How do you cook a cross rib roast?

[Michelemarie]

I have the hardest time with roasts, I hear they are easy and good, but mine never are. Alas, I just found out my oven is 15 degrees off, and I just purchased a Polder probe meat thermometer.

Soooooo - tomorrow is roast day. I wasn't planning on it, but the market had cross rib roast on sale - the butcher told me I could do it in the oven. I know nothing about this kind of roast. I am looking for advice - marinade? rub? season? temp? covered? I like it done medium-to-medium-rare. I usually do roasts at 325 with no cover - any suggestions? Any and all are appreciated.

 

[licia]

I'd never heard of a cross rib roast, but did a search on yahoo and several recipes came up.

 

[Michelemarie]

thanks licia, - also did a search and found one recipe on three links - i think that is what i will try -

i read that it is a particularly flavorful roast and can be used for pot roast or roasted like a sirloin roast. to roast, i will rub with balsamic then rub with a herb paste. the recipe says to roast on middle rack at 450 for 15 minutes, then 350 for 35-45, but check at 25 minutes, take out at 130 for medium rare - tent for 25 minutes. i hope its good!

 

[auntdot]

The cross rib roast is from the chuck and should be treated, as others have stated, more as a pot roast, a sirloin or round cut for example, than a cut of meat that can be dry roasted as is.

Google and you will find a number of recipes.

 

[Robo410]

It will be delish as a pot roast with veggies, (onions, potatoes, carrots, parsnips) Marjoram is a great herb for pot roasts.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I just did a bunch of searching on Google for meat charts and specifically, cross-rib roast. Each sit I visited said about the smae thing, that this roast comes from the chuck and can be tough if dry-roasted or cooked by other dry methods. It is best used in a pot roast, where extended moist heat breaks down the connecting tissue and fat, resulting in a more tender meat.

Along with the ubiquitous pot roast (moist heat with veggies) this roast can be cooked as is, with veggies on the side, that is, in a covered pot with a small amount of water, and maybe some garlic cloves pressed into small punctured slits cut with a thin knife. The veggies could be cooked in the same oven as the roast, giving them an oven baked goodness.

It all depends on what you are looking for. If you want the beef flavor to permeate the veggies, then use the resulting meat stock to make gravy, then pot roast it is. If you want the veggie flavor to be seperate from the beef, then bake seperately and serve with a beef gravy made from the roast broth. Both ways are yummy.

Now a question for our UK freinds; would the evironment of a roast with yorkshire pudding be moist enough for this roast?

Also, this roast can be stewed. And it can be made on top of the stove in about an hour by placing in a pressure cooker with about two cups of water. That will garuntee tenderness. You can add the veggies to the pot or not as you preffer. I might even add cabbage, carrots, and celery to make a New England Boiled Dinner out of this roast.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[Michelemarie]

Goodweed - thanks so much for your hard work! Do you happen to know at what temperature the oven needs to be at? Can this be served medium-rare or should I cook all the way through? I like the veggie idea in the pot - will have to see what I have - I know for sure potatoes - one pot dinner, nice!

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Slow and low is the general rule for pot roast, or any braised mead. I wouldn't cook at anything higher than 325. I would thing 300 would be better. And you are looking for a well done roast. The heat and moisture must have time to break down the connecting tissue, collagens, and fats.

To prove a point, I once cooked a pot roast all day at 170 degrees F. (the lowest my oven will go). It didn't brown well, but was very tender and moist. 300 degrees will give you a very nice roast with great flavor. Think of cooking this thing for about three to four hours.

And remember, you can get the same results on top of the stove by using a pressure cooker for an hour. Or, you cna put it int the slow-cooker in the morning and just forget about it for the day. Make sure the slow cooker is on its lowest cooking temerature (not on the keep warm setting).

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[ironchef]

Pretty much what GW said, but don't forget to pan sear it first. I would then braise it with a mire poix, garlic, tomato paste, red wine, beef or veal stock, balsamic vinegar, and a bouquet garni. You can go as low as like 200, cover the pan in foil and let it cook for 7-8 hours. After searing the beef, don't forget to saute your mire poix, garlic, and tomato paste, then deglaze with the liquids to make the braising jus. The bouquet garni could include thyme, parsley, rosemary, peppercorns, bay leaves, and fennel seed.

