The garden has taken over our lives. Every day begins and ends with me bent over a garden row picking out weeds, thinning out lettuce, or tying up tomato plants. I usually sneak out with my first cup of coffee before the kids get up to go putter around the nearly 1000 square feet of dirt that is full of high hopes and tomato plants.
I think that I am probably a little insane. 22 tomato plants is probably about 8 more plants than we really need and deep down I know that my time to can quart after quart of tomatoes is not as abundant as I am telling myself it’s going to be. The same goes for everything else in the garden. Four rows of corn, six rows of beans, potatoes, artichokes, broccoli, peppers, even tomatillos. I am certifiable.
Fortunately, my husband is as nuts as I am about this garden and we are looking forward to a glut of vegetables that we have to do something with, and we have plans to donate any excess to a couple of food pantries and other willing recipients around town. I love giving people food. It warms my soul.
So, while we are pulling weeds and squishing hornworms this year we will need a dish or two that can cook largely unattended. A sirloin tip roast is my new favorite cut of meat and perfect for an easy dinner on your day off. There are two different styles of sirloin tip roast, one is a big round cut that could easily be the centerpiece of a fancy meal and the other is a flatter cut that looks more like a chuck roast. Either will work great for this recipe, although the larger roast will take a little more time. This recipe is a riff on prime rib, so when you slice into the meat and it’s red all the way through, please don’t freak out, it’s supposed to be that way.
Ingredients
- 2 pound sirloin tip roast
- 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon black pepper
- ½ Tablespoon sugar
- ½ T chili powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
Parsley Tomato Sauce:
- 1 bunch of Italian parsley stems removed and leaves chopped
- 1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
- 1 clove garlic minced
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- The night before or the morning of the day you plan to cook this roast, sprinkle the roast all over with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Place the roast in a dish and cover. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Remove the meat from the fridge at least 30 minutes before you are ready to cook to allow it to come to room temperature. Meanwhile mix together the seasonings (1 Tablespoon kosher salt through the cumin) in a small bowl. Remove the meat from the dish and pat dry with paper towels. Liberally sprinkle the seasoning mix over the roast and rub into the meat.
- Preheat your oven to 250 degrees. Heat a large cast iron skillet over high heat and add the vegetable oil to the pan. Sear the roast on both sides until a nice brown crust forms, about 3 minutes per side. Place the roast on a rack-lined baking sheet and into the preheated oven. Cook until the internal temperature of the roast reaches about 115-120 degrees (invest in a digital thermometer!), this will take about 30-40 minutes for a flat sirloin roast and about an hour for a thicker roast. Be patient. Once the roast has reached 115 degrees, turn off the oven and leave the roast in the warm oven for 30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 140 – 145 degrees for medium rare (leave it longer if you like but don’t cook the death out of it). Do not open the door as you will let out all of the hot air.
- While the roast is cooking, mix together the remaining ingredients for the parsley and tomato sauce. It should have a nice vinegary bite, but not too much so adjust the oil and vinegar to your taste.
- Remove the roast to a carving board and slice thinly, across the grain, and top with the parsley sauce.
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