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.


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