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Oven Cookery Notes
25
The secret of succulent, tender meat, is not to roast quickly at
too high a temperature. Best results are obtained when
roasting is carried out at low temperatures. When a lower
temperature is used, the joint loses less weight, is more ten-
der (too high a temperature causes meat to be tough and
dry), and the splashing of fat onto oven interior is reduced.
When a complete meal is being cooked in the oven, cooking
time may need to be increased, and temperature may need
to be raised for approximately the last 30 minutes of the
cooking period (for instance when cooking Yorkshire pud-
ding to serve with roast beef).
The times and temperature suggested should be used as a
guide but may vary according to:–
1. Whether you prefer meat rare, medium or well
done.
2. The size and shape of your joint.
a) A short thick joint requires a longer cooking
period than a long thin joint.
b) A small joint under 1.5kg (3lbs) takes longer per
450g (1lb) than a large one, whereas a large
joint over 3kg (6lbs) will cook in the time given
for ‘minutes’ per 450g (1lb) without the ‘minutes
’
over added.
c) Boned/rolled and stuffed joints take longer to
cook through than those with a bone. (The
weight of stuffing should be added to the oven
ready weight of meat/poultry to calculate
roasting times.)
Never use meat pans larger than 390 x 300mm (15”x12”) and
baking trays no larger than 330x255mm (13”x10”), these
should be positioned centrally on the oven shelf. Food
should not be placed directly on the floor of the oven. To
avoid unnecessary cleaning, rod shelves which are not in use,
should be removed from the oven.
Temperature and
Time
Meat pan and rod
shelves