cuts for roast beef

Re: cuts for roast beef

Okay, I'll go first.
A standing rib roast.
Top Round
Eye Round
Bottom Round:eek: :bounce: :D

Sorry, sounds too much like your homework;)

Hey there Rich,

No worries man.

This site has had many students come in and basiclly ask us to do their homework for them,Hence Chroses reply.

Chrose is a top draw chef,it's always good to get his thoughts.

As to your question. For roast beef (for sandwiches and the like)top round is what works best.There is more fat and marbling in the bottom round so this is a good canidate for braising and or stewing,however the top round is very lean and with out the interior marbling to allow it to braise well.so dry heat,nicely seasoned top round "sliced very thin" works well.

Tenderlion ofcourse being the muscle that gets a free ride is very tender and also expensive,but when entertianing..a nice warm,rare slice of tenderlion with a little sauce or condiment on a roll is very nice.As is roast sirlion.

The eye round (which is from the gooseneck) of the leg is very tought and has to be braised (excellent for pot roast)but not for rare beef.

anyway, I hope this helps a bit and enjoy cheftalk
cc

Bone-in chuck roast and other consumer deals.

One of the better good, cheap cuts you can buy is a good chuck roast. The bone-in variety that looks like a big slab. If you look, you will notice what looks like an "eye" and by a small curved bone. That "eye" is the end of the standing rib with a partial rib bone attached. The other side of the roast with the long bone (scapula?) attached is much tougher and chewier. I usually cut the roast in two, get a 2 ribsteaks or a small roast out of the eye and use the other meat for something else (excellent burger). And the good part is that chucks can be as cheap as a $1.00 a pound. Another good grocery store tip: when you see "square cut lamb shoulder roasts" for cheap, try one. Cutting one up you will find a 4 bone lamb rack in there. Save the rest for stew or sausage and get a lamb rack for $1.00!

Peachcreek: Yes, my favorite! Bone-in chuck also known as Cross-rib!

Hi Rich. Welcome.

You should visit Delia Smith Online for basics and make sure you have leftovers! :lips:

A great link but remember that American and UK butchery are significantly different in the cutting, which means that many of the cuts mentioned by Delia are not available in the US (and US recipes refer to cuts not available in the UK).

Thanks Britcook for great advice. However, for having tried her Roast Ribs of Traditional Beef with Horseradish, Crème Fraîche and Mustard Sauce, time and time again, I always had good results.

I noted that her timing is a little off though (the oven is probably the culprit here) especially if medium-rare is desired. Therefore, to test doneness, Rich, use a meat thermometer for best results. :)

Edited to add:

Delia's recipe works well for the cheaper Cross-Rib Roast especially if you use a meat thermometer.

Rbed,
I apologize if I came off as snide. Recently we had a spat of students trying to get us to do their homework and the way your question was worded it was a possibility that I mulled over. I took a chance on attempting to be clever in case I was wrong (as is apparently the case) I would be happy as is everybody else to answer any and all questions, so don't hesitate to ask. I hope your question was answered to your satisfaction.

Chrose

As for my 2 cents worth: My butcher tells me that anything with the word round in it is not tender enough for roast beef.
I find that funny in a way and would be hesitant to take the butchers word for anything. Next he'll tell you that the best burgers are made from Tenders! What I mean is that as has been said, Top and Bottom roasts are standard cuts used for "Roast Beef" However being what they call "locomotive tissues" they are inherently tough with little marbeling to help in tenderness. Thats why many roasts that are cooked medium well and cut before proper resting tend to be tough and dry. Eye Round being the worst possible choice! Long slow cooking will help your roasts immensly as wwill lining the pan with vegetables and a little water to not only create a little jus but also add some moist heat to help the tenderness. Cook it slow, cook it medium rare, let it rest! and with a little patience you'll have a lovely reasonable priced roast.

I use bottom round for pot roast or anything that will be cooked a long time.

I have a top round in the freezer now to grind for hamburgers.

We use eye or round on the rotisserie done to rare. It is very good. Not as good as standing rib but we can have it often at that price.

Just my 2 cents

Sue

Bard and lard.

When oven roasting (especially the dryer cuts of meat from the hind end) thread lardoons (fat) through the meat. It will counteract the tendency to dryness by artifically introducing the "grains" of fat that used to permeate the naturally tender cuts such as rib roast. (When choosing a steak or rib, for example, one looks for marbling as a promise of tenderness, but as so little of today's beef is adequately marbled this process is useful even on these more tender cuts.)

There are a couple instruments that in the days before the fat crisis were used to introduce the fat into the meat. One that I have is has an 8-10" long, pointed metal trough into which you put the fat, then insert it into the meat. You may find it easier if you make a "pilot hole" in the meat with the instrument before inserting the fat itself. The other instrument I have used has a "needle tip" on one end that widens to the other end so that you can insert the fat inside the cylindrical end and then draw the apparatus through the meat, depositing the fat behind it. For more detailed info and diagrams, see the old joy of Cooking (larding, p 444).

Less trouble, but less tenderizing is to use the slabs of fat to tie on the outside of the meat (barding) to "baste" these drier cuts.
My "Joy" has this info on p.420. People utilize the "barding" principle when they cover meats (& meatloaf) with strips of bacon to introduce both flavor and fat.

Of course there are other books that describe these techniques, but most all of us have acces to Joy.

With a little ingenuity, these techniques can also be used to introduce flavors (garlic, garlic + whatever you fancy with your beef) into the meat.