Sunday roasts are very traditional in England. Around 2pm, the whole family sits around the dinner table to enjoy their Sunday lunch. The roast is often beef roast, whole chicken, pork roast, or leg of lamb. Next up is the roast potatoes, the Yorkshire puddings, and a large selection of veggies, all topped off with gravy.
This is a step-by-step guide, including recipes, to creating the perfect roast.
Cooking times may vary depending on the size of your roast.
Beef: 2-3 lbs 1.5-2 hours
Chicken: 3-4 lbs 1.5-2 hours
Pork: 20 minutes per pound
Lamb: 20 minutes per pound
Here’s what you do:
Preheat the oven to 180°c / 350°f.
Peel and chop large potatoes into 4’s, roughly 4 quarters per person. Boil the potatoes in a saucepan until they are just tender, you don’t want them to be overly soft. Drain the potatoes and set to one side.
Once you have decided what meat you would like to cook, place it in a deep baking pan, (Preferably a metal pan) and season with salt and pepper. Add your potatoes to the same pan as the meat. Add 1 tbsp of oil per 4 quarter of potatoes. Use a spoon to apply a thin coat of oil over the potatoes, add more oil if necessary. Cook the meat and potatoes for the time directed above. About half way through the cooking time, take the dish out of the oven and use the juices of the meat to coat the potatoes.
Half an hour before the meat finishes, have your Yorkshire pudding batter ready.
Yorkshire Puddings
- Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 115g / 4oz plain flour
- 285ml milk
- Salt and Pepper
- Vegetable oil
In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients (except the oil) and whisk until it forms a smooth batter. Now, let the batter sit for 30 minutes.
Once the meat has finished cooking, take it out of the pan, and let it sit on a chopping board. The potatoes should be golden brown. For now, leave them in a warm spot.
Heat the oven to 230°c / 450°f.
In a cupcake tin, pour in a tbsp of oil in 12 of the cups, then place the tray in the oven to heat for about 5 minutes.
Without removing the tray completely from the oven, slide it out just enough to fill the cups with the Yorkshire pudding batter. Cook the batter for 15 minutes. Do not open the door until they have finished cooking, or they will not rise.
During this time, boil your choice of vegetables.
Once everything has finished cooking, turn off the oven, but leave the Yorkshire puddings in the oven. Transfer the potatoes to a separate dish, and set them in the oven to warm, while you make the gravy.
Serve immediately, and enjoy with your family.
Homemade Gravy
Using the oven pan you cooked the meat and potatoes in, place on the stove, over a medium heat, and add 4 tbsp of flour. Whisk the flour and meat juices together. Add 2 cups of water to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and then whisk until the gravy thickens. (Alternatively, you can use a packet of gravy if you wish.)
Tips: condiments go well with different meats. For example, English mustard complements beef, horseradish compliments pork, and mint sauce or jelly compliments lamb.
