Cooks the meat perfectly, no matter the size of the roast
• Cooks the meat to any level of desired doneness, rare, medium-rare, medium, well, etc.
• Creates a dark, crusty exterior with light red, pink, gray interior, whatever you want
• Cheaper than sliced beef from the deli counter, great for meal prep for sandwiches
• For game lovers, the technique works with venison roasts too

Bookmark! PIN! Share!

How do you save and share favorite recipes? recipes that fit your personal cooking style? a particular recipe your mom or daughter or best friend would just love? If this recipe for roast beef hits the mark, go ahead, save and share! I'd be honored ...

PERFECTLY COOKED ROAST BEEF

Hands-on time: 5 minutes up front plus carving
Time to table: About 90 minutes for smaller roasts (under 3 pounds) and larger roasts (more than 4 pounds)
Allow four servings per pound for light eaters, two or three for bigger appetites

• 1 boneless beef roast, any size or a standing rib roast
• Meat rub of choice (don’t skip)

Heat oven to 500F.

Weigh the roast and make note of its weight, that will determine how long the meat will cook at 500F. Then place it in a large roasting pan lined with foil for easy clean-up. Pat the meat dry, then pat with the meat rub, covering the entire roast. Insert a digital thermometer deep into the thickest part of the roast.

Roast at 500F for 5 minutes per pound.

Now turn the oven off, yes, you read that right – turn the oven OFF – no opening the oven door either. It’s hard but you can do it.

Let the roast sit in the oven until the meat reaches the desired temperature, 115F-120F for extra rare, 125F-130F for rare, 130F-140F for medium rare, 140F-150F for medium, 150F-155F for medium well, 160F-212F for well done.

Remove the roast from the oven and cover with foil for 5 – 30 minutes before slicing. It will drop a degree or two in temperature but won’t get cold. This lets you use the oven for side dishes, popovers, etc.

Slice, serve and enjoy!

RECIPE in METRIC Roast at 260C for 5 minutes per 454 grams. Let the roast sit in the oven until the meat reaches the desired temperature, 46C-49C for extra rare, 52C-55C for rare, 55C-60C for medium rare, 60C-65C for medium, 65C-69C for medium well, 71C-100C for well done.

ALANNA’s TIPS Don’t skip the meat rub, both for the sake of appearance (a thin crust, almost like having seared the meat in fat) and of flavor (seasoning). But if you want to make gravy with the meat juices, choose a rub that has minimal salt. After the oven’s been turned off for 30 minutes, either set the temperature alarm on the thermometer or check it every five minutes. The cooking process moves faster than you think and you really don’t want to overcook good meat. Your oven will be tied up so plan the rest of the meal accordingly.

FOR MORE INFO If you "skipped straight to the recipe," please scroll back to the top of this page for ingredient information, ingredient substitutions, tips and more. If you print this recipe, you'll want to check the recipe online for even more tips and extra information about ingredient substitutions, best results and more. See https://www.kitchenparade.com/2012/12/perfectly-cooked-roast-beef-recipe.html .

Per 4 ounces uncooked/3 ounces cooked: 148 Calories; 4g Tot Fat; 2g Sat Fat; 47mg Cholesterol; 63mg Sodium; 0g Carb; 0g Fiber; 0g Sugar; 25g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 3 & PointsPlus 3 & SmartPoints 3 & Freestyle 3 & myWW green 3 & blue 3 & purple 3 & future WW points

Adapted from a church-style cookbook from Oklahoma, one returned to my friend Linda. Sorry, no more detail than that!

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