Wednesday, April 26, 2017

No-Fail Oven-Roasted Eye of Round Roast

I have struggled with preparing eye of round roasts for years. It has always been hit or miss - mostly miss. The beef was either incredibly tough and overcooked {think jerky or shoe leather} or completely raw in the middle. I have strived to find a recipe that would not fail me ... one that was simple and uncomplicated, but would yield perfect results every time. I wanted a predictable outcome ... not results that I had to cross my fingers over and pray to the gods that the meat would be edible. Well, I have found the perfect recipe and method. Eye of Round Nirvana. Heavens opening. Angels singing. Perfection.


I did quite a bit of research recently online to try to unlock the secret to preparing this particular cut of beef. One thing I discovered was that I was cooking my roast at too low of a temperature, cooking it for too long and not allowing a long enough resting period. I, also, realized a few other key tips like, it is best to roast the meat with the fat side up and that there is no need to add any liquid {or even oil} of any sort to the pan.

This is seriously such an uncomplicated, simple method to follow. Know, however, that there is a bit of time involved. You'll actually be leaving the roast in the oven - after some initial high-temp cooking time for like, two hours with the oven off. Seriously. Do not open the door. No peeking. No poking. Just let it sit in there. Please - trust me. And, I definitely encourage you to use a meat thermometer for this recipe. You need to make sure that your beef is cooked precisely to your liking.

Regarding the seasoning, I have chosen to use a basic steakhouse seasoning blend that includes salt, pepper, garlic and a few dried herbs. But, simple salt and pepper can be used. {Whatever your fancy on beef.}

Yields 4 - 6 servings.


Ingredients:

Eye of round roast {3 - 4 pounds preferably}
Steakhouse seasoning blend {see paragraph above} or seasoning of your choice
1 large onion, peeled and cut into 4 - 5 thick slices
1 - 2 stalks celery, cut into large chunks
Few sprigs fresh thyme {optional}

Directions:

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Season all sides of roast. Allow to sit on counter while oven preheats. {Roast needs to be at room temperature prior to going into the oven.}

Lay onion slices and celery chunks in the bottom of a 9 x 13 {or similar} baking dish.


Lay roast on top of vegetables - fat side up. {If your roast has absolutely no fat, you may desire to drizzle a little olive oil over top of the roast at this point.} Lay thyme springs around roast.

Once oven is completely preheated to 500 degrees, place pan on the middle rack. Close oven door and reduce temperature to 475 degrees.

Roast - uncovered - for seven minutes per pound.

Shut off oven. Leave roast in oven for two hours. Do not open oven door at all during this time.

Using a meat thermometer, check temperature of meat. If internal temperature is not in line with desired doneness {as shown below}, turn the oven back on to 475 degrees for a few more minutes until doneness/desired temperature is reached.

120°F to 125°F = Rare
130°F to 140°F = Medium Rare
145°F to 150°F = Medium


Remove from oven, tent with foil and allow to rest for a full ten minutes before transferring to a cutting board and slicing to desired thickness.



NOTE: During my research, I read that some older ovens - particularly gas ones - sometimes do not retain heat well. If you know this about your oven, you may desire to keep the oven set to its lowest temp setting {150° - 170°} instead of having the oven off. You would - in such a case - need to open the oven door and check the temperature after say, 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 hours to be sure that you are not overcooking the beef. My oven is an older gas model and keeping the oven completely off worked fabulously.


Copyright 2017 © Joyously Domestic

30 comments :

  1. Thanks so much! I really liked how this turned out! My husband was super impressed and loved it!

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  2. This looks great but I’m wondering when you say temperature to 500/475 is that on bake? Because then you say to ROAST for min per pound. so do I cook it on bake or Roast ? My oven has both options. Thanks so much.

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    1. I am not familiar with having both options, but I would assume you could use either so long as the temp remains as directed. I’m sorry I cannot help more.

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    2. Bake, for those who don’t have the roast option.

