If you are looking to feed a crowd this holiday season, make this flavourful Holiday Roast Beef with Gravy! An inside round roast is coated in a garlic, rosemary, and thyme mixture and is baked with sliced yellow onions. Serve this seasonal recipe with an easy homemade gravy for the best holiday dinner ever!
Recipe developed in collaboration with Langley Farm Market.
A Festive and Seasonal Main Dish
There is nothing like a hearty roast dinner for the holidays, and this year, I decided to make a roast beef. This roast beef is perfect for winter dinners since it uses seasonal herbs including rosemary and thyme, as well as onions and garlic that are in season right now. These flavours are so classic and go together perfectly in this recipe, especially when smothered with a homemade beef gravy!
I used an inside round roast in this recipe, but it will also work with other roasts, such as a sirloin tip roast. As long as the meat is tied into a nice shape, it will work for this recipe. Coasting it with chopped herbs and garlic creates an incredibly flavourful crust and it looks stunning as well!
Tips for Cooking the Perfect Roast Beef
We are saying goodbye to dry roast beef in this recipe! This Holiday Roast Beef with Gravy is incredibly juicy thanks to the cooking method that I use:
- Take the beef out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking: This allows the beef to come up to room temperature, which ensures it will bake evenly.
- Roast in the centre of the oven: Adjust your oven rack to the centre before roasting the beef. This will cook the beef more evenly and will prevent the herbs and garlic from burning.
- Roast on high heat for 20 minutes: This high heat at the initial cooking stage will create a crust on the outside of the beef, which helps to lock in the juices.
- Reduce the heat and continue to roast: Reducing the heat will allow the beef to cook through evenly, and at a slower pace. This also helps to ensure that the meat is tender and the outside herb and garlic crust does not burn.
- Let it rest: After the roast is done cooking, let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute in the meat. You will lose less juices when you go to slice it.
Follow these steps for a delicious and juicy Holiday Roast Beef with Gravy!
Find All the Ingredients You Need At Langley Farm Market
Langley Farm Market is a fabulous grocery chain here in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Pretty much all of my latest recipes that you see here on the blog has been made with ingredients from Langley Farm Market. I love their focus on sourcing local and seasonal produce, dairy, meats, and bakery products and I am always so inspired whenever I go shopping there!
Check out their locations in Burnaby, Coquitlam, Richmond, Maple Ridge, and Pitt Meadows if you are in British Columbia!
Get the Recipe: Holiday Roast Beef with Gravy
Holiday Roast Beef with Gravy
Ingredients
For the Beef:
- 1 inside round roast 3 pounds, tied with string
- 1 tablespoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons fresh rosemary stems removed, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme stems removed, finely chopped
- 2 yellow onions finely sliced
- 1 cup beef broth
For the Gravy:
- 1 ½ cups beef broth
- Pan drippings from the roasting pan
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
Instructions
- Remove the roast from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking to rest at room temperature. Pat dry with a paper towel and season all sides evenly with the salt and pepper.
- Add the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and thyme in a small bowl and mix to combine.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Adjust the oven rack so that it in in the centre of the oven.
- Spoon the herb and garlic mixture over the roast, making sure to coat the top and the sides, but not the ends. Press the mixture lightly into the roast using your hands to ensure the herbs and garlic stick.
- Place the sliced onions in the bottom of a roasting pan and place the roast on top.
- Place the roast in the centre of the oven. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, remove from the oven and add 1 cup of beef broth to the bottom of the roasting pan. Return to the oven, reduce the heat, and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes. The cooking time will depend on the size of the roast and your desired doneness (see recipe note below).
- Remove the roast from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Cover with aluminum foil and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- While the roast is resting, prepare the gravy. Combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl to make a cornstarch slurry and set aside.
- Add the remaining 1 ½ cups of beef broth to a small pot and carefully pour in the juices from the roasting pan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add the cornstarch slurry to the pan, whisking as you pour it in. Whisk to combine and bring to a boil to thicken the gravy. Add more or less cornstarch slurry to achieve your desired gravy thickness. Reduce the heat to low to keep the gravy warm as you carve the roast.
- Use a sharp knife to remove the strings from the roast and discard. Slice the roast beef into slices and arrange on a platter with the roasted onions from the pan. Serve immediately with the warm gravy and enjoy!
Notes
- Medium Rare – to achieve a medium-rare roast, you will want an internal temperature of 135 degrees.
- Medium – to achieve a medium roast, you will want an internal temperature of 145 degrees.
- Well Done – to achieve a well done roast, you will want an internal temperature of 160 degrees.