National Post (National Edition)
David Rocco goes back to his roots in latest cookbook.
Canadian television personality David Rocco will be the first to tell you that he’s not a chef — he’s Italian. The host of Avventura: Journey in Italian Cuisine and Don’t Forget Your Passport, Rocco learned to cook growing up in an Italian family in Toron
ROAST BEEF WITH FLAVOUR This is my mother’s recipe. I like to use it because it’s easy and makes a very flavourful roast beef. Because a roast is a big, round hunk of meat that gets cooked whole, the meat itself can be a bit flavourless. But her recipe fixes the problem, with a technique that is easy and very low-tech. My only note is that it may look like you’re using too much salt, garlic and rosemary. But don’t worry. The flavours disperse through the thick part of the meat, giving the whole thing a wonderful flavour.
3 lb (1.5 kg) oven roast, like sirloin tip roast or round roast
1 head garlic, separated and all but 2 or 3 cloves peeled
10 sprigs of fresh rosemary, plus extra for searing beef Kosher salt, QB 1/4 cup + 1/2 cup (60 + 125 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (60 mL) Tuscan herb mix (finely chop equal amounts of fresh rosemary and sage, with a good pinch of salt)
1 bottle (3 cups/750 mL) dry white wine Soffritto (optional)
3 tbsp (45 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely diced 2 carrots, finely diced 2 talks celery, finely diced Salt Freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
2. With the blade of a chef’s knife, poke ten 3-inch-deep (7.5 cm) holes in the beef at regular intervals. (You can make the holes with the handle of a wooden spoon if you want; the goal is to make sizable holes that you can fill with aromatics.) Then, with your fingers, push a whole peeled garlic clove, a sprig of rosemary and as much salt as you can into each of the holes.
3. Once that’s done, put the roast into a deep frying pan or Dutch oven. Rub the roast all over with 1/4 cup (60 mL) of olive oil, and then pour on the Tuscan Herb Mix and massage it in.
4. Put your pan on the stove and turn the heat up to high. Then pour in the remaining 1/2 cup (125 mL) of olive oil and start searing the roast on all sides. To the oil, add 2 or 3 unpeeled garlic cloves (leaving the skin on prevents the garlic from burning and becoming bitter) and some extra rosemary.
5. Once the beef is seared on all sides and has a nice golden colour, pour in the wine. Cook for about 5 to 8 minutes, basting the roast a few times.
6. Once the wine is reduced by half, carefully transfer the pan to the oven and let the roast finish cooking there, about 30 minutes for medium-rare.
7. Remove the pan from the oven and let the roast rest for 15 minutes before serving.
8. To serve your roast with a soffritto (optional): After the meat goes into the oven, heat about 3 tbsp (45 mL) of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the onion, carrots and celery. Season with a little salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes.
9. When the roast is done, you can pour the soffritto into the pan with the juices and let it rest with the meat for 15 minutes before serving. Serves 6 to 8 National Post