Just Another Roast Recipe

Got a sirloin tip roast on clearance from the local Kroger big-box store (Pick 'n Save). I needed a recipe to cook it, so I picked this one.

NOTE: The cooking time for a beef roast depends on how large it is. Convention says to cook a roast 25-30 minutes for each pound. The package says my roast is 2.39 pounds. Just out of curiosity, I weighed it; it came to 2.30 pounds. Multiplying that out, I get a cooking time of 57½-69 minutes. I'll do 1 hour and then take its temperature. According to the Angus beef website, rare is 125°F, medium-rare is 135°F, medium is 145°F, medium-well is 150°F, and well done is 160°F.

Supplies

For equipment, you will need:

1. Two mixing bowls or measuring cups to hold the mise en place (my mixing bowl set {Amazon affiliate link}, NOT the measuring cups I used).
2. A knife and cutting board (I've been using these cheap knives {Amazon affiliate link} for over a year now and am very happy with them.)
3. A small whisk {Amazon affiliate link}
4. A large Dutch oven (mine is a 5½ quart)
5. A stove
6. Tongs or a meat fork to turn the roast {Amazon affiliate link}
7. An oven

For ingredients, you will need:

1. A sirloin tip roast (original recipe calls for 3-4 lbs.; mine is 2.3 lbs., so I cut the recipe in half)
2. ½ tablespoon of vegetable oil
3. 1 garlic clove, minced
4. 4 oz. of chopped yellow onion
5. 1 cup of beef broth (I used Better than Bouillon beef base and water)
6. ¼ cup of dry red wine
7. 1 tablespoon of tomato paste (freeze the rest or turn it into tomato juice)
8. ½ teaspoon of dried thyme leaves
9. ½ teaspoon of dried rosemary leaves
10. 1 small bay leaf
11. Salt and pepper to coat the roast and for taste

Step 1: Mise En Place

1. Into one mixing bowl, combine the minced garlic and chopped onion.
2. Into the other mixing bowl, combine the beef broth, wine, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf. Set this aside for future use.

Step 2: Prepare the Roast

1. Trim off any excess fat or visible silver skin.
2. Rub the roast with salt and pepper. I ended up using a total of 1 tsp. of salt and ¼ tsp. of ground black pepper.
3. Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Step 3: Sear the Roast

1. Place the Dutch oven on the stove.
2. Add the vegetable oil.
3. Heat over medium-high heat.
4. Add the roast.
5. Turn the roast to brown on all sides.

Step 4: Brown the Vegetables

1. Remove the roast and set it aside for now.
2. Add the onion and garlic to the Dutch oven and stir them to lightly brown.
3. Pour in the broth mixture.

Step 5: Bake

1. Return the roast to the pan.
2. Use a spoon or cup to pour some of the broth over the roast.
3. Cover the Dutch oven.
4. Place it into the oven.
5. Start a timer for 1 hour.

Step 6: Do You Need a Thermometer?

When the timer went off, I decided to see how well everyone else got their times correct. I checked the roast using an instant-read cooking thermometer. As you can see, mine overcooked big time. I need to check my oven temperature and/or my timer. This is beyond well done. Anyhoo, the recipe says to let it rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Step 7: Voilà!

The first picture is from the original recipe. The second picture is mine sliced. Of course, we already know that mine is well done instead of medium. If I remake this recipe, I'll post of picture of the second attempt.

Step 8: Was It Worth It?

Cost-wise, we're talking $15 for the roast plus odds and end pennies for the remaining ingredients. Being a 2-pound roast, that should get me at least 6 servings. I'm looking at maybe $3 a serving. That is definitely better than ordering. The preparation wasn't that complex either. The most time-consuming thing (outside of the actual cooking) was chopping the onion. There is quite a bit of clean-up, particularly the sides of the Dutch oven. Did you see the picture in Step 6?

In spite of the overcooking, the meat remains juicy. Next time, less time.