 

[Michelemarie]

okay you guys, you are gonna think i am nuts, but i thought i would "try" the herb paste and roast method on this cut of meat - i was too curious - i figured there is always take-out if it turned out bad.

i rubbed the 2.5 lb. cross ribeye roast with balsamic vinegar, made a paste of olive oil, rosemary, thyme, pepper, garlic and salt. rubbed that all over it, put it in 450 degree oven for 15 minutes, then let it cook at 350 for about 50 minutes more - til 145 internall temp. let it sit for about a half hour and carved with an electric knife - friends, simply scrumptious - nice herby crusty outside, very tender and juicy inside! i still cannot believe it - the best part, this is a pretty cheap cut of meat! my entire family loved it (hard to please em all!) - the flavor was wonderful! i deglazed the pan drippings with some sherry for and poured over - please, someone try this! it is great!

oh, and please don't take disrespect to me not listening to you, i love crock pot pot roast, make it all the time, i guess that is why i HAD to try this-it didn't make sense to me. PLEASE TRY THIS ONE!

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Michelemarie. There is one thing I stress to everyone I talk to about food. I even state it in nearly all of my recipes in my cookbooks. That is, the things you will learn from me, and from eveyone else on this site, or in any cookbook, or cooking school is simply a base of information.

I learned early in my adult career (electrical engineering technology), that the training you recieve, whether from the military schools, or at university level classes simply prepares you to go into the real world with a base of knowledge that will help you solve the various problems and tasks that lay before you. And that goes for cooking as well.

Like yourself, I have succesfully barbecued and roasted meats that people told me to braise. And there is no disrespect in your not following the advise given. To the contrary, it shows you have the courage to try new and different techniques. That is the hallmark of my cooking. I refuse to take anything as gospel. I try different things with every meal. I log the techniques that work, and discard those that don't. And remember, that not every piece of meat is the same. This time your roast came out great. Next time, using the same method, it may not. It depends on the quality of the meat, its age, marbling, etc.

I have found things that work every time, and found things that work some of the time. If you do a bit of research, you will find that the cross rib roast, also called an English roast can be roasted, grilled, and barbecued, if it is of sufficient quality. Also, tender for one person may be too tough for another. My wife is proof of that. Because of false teeth, she requires exeptionally tender meat and veggies. And to get tha degree of tenderness she needs, often, food must be prepared differently than I would prepare it for myself, or my children. But that's life. And that's the why you must learn as much as you can about as many ways of cooking as you can.

You never know when you will have to improvise, to substitute, or to create something that you've never made before, just to satisfy a unique situation.

No, I don't feel it disrespectful of you to not follow my advise. After all, that's just what it is, advise, not gospel. I aplaud you for taking a chance and trying something new.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[Michelemarie]

Goodweed - thanks for your response - I really appreciate yours and everyones advice. Trying this recipe really was out of character for me - that is why I was so excited to share it with you.

You brought up a good point - not all pieces of meat are the same. YOu are exactly right, the next time I do this it may taste like shoe leather (like all my other roasts usually do) . I do plan on purchasing more of these roasts - one for pot roast in the crock and one for beef barley soup. I do remember someone telling me they bbq'd their pot roast and it was delicious, I couldn't fathom the idea!

If you ever get the chance and this type of roast is on sale - try this recipe. I appreciate your advice and look forward to reading more of it. Thanks my friend, for your advice and letting me share my experience with you.

 

[Gretchen]

You can dry roast tough cuts of meat (if this was a ribeye, it is NOT a tough cut of meat) quite well IF you don't overcook them and you cut them against the grain. A sirloin tip is absolutely delicious roasted rare--better NOT to pot roast this cut. I would have roasted it to only 130* or 135* however.

 

[Michelemarie]

Gretchen, the recipe suggested taking it out at 125-130 degrees, however, I knew my DH wouldn't touch it - so I went to 145 - I made a note to try 140 next time - trying to find an agreeable temp for him and me -

 

[buckytom]

i can't believe there wasn't even 1 joke like "what did you say to make it cross, michele?"

 

[Michelemarie]

first laugh of the day buckytom, thanks!

 

[Gretchen]

The point of cooking the meat to 130* is that after a rest period (which you should always do with a roast to let the juices redistribute into the meat) the temp will have risen to 140*. It continues to cook. So taking it out at a higher temp makes it overdone.

 

[Michelemarie]

Thats what I thought too Gretchen, but this roast only rose 2 degrees in 25 minutes, then started dropping - can't figure it out - but it was good!!

 

[Gretchen]

Buckytom, I posted my pulled pork recipe that you asked for but it doesn't seem to be coming up in the recent list. Let me know if it still doesn't show.

 

[goodspirit]

easy pot roast recipie

Cross rib is a tougher cut of meat and should be cooked as a pot roast! I suggest using a oven cooking bag . I used a turkey size bag added 2 tbs flour inside bag shook bag and added roast then mixed 1 pkt dry onion soup mix with water per instructions on the pkt put roast in bag and poured soup mix on roast . Add favorite veggies carrots celery parnips potatoes and surrounded roast closed bag and two small slits in bag to let the bag vent. cook as per instruction included with cooking bag usually 2 to 3 hours (depending on size of roast) should be fork tender and melt in your mouth