Roast Beef: Best British Sunday Roast Recipe for 2023

Roast Beef, is the iconic accompaniment for the traditional British Sunday Roast. Here are a few recipes to bring it all together

Come on Singapore. I know you all love a good roast on a Sunday. Expats or non-Expats. Well here’s one for you to try. Here’s my Roast Beef – Sunday Roast.

A British Sunday roast with roast beef is a traditional and hearty meal of British origin. It is a beloved culinary tradition that is often enjoyed by families and friends, especially on Sundays. While it can be consumed on other days, the Sunday roast holds a special place in British culture and is considered a time to gather and enjoy a comforting and delicious meal together.

The centerpiece of the British Sunday roast is typically a succulent roast beef, which is slow-cooked or roasted to perfection. The beef is often seasoned with herbs and spices, and the cooking process allows it to become tender and flavorful. Alongside the roast beef, the meal usually includes an array of accompaniments. Yorkshire pudding, a light and fluffy pastry made from batter, is a staple in a traditional British roast.

Roast potatoes, which are crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, are also commonly served. Additionally, the meal may be complemented with vegetables like carrots, peas, broccoli, and sometimes Brussels sprouts. Gravy made from the pan drippings of the roast beef is poured over the meal, adding a rich and savory touch.

The British Sunday roast is not just about the food; it is a social and cultural event that brings people together. It has been a longstanding tradition in the UK, with variations in different regions and families. Many restaurants and pubs in Britain also offer Sunday roast menus, giving people the opportunity to enjoy this delicious meal even when dining out.

A day of rest, with a beautiful lay-in. Off to the shops to get a few bits and pieces for a big lunch. A lovely lunch with the family, minus Ollie today, and then a little more shopping. The shopping included buying this monster Beef Rib Eye. This thing was like 3″ deep. See what I did with it today, I did Roast Beef – Sunday Roast.

Now to meat aficionados. I know what you will say; “Way too overdone…”, and yes I agree. But with a wife and 2 of three kids that won’t eat medium-rare meat, and with only one rib eye, I was a little stuck. So I came in with a ‘medium well’ as a compromise. Still, indeed it was an amazingly good Roast Beef – Sunday Roast.

There are actually 4 parts to this recipe, as I also did a salad, and three dips as something a little different for a Sunday Roast. I’ll go through each of these one at a time to make it easier.

Quick tip; When you are resting the steak it will give you time to quickly re-heat the sauces, and bowl them up. And to give a quick toss of the salad and plate that too. You might as well, as it is downtime before carving whilst the steak is resting.

Apple Puree & Mustard Sauce Recipe (the top one in the photo):

• 2x cups of apple puree (yes I did cheat today),
• 2x heaped teaspoons of English Mustard,
• 2x teaspoons of red wine vinegar, and
• A good pinch of sea salt and cracked black pepper.

Mix all that together until everything is dissolved. Quick taste test. More salt? A little hotter? More vinegar? Over to you to decide your preference. Roast Beef – Sunday Roast, Phase I.

Cream of Cheese (the one in the middle in the photo):

• 1x carton of thickened cream,
• 1x slab of mature cheddar cheese,
• 2x teaspoons of cornstarch powder, simply mix it into a liquid with cold water, and
• A good pinch of sea salt and cracked black pepper.

Pop the cream in a small pan. Warm that up, and pop in the cheese and sea salt and pepper. Meltdown cheese in the warm cream until it is all dissolved. It may need a little thickening so gradually add a dribble of the dissolved cornstarch and stir for a minute or two. If it starts to thicken, off the heat and set it aside. Roast Beef – Sunday Roast, Phase II.

Cream of Mushroom & Thyme (the bottom one in the photo):

• 20x chestnut mushrooms – simply de-stalk, and roughly chop these,
• 1x carton of thickened cream,
• 10x sprigs of fresh Thyme – simply run your fingers gently down the stalks to dis-lodge the leaves,
• A good pinch of sea salt and cracked black pepper.

Put all ingredients in a small pan. Bring to the boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Leave like that for ten minutes or so, gently bubbling away with the occasional stir. Then hand-blender blitz it until it is smooth. Again if needs be use a little of the remaining corn starch liquid to stir through to thicken this up. This a sauce, not a soup, so you want it to stick to the meat when dipping. Roast Beef – Sunday Roast, Phase III.

The Salad:

• 1x packet of mixed salad leaves,
• 10x small vine tomatoes that I simply cut into quarters,
• 1x small red onions, that I sliced thinly and then broke into individual rings.

Dress this with a dressing made from:

• 1x juice of a lemon,
• 2x tablespoons of red wine vinegar,
• 2x tablespoons of olive oil, and
• A good pinch of sea salt & cracked black pepper.

Give the dressing a good stir and then pour over the salad and give it a good toss. Whack in the fridge to keep nice and cool and to top the leaves wilting. Roast Beef – Sunday Roast, Phase IV.

The Meat:

This is too easy, but let’s do Janet and John, or rather 1, 2, 3:

1. Get the steak out of the fridge early – you should never could meat from cold,
2. Lay some foil on a flat roasting tin, about two times the size of the tin,
3. Pop the steak on there and drizzle with olive oil on all sides,
4. Crack up some Kampot Black Pepper all over, and repeat the oil treatment. You want a rather good coating of pepper on that puppy,
5. And then repeat with sea salt on all sides,
6. Then wrap the sides of the foil over and leave that little monkey alone for an hour or so,
7. When you are ready to cook, unwrap the steak, but keep the foil and the roasting pan,
8. Heat a big pan until it is smoking, and then drizzle some oil,
9. Get the steak in there and side by side (because this thing was THICK) you want to sear it. By that, I mean charring it. This will keep the juices in the meat when you roast,
10. Heat an oven to 200 degrees, and when hot; pop the steak back on the roasting tin in the oven,
11. I did 10 minutes per side and ended up with Medium Well,
12. But if you did 5 minutes only, or less per side of course you will end up with medium, or medium rare,
13. Out of the oven, fold back over the flaps of foil, cover that with a tea towel, and leave that bad boy to rest for 20 minutes or so – again a great trick for keeping the juices in the meat, not all over the carving tray,
14. When rested out he comes, and then back in the pan. Add in the juices of the foil and a knob of butter,
15. Melt that butter, which also reheats the steak at the same time. Then baste that steak with the buttery/meaty juices adding yet more flavour and moistness back into the meat – OH MY GOD, I’m dribbling!!! Do that on both sides for 2-3 minutes or so.

You have now finished all phases of Roast Beef – Sunday Roast. Slice that steak nice and thin, as close to the bone as you can. Warm the two dips again (the mushroom and cheese ones). Toss the salad one more time. Serve and stand back and watch magic happen, as food literally disappears.

It was so good to have just the meat alone as that salt/pepper/butter is killer, but with the dips too it added so much variety to the dinner. And then crack in the acid of the salad to clean the palate, almost sorbet-like, so you can dive into another dip for another taste explosion. NICE!!!

You could plate a family affair as I did, literally throwing it all in the middle with the dips. Or serve individual-like, with separate dips on individual plates. Your choice. I think also that I should have got another steak actually, as this literally did disappear and I had the kids asking for more and more. And not just Oliver. Seems my Roast Beef – Sunday Roast, was a success – ENJOY!!!

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