The perfect Sunday roast

After living with an English partner for many years, I’ve adopted the tradition of the Sunday roast — but with a little twist. For me, the perfect Sunday roast will consist of a big hunk of perfectly cooked rib of beef, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding and, of course, gravy and trimmings.

INGREDIENTS

1.5kg beef rib roast or topside

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 teaspoons chilli flakes

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt flakes, plus extra to season

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to drizzle over beef

5-6 french shallots, halved

2 carrots, roughly chopped

2 celery stalks, roughly chopped

1 garlic bulb, separated into cloves

peas, to serve

roasted potatoes, to serve

GRAVY

25g butter

2 tablespoons plain flour

250ml red wine

250ml beef stock

salt, to taste

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

METHOD

Remove the beef from the refrigerator 1 hour prior to cooking to let it come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Mix the garlic, chilli flakes, pepper and salt together then spread on a baking tray. Roll the beef over the mixture until evenly coated. Drizzle the extra oil over the beef.

Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium–high heat and brown the beef all over, turning often, about 10 minutes.

Put the shallots, carrot, celery and garlic cloves in a roasting tin in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place the beef on top of the vegetables. Cook for 1 hour or so for medium. Adjust the timing accordingly to cook the beef to your liking, for medium–rare, reduce 5–10 minutes cooking or leave the beef in there for another 15 minutes for well done.

Remove the tin from the oven, transfer the beef to a board, cover with foil and let it rest for 15 minutes or so. Remove the garlic and half the shallots from the tin and set aside, scoop out and discard the remaining shallots, carrot and celery, but keep the pan juices.

Meanwhile, to make the gravy, place the tin over a medium heat and heat the butter until frothy. Add the flour and keep stirring to cook the flour taste out, about 2 minutes. Add the red wine to deglaze the tin and whisk until smooth. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the base of the tin to dislodge any caramelised bits. Let it simmer until the liquid has reduced by half, about 2 minutes, add the stock and simmer over a low heat until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper, then strain the gravy through a fine sieve into a gravy jug.

Slice the beef and serve with the gravy, roasted potatoes and peas.

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