Cutting the beef into large chunks and gently cooking it in a stew is a great way to cook topside. It will become soft and should fall apart if cooked for long enough. Topside has less fat running through it than other cuts, making it leaner, and therefore it would work in a lower-fat stew, casserole or curry.
It's overcooked. Overcooking meat causes it to dry out, and as moisture is lost, the meat gets tougher and so harder to chew. It was cooked at too high a temperature. For soft and tender meat, it's always better to cook it low and slow than to heat it very quickly, which causes the protein in the meat to toughen.
Place in the centre of the oven and roast for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 160°C or 180°C without a fan(gas 4). Continue roasting for 12-15 minutes per 500g reaching a core temperature of 52°C before resting for a medium rare joint.
Cook topside beef covered with foil, this helps prevent the outside from cooking quicker than the inside and locks in the moisture in a similar way that pot roasting does during slow cooking.
First 25% of the cooking time should be at 240°c /475°f Gas Mark 9 then reduced to 160°c /325°f / Gas mark 3 for the rest of the cooking time. Fillets or thin pieces of meat reduce by a few min per kg.
Pot-roasting topside is a great idea because it means slow-cooking the joint in stock, eliminating any toughness in the meat, and the all-in-one method, usually in a cast iron casserole, means less washing-up. Sit the meat on the veg with herbs and aromatics, and try adding wine to the stock before pouring it over.
When cooking a roast in the oven, keep it uncovered until roasted to the desired doneness. After removing from the oven, tent with foil and let stand 15 minutes before carving. This allows the juices to redistribute, preventing them from draining out during carving—and preventing dry, disappointing meat.
To give your meat a flavourful crispy exterior, cook uncovered on a rack set in a shallow roasting pan. Don't add water! Invest in a digital thermometer that lets you monitor the temperature of your roast – or even alert you when it's done – without opening the oven door.
Cook It Slowly
This is certainly true when it comes to notoriously tough cuts of meat like beef brisket and pork shoulder. Cooking these cuts of meat slowly, either by braising, stewing or grill roasting, is the best way to get these tasty cuts of meat meltingly tender.
Each slow cooker meal's cooking time differs depending on the meat and its weight. The low setting is important so you don't overcook it, potentially leaving you with a dry or tough meal.
Topside of beef is a large, lean cut. Both topside and silverside are taken from the hind quarter of the animal, between the rump and leg. The topside muscle, being both lean and quite tender, makes an excellent roasting joint.
One of the best cuts of beef for roasting. Dry aged on the bone for 21 days, our topside is de-boned and ready to roast and easy carve. This beef joint is ideal for a Sunday roast and Monday's cold beef sandwiches.
Topside comes from the inside of the hind leg, between the thick flank and the silverside. Topside is extremely lean and performs best when diced for slow-cooking in a hearty casserole or braise.
Low temperatue cooking is ideal for roasting the best cuts of meat which are lean and very tender.
Simmering in a little bit of liquid or broth is a great way to tenderize. Acidity can also be your friend here. A little bit of vinegar and lemon juice in the liquid can help you tenderize the meat. It adds moisture, but it also cooks the meat.
There are different ways to tenderize meat, including slow cooking, marinating, and pounding. While you can tenderize meat at home using a meat mallet or rolling pin, some manufacturers handle the process by using mechanical tenderization, which involves breaking down the meat's connective tissue with sharp blades.
Cooking for an extended time allows the connective tissue and fat to break down, which not only softens the meat up but also preserves its moisture.
Your meat will be juicier and more tender
The longer cooking time and the low heat complement each other perfectly. As a result, even though the meat is cooked for far longer, it doesn't dry out because the temperature is low. As a result, this is the best way to retain all the natural juices of the meat.
A surefire way to make a tender, juicy pot roast is through braising; that is, cooking the meat in a small amount of liquid in a tightly covered pot at low temperature.
The oil helps prevent the ground beef from sticking and scorching in the pan, especially if you are using a stainless steel skillet. Use a little extra oil if you're cooking lean beef.
The liquid helps lock in moisture and tenderize the pot roast, but if your beef isn't fully submerged, it's fine.
Beef Roasting
Preheat your oven to 210°C for fan assisted or 230°C for ovens without a fan (gas 8). Season the meat with good quality sea salt just prior to cooking. Place in the centre of the oven and roast for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 160°C or 180°C without a fan(gas 4).
If your roast is not at room temperature, the cook time will be longer. Regardless of the size of your roast, aim for cooking at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), for 20 minutes per pound.
A perfectly cooked beef joint makes a wonderful centrepiece for a Sunday roast or Christmas dinner. To cook it until it's so tender it falls apart, you'll need to choose a joint like chuck and blade or beef brisket and either braise, slow roast or slow cook it for at least a couple of hours.