Roast Beef with Gravy
This is a very simple recipe for a joint of beef roasted to medium so that it is pink at its centre, along with a gluten‑free gravy.
The gravy is made with onions that have cooked alongside the beef, the cooking juices, instant gluten‑free gravy granules, red wine, and mustard. If you need gravy in a pinch and don’t have any stock to hand, instant gravy granules are very handy. All you need to do is mix up some instant gravy, stir in the cooking juices from the meat, a splash of wine, some tomato purée, and a little mustard. It’s fool‑proof. I’ve definitely had times when I’ve been glad to have gluten‑free instant gravy granules in the cupboard, so I wanted to share how I use them.
If you don’t have any instant gluten‑free gravy granules, you have a couple of options. You can thicken the gravy with a roux — a paste made from butter and gluten‑free plain flour — or you can use a slurry made with cornflour and the cooking juices or stock.
For this recipe, if you’re not using instant gravy granules, I recommend substituting a pint of beef stock and thickening your gravy with a slurry made from 3 tablespoons of cornflour mixed with a couple of tablespoons of the stock. This is how I make the gravy for my orange and thyme roast chicken. For this recipe, though, I would recommend skimming the fat off the cooking juices first.
Serve with whatever sides you like with your roast. I never make Yorkshire pudding, but I did find a good recipea good recipe for them. I tend to prefer easy options like creamy mashed potatoes, sweet roasted root vegetables, and steamed green vegetables.
Ingredients
- ~2.3kg beef round roast joint
- sprigs of rosemary
- sprigs of thyme
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 larged onions, sliced
- 570 ml gravy, made with instant gravy according to the instructions
- ~250ml red wine
- ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp tomato puree
- Salt & black pepper
Instructions
- Two hours before you want to cook the beef, take it out of the fridge so it is not chilled when you cook it — this helps the meat stay tender. Put the leaves from one sprig of rosemary and two sprigs of thyme into a pestle and mortar, together with a peeled clove of garlic, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ¼ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper (or 3–4 peppercorns), and ½ tablespoon of extra‑virgin olive oil. Crush into a paste, then rub this paste well into the beef, especially into the fatty part. Cover the joint and leave it on the counter for two hours.
- When ready, heat the oven to 180°C. Add a little olive oil to a pan and heat it on the stovetop until the oil is searing hot. Put the beef joint into the pan, fat side down, and sear until nicely browned. Then turn it over and brown the joint all over.
- Grease a roasting tin with a little oil. Place the sliced onions in the tin along with a bruised garlic clove, a sprig or two of rosemary, and a few sprigs of thyme. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then place the seared beef on top.
- Transfer to the oven and cook for 20 minutes per 450g of beef. For a 2300g joint, I roasted it for: 20 + 20 + 20 + 20 + 20 + 5 minutes = 1 hour 45 minutes. I turned the joint and basted it with the cooking juices every 45 minutes.
- Prepare your side dishes while the beef roasts.
- Take the pan out of the oven and let it sit for 5 - 10 minutes. This makes it easier to move the beef onto a serving dish. Choose a dish that isn’t completely flat, as the joint will release more juices while resting, and you’ll add these to the gravy.
- In the roasting tin, the sliced onions should now be nicely cooked and surrounded by cooking juices. Remove the sprigs of thyme and rosemary as best you can and discard them.
- Skim the fat from the cooking juices. The fat will be the slightly yellow oil sitting on top. Skim a spoon gently across the surface, dipping just enough to collect the fat. The fat will look clear and yellowish, while the cooking juices will be brown and opaque. You may remove a little of the juices as you skim — that’s fine, just do your best.
- If the roasting tin is not suitable for the stovetop, transfer its contents to a saucepan. Use a hand blender to blend everything until smooth.
- Next, make up a pint of gravy using the instant gluten‑free gravy granules. Heat the blended cooking juices and pour in the instant gravy. Add the wine, tomato purée, and mustard. Bring to the boil.
- By now, the resting beef will have released more juices — these will be redder than the cooking juices. Pour them into the gravy. Bring to the boil again, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for five minutes. Taste and season. If you want it sweeter, add a little more tomato purée. If you want it sharper, add a little more mustard.
- Finally, strain the gravy through a sieve into a gravy boat or bowl to make it silky smooth. This recipe makes about 1 litre of gravy.
