Slow Roasted Beef Cooks Illustrated Recipe 45

SLOW ROASTED BEEF (COOK'S ILLUSTRATED) RECIPE - (4/5)

Steps:

• Sprinkle all sides of roast evenly with salt. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate 18 to 24 hours. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 225°F. Pat roast dry with paper towels; rub with 2 teaspoons oil and sprinkle all sides evenly with pepper. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until starting to smoke. Sear roast until browned on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer roast to wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Roast until meat-probe thermometer or instant-read thermometer inserted into center of roast registers 115°F for medium-rare, 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 hours, or 125°F for medium, 1 3/4 to 2 1/4 hours. Turn oven off; leave roast in oven, without opening door, until meat-probe thermometer or instant-read thermometer inserted into center of roast registers 130°F for medium-rare or 140°F for medium, 30 to 50 minutes longer. Transfer roast to carving board and let rest 15 minutes. Slice meat crosswise as thinly as possible and serve. We don't recommend cooking this roast past medium. Open the oven door as little as possible and remove the roast from the oven while taking its temperature. If the roast has not reached the desired temperature in the time specified in step 3, heat the oven to 225°F for 5 minutes, shut it off, and continue to cook the roast to the desired temperature. For a smaller (2 1/2- to 3 1/2-pound) roast, reduce the amount of kosher salt to 3 teaspoons (1 1/2 teaspoons table salt) and black pepper to 1 1/2 teaspoons. For a 4 1/2- to 6-pound roast, cut in half crosswise before cooking to create 2 smaller roasts. Slice the roast as thinly as possible and serve with Horseradish Cream Sauce ), if desired.

SLOW COOKER BEEF BRISKET

Steps:

• Mix brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper, mustard powder, onion powder, and garlic powder for dry rub together in a small bowl.
• Mix beef broth, liquid smoke, and Worcestershire sauce for cooking liquid in a separate bowl.
• Place onions and carrots in a slow cooker. Pour cooking liquid over top and set to temperature High to let it warm up.
• Meanwhile, rinse brisket under cold water. Pat it dry, then season all over with the dry rub. Place brisket in the slow cooker on top of the onions and carrots, with the fatty side facing up. The cooking liquid should reach just to the bottom of the brisket; if not, add a little water.
• Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours. Turn the slow cooker off and transfer brisket to a foil-lined sheet pan. Trim some of the fat if desired.
• Place barbecue sauce in a bowl. Ladle 1/4 cup hot cooking liquid from the slow cooker into the bowl and mix it with the barbecue sauce. Baste the fatty side of the brisket with this mixture.
• Preheat the oven's broiler.
• Place the brisket in the preheated oven so there are 6 inches between the top of the brisket and the burner. Broil until the fatty edges start to crisp up, 2 to 4 minutes; watch closely so it doesn't burn.
• Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Slice brisket thinly and against the grain.
• Remove vegetables from the slow cooker with a slotted spoon, and serve alongside the brisket.

SLOW-COOKER POT ROAST

Steps:

• In a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker, whisk water and beef base; add mushrooms, onion and garlic. Sprinkle roast with pepper; transfer to slow cooker. Drizzle with Worcestershire sauce. Cook roast, covered, on low 6-8 hours or until meat is tender., Remove roast to a serving platter; tent with foil. Strain cooking juices, reserving vegetables. Skim fat from cooking juices. In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour and salt until smooth; gradually whisk in cooking juices. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; cook and stir 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cooked vegetables. Serve with roast.

