How to Cook a Bottom Round Beef Roast

Cut away any excessive fat, leaving only a thin covering on the roast. In your palms, rub together 4 tbsp. kosher salt and 1 tbsp. cracked black pepper. Massage this mix onto the beef evenly in a firm rubbing motion. Allow the meat to remain outside the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap, for 1 to 2 hours prior to cooking to get it to room temperature.

Slice the celery into 4-inch pieces and wash. Peel the carrots and cut lengthwise in half and widthwise in half as well. Place these on the bottom of the roasting pan in a flat square pattern. These will raise the roast off the bottom of the pan to keep it from soaking in its own fats and burning.

Heat the oven to 450 degrees. When the beef is at room temperature, place it in the roasting pan on top of the vegetables and put it into the oven. When a brown crust forms on the meat, usually in about 15 minutes, turn the heat down to 300 degrees. From here, slow cooking the meat will allow the flavors to develop. Allow the beef to cook.

Insert your meat thermometer into the side of the beef. In the Tips section is a reference guide to internal temperatures of doneness for cooking larger cuts of beef. For an 8- to 12-lb. roast, a conservative estimate of 17 to 18 minutes per pound of beef will get you to the rare stage.

Remove the roast at 5 to 10 degrees before your desired temperature. This will insure that the beef, which will continue to cook after coming out of the oven, will not overcook. Allow the roast to stand for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the meat to settle and the juices to remain in the beef. To cut the bottom round beef roast, move it to a large plastic cutting board. With a sharp knife, cut the meat against the grain and in thin slices. Serve with some of the pan juices as an au jus or with fresh horseradish.