Roast perfection - recipes

Published Mar 11, 2016

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Fancy a roast this weekend. Let Angela Day show you how.

 

General rules for roasting:

* Preheat the oven before putting in the meat.

* Make sure the meat is at room temperature before roasting.

* Never have the oven temperature too high, this will make the pan dripping burn and your gravy will be bitter.

* Meat can be started off at a high temperature of 200degC for the first 15 minutes, then reduced to 180degC.

* Place the roast fat side up in the pan. This will keep the cut moist.

* Never cover a roast to start off. If the cut is very large and will require a longer cooking time, it may be necessary to cover it towards the end of the cooking time, for example, a large turkey.

* Always let meat rest covered for 15-20 minutes before carving. This helps the flesh reabsorb the juices.

* A meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the cut will give an accurate measure of doneness.

* The general guide for roasting meat is:

Rare: 10-15 minutes per 500g plus 15 minutes – internal temperature of 65degC.

Medium: 15-20 minutes per 500g plus 15 minutes – internal temperature 70degC.

Well done: 20-25 minutes per 500g plus 15 minutes – internal temperature 75-80degC.

* Another way to test if the meat is cooked is to insert a skewer into the thickest part and check what colour the juice is that comes out.

 

* Meats such as pork, chicken or turkey should always be well done and cooked through.

* Beef and lamb can be cooked to rare or medium.

 

Garlic and herb roast beef

Serves 6-8

1.5kg Beef roast

15ml Olive oil

Salt and pepper to season

4 Cloves of garlic, quartered lengthways

25ml Dijon mustard

5ml Salt

250ml Chopped mixed fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano, parsley)

Yorkshire pudding

300ml Milk

275ml Flour

2ml Salt

3 Eggs

180ml Oil

Gravy

15ml Flour

250ml Beef stock

30ml Red wine (optional)

Rub the olive oil over the cut of beef, season with salt and pepper and rub again. Make small, evenly-distributed incisions in the meat and insert a sliver of garlic into each one. In a very hot pan, brown the meat on all sides.

Working on a large piece of tin foil, smear the mustard all over the meat, then roll in the chopped herbs. Wrap up in the foil and roast at 180degC for 40-45 minutes for medium.

Rest for 20 minutes before slicing and serving with the Yorkshire puddings.

Yorkshire puddings: Preheat oven to 220degC. Whisk the milk, flour, salt and eggs together until smooth. Allow to rest for at least 15 minutes.

Add 15ml of oil to each hole in a 12-hole muffin pan. Place in the oven to get smoking hot. Working quickly, pour a little Yorkshire pudding batter, a third of the way up, into each hole.

Return to the hot oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden and puffed up.

Gravy: Drain off all but 30ml of oil from the roasting pan. Place over a medium heat and stir in the flour. Stir well to incorporate all the brown bits in the pan. Cook for a minute.

Combine stock and wine and gradually add to the pan, stirring constantly. Cook until mixture boils and thickens. Strain and serve with sliced meat.

 

Roast pork with red wine

Serves 8

2kg Leg of pork

10ml Olive oil

10ml Sea salt

250g Streaky bacon, diced

3 Quinces, washed, peeled and quartered

80ml Honey

3 Fresh bay leaves

400ml Dry red wine

250ml Hot water

Preheat oven to 200degC. Trim any excess fat from underside of pork, leaving skin intact. Use a sharp knife to score pork rind. Rub rind with oil and salt.

Place bacon and quartered quinces in a large roasting pan or casserole. Add honey, bay leaves, wine and water, give a good stir and then top with pork.

Roast in oven for 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 180degC and cook for a further hour, stirring the quinces once or twice. Remove the pork and take off the crackling. Cut this into pieces. Slice the meat and serve it with the quinces.

Note: The quinces can be replaced with green apples.

Sunday Tribune

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