SLOW-ROASTED BEEF

Steps:

• Pat roast dry with paper towels. Rub generously with salt (at least 1/4 cup) and pepper on all sides. Shake the roast gently, allowing any excess salt and pepper to fall off.
• Place a wire rack in a small rimmed baking sheet or lay 5 to 6 metal skewers across a large plate or baking sheet. Place roast on top of rack or skewers, making sure it is fully elevated above the bottom of the baking sheet. Place elevated roast on the bottom rack of your refrigerator, uncovered (or loosely covered with foil, if you are squeamish about raw meat), and let rest undisturbed for at least 24 hours and up to 48 hours.
• Transfer baking sheet with elevated roast directly from the refrigerator into a cold oven and set oven temperature to 225 degrees. Cook until the center of the roast reaches 120 degrees for rare, or 130 degrees for medium, as tested with a digital thermometer. Depending on the oven and the exact geometry of the roast, this will take 1 to 2 1/2 hours.
• Remove baking sheet with roast from oven and set on a trivet or on top of your stovetop. Let the roast rest on the baking sheet for at least 30 minutes.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet (any heavy skillet without a nonstick coating will do) over high until lightly smoking. Sear roast, turning occasionally, until well browned on all sides, about 4 minutes total.
• Carve into thin slices with a sharp knife and serve what you'll eat today. When finished, carve remaining roast. Carefully lay fanned slices into zipper-lock freezer bags in layers no thicker than 1/2 inch. Squeeze out as much air as possible and stack sealed bags on an aluminum baking sheet. Place in freezer until completely frozen. Store frozen for up to 2 months.
• To thaw, place one bag of frozen sliced steak on an aluminum baking sheet at room temperature until defrosted, about 45 minutes. It is important to use an aluminum sheet, as the high thermal conductivity of aluminum greatly speeds up the thawing process. Use thawed sliced steak as desired.

BEEF STROGANOFF FROM COOKS ILLUSTRATED

Steps:

• Sour cream can curdle if added directly to hot liquid. To prevent curdling, temper the sour cream by stirring a little of the hot liquid into it and then adding the warmed sour cream mixture to the pan. Buttered egg noodles are the classic accompaniment to this recipe. Add noodles to boiling water at the same time the onion goes into the pan in step 4, so that the noodles and stroganoff will be done at about the same time.
• 1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy-bottomed 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering, but not smoking, about 2 minutes; swirl to coat pan. Add mushrooms and cook over high heat without stirring for 30 seconds; season with salt and pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are lightly browned, about 4 minutes longer. Transfer to medium bowl.
• 2. Return skillet to high heat, add remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil; swirl to coat pan. Place tenderloin strips in skillet. Using tongs, spread the meat into single layer, making sure that strips do not touch, and cook without turning until well-browned on first side, 2 minutes. Turn strips and cook on second side until well-browned, about 1 minute longer. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to bowl with mushrooms.
• 3. Add beef broth to skillet, scraping up browned bits on pan bottom with wooden spoon; simmer until broth is reduced to 1/4 cup, about 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer broth to bowl with mushrooms and beef, scraping skillet clean with rubber spatula.
• 4. Return skillet to medium-low heat and add butter; when butter foams, add onion, tomato paste, and brown sugar. Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is lightly browned and softened, about 6 minutes; stir in flour until incorporated. Gradually whisk in chicken broth and wine; increase heat to medium-high and bring to boil, whisking occasionally, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes. Whisk liquid from mushrooms and beef into sauce and simmer to incorporate. Stir about 1/2 cup of hot sauce into sour cream, then stir mixture back into sauce. Add mushrooms and beef; heat to warm through, about 1 minute. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper and serve over buttered egg noodles.

EASY DELICIOUS SLOW COOKER ROAST BEEF

Steps:

• Put Roast Beef into Slow Cooker.
• Cover with Soup Mix.
• Sprinkle with the Black Pepper.
• Top with the three Bay Leaves.
• Cook on Med-Low in a Slow Cooker for 8-9 hours-- OR 3-4 hours on High.
• OPTION: Add Carrots, Onions, and Potatoes the last couple of hours if on Med-Low or the last hour if on high-- NOTE**add the veggies in the order given since the Carrots take longer to cook and the potatoes the least time.
• Make gravy from drippings.