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Why You’ll Love My Recipe
Ready for a perfect Sunday roast? Give this cross rib roast plenty of time to roast slowly, and you’ll have a tender and juicy main dish. With the addition of some roasted vegetables and a thick gravy, this is the perfect meal to end the week.
Make sure to learn How to Make Crock Pot Bone Broth to use in your cross rib roast. Also, don’t forget to make your own Onion Soup Mix for the gravy and make a batch of Traditional Yorkshire Pudding for dipping in that yummy gravy.
Reader Review
Lovin’ this recipe..along with a few more I have tried!! Soooooooo many well explained & well thought out recipes. WOW!!! Even at almost 80..the kitchen is still MY fav room in our home..it may be small..but it works & so do all the recipes I have tried from your vast collection Karlynn.
I still make & bake the tried & true recipes of my Mom..but have to admit.. I enjoy & always have..of trying & making new recipes as well.
Keep up the excellent work!!
ALL THE BEST to you & yours..
Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
- Skill Level: This recipe is easy in terms of skill level, but will require patience.
- Total Time: This roast will take between 5-6 hours from start to finish, but most of that is cooking time. So get it started early but then you won’t have much hands-on work to do.
- Variations: The seasonings and vegetables in this recipe are fairly standard, traditional choices. You can customize these according to your own preferences. This is a perfect recipe for herbs like sage and savoury. You can adjust the amount of garlic to your heart’s content. You can also use almost any vegetables, especially root veggies. Beets, turnips, parsnips, squashes, etc. will all roast well.
- Tools Needed: For this recipe, you’ll need a large roasting pan with lid or a Dutch oven, two small bowls, a whisk, a spoon, and a small pot.
What You’ll Need For Ingredients
Roast: You’ll need a 3-4 pound piece of beef for this recipe, and the instructions are optimized for a cross rib roast specifically. If you choose a different cut of beef, adjust your timing accordingly.
Seasonings: This recipe includes beef broth and onion soup mix, both of which can be homemade or store bought. Rosemary and thyme are both herbs that work amazingly well with most meats, especially beef. You can use fresh or dried. Remember that dried herbs will give you intense flavour with just a small amount whereas you may need a larger volume if you use fresh herbs.
Vegetables: The staple vegetables to cook with a roast are usually onions, potatoes, carrots, and celery. We’ve added mushrooms for this one, and you can add basically any root vegetable. Beets, squash, sweet potato, parsnip, and turnip all work well with roasts. You can also throw in something a bit more flavourful, like fennel or celeriac. The more colors and shapes you’ve got in there, the better the meal will look and the more nutrients you’ll be loading up on.
Gravy: One of the easiest ways to make a gravy is to take some of the drippings from the bottom of the roaster and add a cornstarch slurry. If you find your drippings too greasy, feel free to use a packet of whatever gravy mix you like and make it according to the package directions.
How To Make a Cross Rib Roast
This is a brief overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients and step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Pat roast dry and set it in roaster.
- In a bowl, mix the butter, garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper into a paste. Spread the paste over the top and sides of the roast.
- Roast uncovered for 20 minutes. Lower the heat to 325°F.
- In a small bowl, whisk together beef broth, onion soup mix, rosemary, and minced garlic. Pour the mixture over the roast, making sure to cover it fully. Cover the roast and cook for 3 more hours.
- Add vegetables to roaster, arranging them around the meat and in the gravy. Cook for a further 1-2 hours.
- When roast is tender and vegetables are cooked, remove them from the roaster and put them on a platter.
- Make a gravy with some of the drippings in the roaster. Serve meat, vegetables, and gravy together.
Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for Making Cross Rib Roast
Don’t Overcook: Like most large pieces of beef, you run the risk of turning your roast into a dry and tough chunk of meat if you aren’t paying attention. This recipe calls for a low temperature and several hours of slow roasting, which should ensure a tender and juicy end result. Just check the internal temperature and tenderness of the roast frequently. Remember that the meat will also cook a tiny bit more as it rests.
Make the Gravy: This is a recipe that will reap glorious benefits from a homemade gravy. The rich flavours and added moisture will be well worth the few minutes of effort that it takes to make the gravy yourself. Plus when you use the drippings straight from the roasting pan, you get another layer of all the herby flavours that you added to the beef.
Storage Instructions
Fridge: Store leftover roast and vegetables in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Freezer: If you pre-slice your meat before freezing it in a sealed container or freezer safe bag, it’ll be easy to take out and defrost as needed. You can store it in the freezer for several months.
