Roast Topside of Beef

Tender roast topside of beef is a fantastic entree for a traditional Sunday roast dinner. The meat is rubbed with seasoning, and cooked in the oven to juicy perfection.

Jump to:

• Why you'll love it
• Topside of beef / Top round
• Dry rub ingredients
• Instructions
• How much roast beef do you need?
• Calculating cooking time
• Internal temperature
• Searing the meat
• Preparing a beef roast
• Resting the meat
• Serving suggestions
• Leftovers
• You might also like these recipes
• Recipe

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Why you'll love it

• Beef top round is really easy to cook, and this recipe is very straight forward.
• Topside is a very tender, lean cut that most people will love.
• It's a common cut that you will find in many supermarkets, or at any butcher's.
• Roast beef is delicious, and very traditional.
• Serve it with any of your favorite side dishes.
• Leftovers can be repurposed into a range of other dishes.

Topside of beef / Top round

Topside of beef comes from the inner muscle of a cow's thigh, and makes for a lean and tender cut of meat. As far as beef roasts go, it's one of the cheaper cuts that you can buy, but that definitely does not mean that the meat lacks in quality.

Topside is quite very lean with a layer of fat across the top of the roast. The fat will keep the roast juicy and tender as it cooks, giving it a fantastic flavor.

💡 TIP! Topside of beef is also sometimes called a top round roast. Although the names are different, these are actually the same cut of meat.

Dry rub ingredients

Rosemary: Use dried rosemary, or a sprig of fresh rosemary. Adds some flavor to the beef.

Salt + pepper: This basic seasoning combination brings out the flavor of the meat.

Olive oil: The olive oil keeps the surface of the beef nice and juicy.

Mustard powder: The mustard rub adds a lovely flavor to the beef. You can definitely omit this if you prefer.

Instructions

1. Leave the roast at room temperature for 1 hour before cooking.
2. Rub the seasoning and olive oil into the meat.
3. Roast with the fat side up for 20 min at 475 °F / 240 °C / 220 °C fan oven. Then, reduce the temperature to 350 °F /180 °C / 160 °C fan oven. Cook until internal temperature is between 113-158 °F, or 45-70 °C, depending on how much you want it to be cooked (see temperature chart below).
4. Remove the roast from the oven, and leave it on the side for at least 30 min, or ideally up to an hour. The juices will settle back in the meat, and the roast will increase its internal temperature.
5. Slice and serve the roast with your favorite side dishes.

How much roast beef do you need?

If you're entertaining, or cooking a roast dinner for a large group of people, it can be tricky to estimate exactly how much roast beef you need.

The rule of thumb when you buy a roast is to estimate about ½ pound, or 250 g of meat per person if the roast is boneless, or around 1 pound / 450 g per person if the roast has a bone in it.

Keep in mind that the roast will shrink a little during cooking. These estimates are the weight of the roast before cooking.

Here's a handy chart to help you calculate how large a roast you need.

Keep in mind that other factors could apply as well. You can for example cook a smaller roast, and serve it with more side dishes to complete the meal. Or, if your family loves roast beef, you might want to consider cooking a larger roast.

Topside of beef roast weight	Serves how many people
1 kg OR 2 pounds	4-5
2 kg OR 4 ½ pounds	8-10
3 kg OR 6 ½ pounds	12-15

Calculating cooking time

Cooking a topside of beef is very straight forward, however, the cooking time will vary depending on the size of the roast, as well as the doneness you're looking for.

For most roasts, estimate 20 minutes + 20 minutes per pound + 20 extra minutes if you want it medium well.

A 2 pound / 1 kg roast will then take approximately 60 minutes to cook to medium rare, or 80 minutes for medium well.

The best way to make sure that the roast cooks perfect to your liking, is to measure the internal temperature of the meat.

Internal temperature

The best way to cook perfect roast beef is to measure the internal temperature of the roast with a meat thermometer.

Insert the thermometer into the middle of the roast, and remove it from the oven when the temperature reaches your preferred cooking result.

You can use the cooking times estimates above as an approximation, but this is by far the most accurate way to cook any roast meat.

Keep in mind that the internal temperature of the meat will continue to rise while the roast rests. The roast in these images have been taken out of the oven at 113 °F / 45 °C, and rested for about 40 minutes before being sliced.

Doneness	Temperature to take it out of oven	Temperature after resting
Rare	113-122 °F (45 - 50 °C)	131-140 °F (55 - 60 °C)
Medium	140-150 °F (60-66 °C)	150-158 °F (66 - 70 °C)
Well	152-158 °F (67 - 70 °C)	158-167 °F (70 - 75 °C)

Searing the meat

You will often find that recipes using beef encourage you to sear the meat in a pan before roasting. This is done to seal in the juices, and to caramelize the natural sugars in the meat.

Searing beef amplifies the natural flavors of the beef, and can make it more flavorful. In this recipe, to make it a little easier, we skip the step of searing the beef. Instead, we roast the beef at a high temperature for a few minutes, before reducing the temperature in the oven. The effect is similar to searing the meat beforehand.

Preparing a beef roast

When cooking a topside of beef, you want to prepare the meat first by leaving it out of the refrigerator, and bringing it to room temperature.

This is completely safe, and a very common way to roast any meat. By allowing it to warm up to room temperature before you transfer it to the oven, you will get a much juicier roast with a more even cooking result.

The idea is that if the entire roast is at room temperature, the roast will reach your desired cooking result faster, without drying out the surfaces or sides of the roast.

When preparing the roast, make sure you don't leave it in direct sunlight or any other warm area. Simply leave it in a shaded part of your kitchen for about an hour before cooking it.

Resting the meat

Resting the meat after roasting might seem like an unnecessary step, but it's a very crucial part of cooking the best roast beef topside.

When the meat is resting after cooking, two very important things will happen.

First, the juices will settle back into the meat. If you've ever cut into roast beef fresh from the oven, you will know that the juices will drip all over your cutting board. Instead of wasting these juices, we want them to stay in the meat.

Second, the meat will finish cooking. You will actually remove the roast from the oven before the meat has cooked through, and the cooking process will finish while the meat rests.

So, giving the beef time to rest after roasting results in an evenly cooked, tender and juicy roast topside of beef.

Serving suggestions

Roast beef can be enjoyed with a variety of sides. I've added some of my favorite recipes here. If you want to see more suggestions, check out What To Serve With Roast, or my collection of side dishes.

• Instant Pot Green Beans - Easy steamed green beans are perfect to serve with roast beef.
• Healthy Mashed Potatoes - These creamy mashed potatoes are a family favorite.
• Sauteed Red Cabbage - A British classic which is super easy to make.
• Air Fryer Carrots - You'll love these easy carrots with a Parmesan garnish.
• Red Wine Jus - Make this easy red wine sauce with the beef drippings.

Leftovers

Store leftover roast topside of beef for up to 3-4 days in a refrigerator. You can serve the beef cold or warm, either as an entree, or use it in other dishes such as sandwiches, salads or casseroles.

You can also freeze leftover roast beef topside for up to 3 months. Defrost frozen roast in a refrigerator overnight, and serve it however you please.

💡 TIP! Freeze leftover roast beef in individual slices, rather than as a whole joint. Slices are easy to defrost individually, perfect for easy roast beef sandwiches.

You might also like these recipes

• Air Fryer Steak
• Slow Cooker Gammon in Coke
• Air Fryer Whole Chicken
• Honey Glazed Roast Chicken
• Air Fryer Pork Roast
• Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin

If you make this recipe, make sure to post a photo to Instagram with #hintofhealthy!

Recipe