How To Roast Bolar Blade Beef with Roast Veggies and Garlic Broccolini
Cooking time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Hi reader! Welcome to my first ever post. It was the grand final for the football today in Melbourne, where I'm from, and even though we've now entered Spring, it was such a cold day! It barely hit 16 degrees. So, because it's also the weekend and the air was filled with the feeling of a long weekend, I figured, why not make a Saturday roast - Just to stir the pot.
Just kidding, I am not that bad with puns. I was at my local woolies and I wanted to make this blog, these recipes, and my cooking advice, as authentic as possible. We all wish we could pinpoint that homely flavour and aroma that comes from home cooking. So I'll do my best to portray it here. On the topic of being realistic though, the only reason I picked up the Bolar Blade Beef, was because it said 'Ready To Roast' on the label, and it was quite a lot cheaper than the other beef cuts and I really didn't feel like lamb or pork. But, alas, a roast is a roast.
This is one of the most delicious, quick and easiest roast's I've ever produced, and I entirely winged it. So let's hope this first recipe reads as straightforward as it was to cook it. I'll put some tips and tricks at the end, but honestly, this is super easy, and depending on the size of the roast, will feed a lot of people (or last for many lunches throughout the following week). I apologise because I only had the idea to post this recipe halfway through- so I don't have many photos, but please bare with me! My first ever post, enjoy.
Ingredients
1-1.5 kg piece of bolar blade beef
Whole garlic (or around 8 cloves)
1 white onion
Extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of butter
2 tablespoons Creole seasoning (or any flavoured salt or rub)
Salt + Pepper
Drizzle of honey
2 lemons
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 cups of liquid beef stock
2 carrots
About 6 medium sized potatoes
Bunch of broccolini
Teaspoon of rosemary
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees (Fan-forced).
1. I always like to prepare first, so peel the garlic and chop the ends off, but make sure you keep the cloves whole. You're going to take two of the cloves though and separate them from the rest of the garlic. Chop these cloves roughly and set aside for later. Chop up the onion finely. Slice the lemons thinly. Peel the carrots and wash the potatoes and set aside.
2. Once most of your veggies are ready to go, place two tablespoons of oil, the creole seasoning, cumin, garam masala, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar in a small bowl. Stir well and add salt and pepper. Feel free to sweeten or salt depending on taste. This will be your baste for the beef! Prepare a deep roasting tin or dish with aluminium foil or just grease the pan with oil- up to you. I used foil because it's easier to cover the beef later on for the resting period.
3. Heat up a large (deep) frying pan on medium heat with oil (or butter). Once this is hot, add the whole garlic cloves and diced onion. Simmer until they're browning, and then place the entire beef roast in the pan. Let sit for about 30 seconds on each side, browning off the meat. You don't want it to cook fully through, but make sure most of the outside is no longer pink.
4. Pick up the browned beef with tongs and place in pan. Rub the pre-made spice mix all over the beef. Pour the left over onion and garlic from the pan over the beef as well. Place 1 lemon's worth of slices over the beef, and then pour the stock in as well. Place the beef in the pre-heated oven for 50 minutes.
5. Make sure every 25 minutes you check on the beef and use a ladle or spoon to scoop some of the liquid and cover the beef again. It should self-sauce but this just helps with keeping the meat moist. If you're aiming for medium-rare, pull the beef out at 50 minutes. If you want it cooked longer, or if it's a larger cut, 60-70 minutes should do. It should be easy to tell when it's ready though because you'll be checking and re-distributing the liquid every 25 minutes anyway. Once you do pull out the beef though, make sure to leave it sit for at least 20-25 minutes. This will ensure it soaks up all the liquid and doesn't dry out. Whilst letting it rest, cover it in aluminium foil to keep the heat in.
6. Whilst the beef is cooking, let's finish off our veggies! Prepare another roasting tray with some oil and/or baking paper. I love keeping potatoes whole and skin-on! when I roast them, but it's personal preference. Either cut them up into quarters or if you're leaving the skins on, halves. I had baby ones so I left them whole. Chop up the carrots, and place it all in your dish. For the veg, sprinkle over salt + pepper to taste, and the teaspoon of rosemary. I then place the slices of my other lemon over the top and a drizzle of honey and olive oil. Place in the oven with the beef for 25 minutes.
7. I also fried up some sweet-potatoes. I usually just peel and chop up sweet potatoes and prepare it exactly like the rest of the veggies. But today, I had a can of Sugary Sam's Sweet Potatoes in Syrup, which, I'm going to be real with you, isn't that great for you. But I love the taste of soft and mushy kumara! So I just pour this into a small pan - liquid and all - and wait til it comes to a boil. But, if you want to include fresh sweet potato, feel free to peel, chop up, and add to the rest of the veg before cooking.
8. I usually wait until my beef is resting to prepare the broccolini just because it's quite quick. Fill up a small saucepan with water halfway. Heat up on medium heat and place the broccolini in the pot. The water doesn't need to cover the broccolini.
Put a lid on and let steam for approximately 10 minutes. When it's looking soft and cooked, take the lid off and drain any excess water. Put a tablespoon of butter and the pre-chopped garlic in the pot on top of the broccolini. Replace the lid and keep on high heat for another 5 minutes, until the butter is melted through. Take off heat and stir.
9. Remove the veggies from the oven and use a fork to make sure the potatoes are soft and cooked through. Remember to cover the beef and let it rest!
After the beef has been resting, covered, for 20 minutes, you can place it on a chopping board and slice it up. If you don't have fancy meat cutting tools - don't fret, I just use tongs to hold it in place and an ultra sharp knife. When serving, pour the sauce / cooking juices from the pan over the beef. It's better than gravy!
Voila! I hope you enjoy.
Tips and Tricks
-If you don't have creole seasoning, or anything of the like, feel free to use any steak rub, or variation of a mixed salt. You can make up your own with salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, basil, bbq sauce, anything you have on hand. Just remember to taste test first!
-I chucked a few fresh leaves of basil in with the lemons just before I put the beef in the oven, but this was because I had it on hand. It's entirely up to you if you want to add some fresh herbs on top.
-Definitely serve with bread if you like soaking up those extra juices!
-The sauce that the roast produces is just divine, and feel free to pour some of the whole lemon slices and garlic cloves over the beef when serving as well. I like it when I can taste all of the rich flavours in one mouthful!
-If you don't have any brown sugar on hand, maple syrup works just as well!
Thanks for reading, and hopefully it tastes just like home.
Lynz
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