More Delicious Roast Recipes
Looking for more tasty ways to cook Roasts?
Try this Beef Coca Cola Pot Roast, AKA “Pop” Roast! or a Roast Beef on the Barbeque.
Making a Dutch Oven Pot Roast or Beer & Mushroom Instant Pot Pot Roast will guarantee you tender and juicy meat.
There you go, folks. An easy recipe to make for a traditional and delicious Sunday dinner. Try it out and let me know how you like it.
Happy Cooking!
Karlynn
Cross Rib Roast
Ingredients
- one 3-4 pound cross rib roast
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Gravy
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons onion soup mix
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
Vegetables
- 3 large Russet or white potatoes, cubed
- 2-3 large carrots, cut into one-inch pieces
- 3-4 stalks celery, cut into one-inch pieces
- 1 large white onion, peeled then quartered
- 1 pound fresh button mushrooms, cleaned
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Pat the cross rib roast dry then place the roast into a lidded roasting pan or Dutch oven. Make sure that the roaster or Dutch oven is large enough to add a lot of vegetables around the roast later!
- In a bowl, mix the butter, garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper into a paste. Spread the paste over the top and sides of the roast.
- Roast uncovered in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, letting the high heat brown the roast all over. Turn down the oven temperature to 325 °F.
- Whisk together the gravy ingredients. Pour around the sides of the beef roast. Place the lid on top and roast for another 3 hours.
- After 3 hours, remove the roast from the oven and add the vegetables around the meat in the gravy. Place the lid back on and return to the oven. Cook for another 1-2 hours, until the vegetables are soft and the meat is fall-apart tender.
- Remove the roast and vegetables to a platter and cover to keep warm while you prepare the gravy.
Gravy
- To make the gravy, take 1/4 cup cold water and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and whisk together until combined.
- Remove the drippings from the pan and spoon into a saucepan. Scrape up and dissolve any brown flavor bits from the bottom of the pan into the liquid while removing. If you used a Dutch oven, simply place the Dutch oven full of drippings on the stovetop.
- Whisk the cornstarch slurry into the drippings quickly.
- Heat, over medium-high heat, whisking continuously, until the gravy has thickened. Remove from heat and place in a gravy bowl.
- To serve, slice the roast and serve with the vegetables, pouring the gravy on top.
JJ says
Terrible recipe. Kitchen Magpie’s oven must be broken if she cooks a 3 to 4lb roast for HOURS at 350. What a waste of a perfectly good roast.
Lois says
I know I can make this better! What I mean is I messed up, I read 3/4 lb roast, not 3-4 lb roast. My roast was only 2 lbs, so it didn’t need as much time as the recipe called for. I took it out at the 3 hour mark (3 hours at 325 after 1/2 hour at 425) and my liquid was gone! I added more broth and some red wine and scraped up all the bits. Unfortunately the bits were a bit burnt, so I added more broth and got an acceptable gravy. The meat was very tender and flavorfull, a tad dry. I cooked my veggies separately, as the roast was NOT going back into the oven. My fault. I will try again, and the leftovers made a fantastic beef stroganoff, so not a total waste. It’s a great recipe, just need to read better Lol!
Jenn says
I found it to be flavourful, but too much salt, I would use half next time. Also, even though I followed the instructions/recipe to the letter, my roast was overdone and dry.
jack says
here comes the airplane open ur mouth Anyone should appreciate these these tips..
jack says
google you can
hurruhhh
Heidi says
It is impossible to print the recipe without the ads covering the instuructions.
Mr. Kitchen Magpie says
You click the print recipe button and it will allow you to print it without ads. The ads make our recipes free for you, so we need them present but I hope they aren’t TOO annoying.
Carol says
Lovin’ this recipe..along with a few more I have tried!! Soooooooo many well explained & well thought out recipes. WOW!!! Even at almost 80..the kitchen is still MY fav room in our home..it may be small..but it works & so do all the recipes I have tried from your vast collection Karlynn.
I still make & bake the tried & true recipes of my Mom..but have to admit.. I enjoy & always have..of trying & making new recipes as well.
Keep up the excellent work!!
ALL THE BEST to you & yours..
Jeneen Hill says
your instructions are confusing- add the gravy at the beginning? please clarify- beginning cook here!
scott says
maybe too many osky we-we’s
scott says
how can someone ask for feedback and not answer?
Nanette says
Can you provide an online equivalent fresh amount of Rosemary and thyme to replace dried for the roasting and for the gravy?
B says
calories?
jack says
yes food contains calories