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  3. Also, do you not seat the roast before putting it in oven?

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  4. How do I adjust for a 6.5 pound roast?

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    1. I’m not exactly sure, Dale. I have not tested that size. I’m sorry. Obviously, more time cooking and resting would be necessary though. Go by temp for sure above all else.

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  5. This was delicious. Perfectly cooked. I also marinated it in red wine before roasting and then used the leftover marinade to make a gravy.

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  6. I love this method and is the only way I roast (eye of round, top round, bottom round) and have been using it for a few years now. I however, adjusted roasting time for 6 minutes per pound for rare. It just works out best for my oven.

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  7. How can you test for doneness if the oven has to stay closed for 2 hours?

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    1. after 2 hrs insert meat thermometer to check for doneness.

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  8. My 2 lb was at 130 after only an hour and 10 mins. I am glad my wireless thermometer was working..great technique for this cut. THANKS!!

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  9. I have tried this method before and yes, it works!

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  10. I’m getting ready to try this in my Chambers Gas Oven. They were made in the 1930s and are known as the oven that cooks with the gas off.

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  11. I have an 8 pound roast in the oven as I type this... it is currently in for the 7min x 8 at 475... about what temp might I want to see after the 56 minutes prior to turning the oven off for it's 2 hour oven time?

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  12. Hi there! Sounds very interesting! But I'm a bit confused...in your post you mention you can't do low and slow for cooking this type of roast, but then obviously leaving it in the oven with the heat off would be considered low and slow. Can you please clarify for me the difference? Wanting to do this today!!

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  13. Angela from Joyously Domestic here … I have attempted to cook this cut of beef low and slow, for example, in a slow cooker in the past as I would do say, a chuck roast. The result was a very tough piece of meat. That is what I was referring to. If you follow the directions exactly as written, your end result should be perfection. Cook/roast at a very high temp of around 500° and then turn your oven off and allow the roast to sit inside the oven for the required period of time.

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    Replies
    1. You can’t. It will be shoe leather

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  14. This was delicious! Since my roast was only two pounds, I pulled it out at 1:40 to check and it was cooked a perfect medium. I also missed the part about reducing the temp to 475, so mine cooked at 500 degrees. I cooked it in a stoneware dish, which I prewarmed in the oven, so that could also be one reason my cooking time was less, because the stoneware retains the heat longer than a glass dish. I cut up the onions in the juice after baking and served it with the roast - it wasn’t needed because the meat wasn’t dry, but the au jus was delicious.

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  15. It was done perfectly and tasted delicious. But was bery chewy

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  16. I followed this but meat is not tender at all…

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  17. Made this your way and it was delicious I will never make this roast any other way. Thank. You

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  18. Morning
    I have 2 x 3-4 pound eye of round. Can I do both at same time? Imagine so but anyone having done this let me know. I have used this method for a few years and love it but do 6 minutes per pound as we like medium rare.

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    1. I would imagine it would be just fine. - Angela @ Joyously Domestic

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  19. I haven’t read where anyone used a baking bag to cook an eye round roast, so I thought I’d tell you that I cook my eye round roast in a bag after I have pre-seasoned it over night. I take it out of the fridge early in the morning and just leave it on the counter till I’m ready to start cooking. I also add potatoes cut in half and large carrots with one large onion. I season my roast with garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper and sprinkle a small amount of meat tenderizer after I take an ice pick to poke holes all over the top. I cook it at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes. Turn my oven off around the 35 minute mark and let set. I serve a green vegetable to balance out the meal and I have great success. My roast is tender flavorful and my family loves it. I’m disabled and haven’t cooked for years, but this Sunday I’m cooking that very meal with the help of my daughter in law. That’s the only reason I decide to tell my story about cooking that cut of meat. I‘be never written anything on the web and I’m sure I’ll be given hell for speaking up about this, but until you’ve tried it, please don’t knock it…😉🙏🏻

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  20. anyone ever try with a pork tenderloin roast? going to try it today!

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