Roasted Spiced Beef Rib Eye
Introduction
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
1 tsp ras el hanout
½ tsp toasted ground cumin
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp sea salt, plus extra for sprinkling
1 tsp ground coriander
2 Tbsp olive oil
Coriander Sauce
90g (3 oz) fresh coriander (cilantro)
1 tsp sea salt
Finely grated zest 1 lemon
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 medium-hot red chilli, chopped
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ cup plain unsweetened yoghurt
Method
1 Remove any visible lumps of fat from the meat and tie with string to help keep it in shape during roasting. Mix ras el hanout, cumin, pepper, sea salt and ground coriander and rub all over the beef. Cover meat with a food umbrella or similar and leave it at room temperature for 1 hour.
2 Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F).
3 Heat oil in an ovenproof dish over medium-high heat. Once it is hot – almost shimmering – add the beef and brown it all over. Transfer beef to the oven and cook for 25 minutes for rare, or 30-35 minutes for medium-rare. Read about checking the doneness of meat here as the thickness of the cut can vary affecting the cooking time. Touch Test for Cooked Beef
4 Transfer beef to a board and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Let it rest for 12-15 minutes before slicing with a sharp thin-bladed knife.
5 To make the sauce, put the coriander, salt, lemon zest, garlic and chilli in the bowl of a food processor and process to a coarse purée. Add the oil and continue processing until the mixture is a fine purée.
6 Transfer coriander mixture to a bowl and stir in most of the yoghurt. Swirl in remaining yoghurt and serve.
Recipe Notes
Scotch fillet is a more economical cut than beef fillet. It has fat marbling through the meat which provides flavour and keeps it juicy, but it will often also have silverskin (stretchy tough fibre) and deep seams of fat. Remove what you can without destroying the structure of the cut, then tie the joint with string to help it keep shape and ensure even cooking. Once you’ve sliced the meat you will see fat and silverskin, but again, if you start cutting it out of the slices, the slices will fall apart. Give everyone a knife and a fork (as if you wouldn’t!) and let them deal to their own portions.
It’s important that the meat is at room temperature before cooking or the cooking time will be out. Read the notes Touch Test for Cooked Beef
The beef is as good cold as hot. Slice it more thinly if serving cold. It will keep for 4 days, maybe more, covered and refrigerated. The sauce will also keep for 4 days, covered and refrigerated; stir in any whey from the yoghurt before serving.
