Ted shuffled out of his cave and grunted these great (and sometimes not
so great) words of knowledge:
The roast was donated by non-cooking friends for a potluck this week. I
said I'd cook it. It's huge. I'm not even sure how many pounds this is.
It's labelled "rump roast" and measures about 8 or 9 inches square,
being 5" thick at one end and 3" at the other. Any suggestions for
cooking times? I've never done a roast this large before and I'm
concerned about either cooking it too long and having it dry out (esp
that thinner end) or not getting it cooked enough before dinner (7pm
Thursday)



Dawn

I use the "Alton Brown Method" for roasts and have not had a bad one yet.

Wrap the roast loosely in a towel and put back in the fridge. Change
the towel daily for 3 days.

Coat the roast with some olive oil (or Canola or Crisco OIL). I also
roll the roast in a mix of kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper.

Put the roast on a rack in a pan.

Cover with aluminum foil - make sure the foil is crimped against the pan.

Put the roast in a 200 degree oven. That is correct, 200 degrees. Cook
until the desired internal temperature is reached (160 for medium ). I
suggest pulling the roast out 10 degrees before the desired internal
temperature is reached to allow for the temperature rise while resting
and putting the crust on it. Remember, the internal temp is going to
rise about 5 - 7 degrees while it is resting. After the roast is cooked
to your level of doneness, put the oven broiler on at 500 degrees. When
the oven is up to temp, put the roast back in for about 5 - 8 minutes to
get a nice crust on it.

It is going to take about 2 times as long as cooking at 350, however,
the roast is going to come out moist and tender. The 200 degree temp
disolves the tough connective fibers without overcooking the roast. I
use a remote read thermometer - the probe goes in the meat and a cord
goes to an external readout so you can see the temperature without
having to open the oven door and loose the heat.