Roasted Rump!

At the end of the day, there is nothing better than walking into a house that smells like roast - with garlic and roasted vegetables. Trust me. My husband proved it. I used to travel weekly, and would be fully exhausted after too many planes, trains, and hotels. When we were dating, he snuck over to my house to meet me when I returned and made a roasted chicken and vegetables. I would have married him in front of my kitchen sink at that moment.

The butcher's case used to intimidate me. I didn't know what cuts of meat to choose or which ones were for cooking for a long time versus something you could broil or sauté quickly. I am grateful to be living in the age of information technology. Yes, I am the nerd that is looking up recipes in the grocery store leaning over the beef roasts.

Roast is really a wonderful, easy, and versatile meat. The rump roast that we had for dinner tonight was rich and delicious, and because it is somewhat rare, the leftovers are going to be amazing. Now - to show you just how easy it was...

OVEN ROASTED RUMP ROAST

3 Pound Rump Roast (let it warm to room temperature if it is just out of the cooler)

3 Cloves of Garlic cut in half lengthwise
Drizzle of Olive Oil (Or spray)
1 cup of water, or red wine

1 Onion Chopped

Salt and Pepper

Heat your oven to 500 degrees.  Cut 6 slits into the outside of the roast and push the garlic into them. Drizzle about 2 Tablespoons of olive oil over the top, or use an oil mister to spray it.  Rub in the olive oil to distribute evenly.  Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper, or your favorite beef/steak seasoning. I used an iron skillet that worked perfectly, and actually heated the skillet while I was heating the oven. Put the roast in the oven and let it sear for 20 minutes.

Now, after the first 20 minutes, remove the roast from the oven, reduce the heat to 275, and add the onion and 1 cup of water, or red wine. Put the roast back into the oven and cook for 20 minutes per pound (60 minutes for a 3 lb roast).  This should yield a medium to rare roast.  

Let it rest at least 10 minutes and slice.  

I hope you get the chance to make this fabulously easy and fragrant roast beef for someone you love.  Only an hour and twenty minutes for a home cooked roast, where the oven does most of the work.  I am pretty sure that my husband finds it more attractive than most perfume on the market!

It's time to relax and wind down, but tomorrow, I will tell you about the roasted vegetables that went with it!  If you are not an adventurous cook, branch out and buy a rump roast. I'd love to hear what happens when your family comes home to smell this one cooking!

UPDATE - When cooking for 2, sometimes leftovers can be a challenge. No matter how wonderful a dish is, too many leftovers can be boring. This technique for cooking a rump roast was simple, and yielded a flavorful medium rare roast. I used the leftover roast in a Beef and Mushroom Red Wine Sauce served over wide egg noodles. That being said, the roast at medium rare was wonderful, however, heating it again in the wine/mushroom sauce made it a bit tough. Rump roast is cut from the bottom round and is a tougher cut than steak. If you are going to have a significant amount of left over beef, I would recommend either using a braising method or a slow cooker (which I am putting on the list of things to try).

I also wanted to include some temperature/doneness information about beef so that you will be able to properly gauge how "done" your roast is:

Rare - 125 degrees Fahrenheit (52 Celcius)

Medium Rare - 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54 Celsius)

Medium Well - 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 Celsius)

Well Done - 160 degrees Fahrenheit (71 Celsius)

TOUGH BREAKS - Do you have leftover roast that is tough? All is not lost. Cut it into small pieces and cook it low and slow into a soup, stew, or the mushroom red wine sauce. The slow cooker works well for this. 

Here's a quick way to make the mushroom red wine sauce: add beef (chopped into small pieces) chopped onion, sliced mushrooms, mushroom soup, beef broth, red wine, and worcestershire sauce to the slow cooker and cook on high until the entire mixture is hot. Reduce heat to low and simmer for approximately 2 hours or until beef is tender. If you like stroganoff, add sour cream to the mixture. Serve over egg noodles.  

So now, you have the good, the bad, and the yummy resurrection of leftovers for this rump roast. Enjoy the process, and enjoy the beauty of a home that smells of a flavorful home cooked meal!