Slow Roast Beef

[james]

I rec'd this in the email today, and I have to post it. It sounds great:
James

*********

"I slooowww roasted a prime rib. At the mouth of the oven it's @ 200F and I went out and turned the roast every 15-20 minutes till a 130F internal temp and it turned out to be the BEST R.B. any one of us have ever had!"

[Richard]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

Do you know if the meat was first seared? AT low temp and not seared may have looked a bit 'gray'

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

I am all for slow cooking a pot roast (after searing!) but a prime rib? Interesting...

I wonder about the searing first as well. You need that browning for the best flavor (look up the Maillard reaction for interesting discussions on browning and flavor) not to mention appearance...

Drake

[CanuckJim]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

Drake,

My two cents: I've slow roasted lots of meats in my oven, and I always sear them first, usually in a sauteuse, then degrease the pan with about half a cup of the appropriate color wine. The reduction is added to the poaching liquid/gravy/whatnot.

Jim

[Xabia Jim]

Slow Roasting....

We had just read somewhere about slow roasting meats....like for 24 hours!!

The idea was to set your oven temperature to what you wanted the internal temperature of the meat to come to when done. Apparently the meat underwent taste testing with 100% preference.

With the temperature curves of these wood fired ovens, I think there may be the opportunity to try some meats at relatively low temperatures like this, maybe even with a small fire to maintain some level of heat??

So James, in this case you would have set your oven at 130 to 150 degrees.

This sounds similar...anyone tried this?

Also James, how long did it cook?, was it covered at all, and did you need to turn it so often....definately worth a try!

Thanks

[james]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

I'm only the messenger on this one, but I know the chef and will ask and get more details.

Jim, I like slow-cook, low-heat bean and stews, and my experience is that you should try to use the retained heat from refactory of the oven itself. White cannellini beans in a covered terracotta dish are great. For the longer cook vegetables, I don't think you don't want the smoke of a fire, but rather the warm and moisture heat of the oven itself. Have a huge pizza party to drive a lot of heat into your oven; bake bread first thing in the morning and cook white beans after that.

Of course it would have to be quite a party.
James

[CanuckJim]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

All,

I've done a six pound pork roast when the hearth temp was at 150. Let it go overnight (no fire in the oven). In the morning, the meat was at 130 internal, and the hearth had cooled to about 110. However, I do have a lot of mass under my hearth floor, and the mass was at about the same temp.

Jim

[Richard]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

Need to also take into consideration with a very low oven temp that bacteira will be growing if temp too low. as with all things, moderation is best,, would question 24 hour cooking times.

even smoket brisket is down in the 225-275 range when slow cooked for 10-12 hours

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

I had been wondering about food saftey at low temps and found this article:
Slow Cookers and Food Safety

It basically says 170-280 is normal slow cooker range and that it is safe...

Drake

[Xabia Jim]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

CJim, how was that roast?? It's sounds just like the slow roasting I want to try!!

[CanuckJim]

Re: Slow Roast Beef

Jim,

The roast was fantastic, moist, perfectly cooked, and the internal temp was exactly where it should be for safety concerns. A bonus was the braising liquid, half of which I reduced by half, adding a bit of white vermouth, until the bubbles on top of the reducing liquid were shiny and a bit sticky. Great sauce. Had it with Risotto and green beans. Very nice, too.

I used a heavy enamel over cast iron pot, covered tightly, and turned the roast once. There was stock halfway up the roast, and I added aromatics, which I later discarded.

Jim