To Roast Beef
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a good hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare and sear
Select a good rib roast and wipe it with a damp cloth.
Heat a dripping pan on the stove until it is smoking hot.
Place the beef in the pan without seasoning and sear on both sides.
Rub the beef with coarse sea salt and sprinkle with pepper.
Roast
Add just enough boiling water to prevent burning.
Roast in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) for 15 minutes per pound plus an additional 15 minutes.
Replenish the water as it cooks away.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Rib roast
- The main cut of meat; searing browns its surface while slow roasting cooks it through and keeps it tender.
The step that matters
Searing the beef unseasoned in a smoking-hot pan. High heat browns the surface through the Maillard reaction, creating deep flavour. Salt drawn onto the meat before searing would release moisture and steam the surface, so it should wait until after searing.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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