Roast dinner - Christmas - Recipe - Tips

With the weather changing and the distinct feeling of Autumn in the air, many of us are getting back into our much loved roast dinners. That satisfying, and warming home cooked meal, perfect for serving after a day of outdoor activities, or time spent with family playing games indoors. Roasts don’t need to be a complicated meal, in fact, they can be left to cook away whilst you enjoy that precious time with family and friends. Preparation can be done in advance, and with our top tips and tricks, tried and tested by our home economists, you can produce the perfect juicy joint, and signature crunchy roast potatoes every time! Enjoy!

For juicy, perfectly cooked meat:

It is important to seal your meat. This will ensure that it remains juicy and maintains its size and weight. At the beginning of cooking, add your meat to a cold oven and turn your oven up to its maximum temperature. Smeg ovens you can go up to anything between 250°C - 280°C. Once the oven has reached maximum temperature, turn it down to your regular roasting temperature of 180°C, and roast as normal.
To keep poultry moist, stuff the hollow cavity with onion and lemons. Take soft butter and place it between the skin and flesh of the bird. The meat will be steamed from the inside whilst the melted butter will continually baste the meat throughout cooking.
To achieve crunchy crackling on a pork joint, before adding to the oven, pour boiling water over the skin and rub with oil and salt. This will render the fat, allowing it to crisp quickly, before drying out the meat.

For lamb, make small incisions into the flesh of the meat. Stud with garlic, rosemary and pancetta.
For poultry and pork, always cook through until the juices run clear. Or roast until the thickest part of the meat (the centre of the breast, and meatiest part of the leg) reaches 75°C. Remember the phrase ’75 stay alive’. With meats such as lamb and beef, where you can cook it pink, select the following temperatures. Rare 50-60°C. Medium 60 - 70°C. Well done 75°C. The new Smeg Vivo screen ovens, come with an integrated food probe, perfect for getting juicy results every time. You don’t even need to be home when roasting the meat, as once it has reached the requested core temperature, the oven will automatically switch off.

For crispy, crunchy roast potatoes:

Par boil or steam your potatoes first.
Always allow the potato to dry completely, before adding to the roasting tin.
Ruffle the roast potatoes in a colander, or score with a fork. This will create a rough exterior to the roast potato, perfect for creating crispy, crunchy potatoes.
Preheat the oil in an oven dish, before adding the roast potatoes. Spoon over, or turn the potatoes in the oil, before leaving to cook.
Don’t use a high sided roasting dish or fill the roasting tray too full of potatoes. This will cause the potatoes to steam, rather than crisp in the oven.
For extra crispiness or flavour, you can always coat your potatoes in seasoned flour, or sprinkle over sesame seeds.

With these simple tips and tricks, we hope the whole family can enjoy a perfect and delicious Sunday roast every time. Don’t forget to share your roasting successes by tagging us in on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Create the perfect roast dinner

For juicy, perfectly cooked meat:

For crispy, crunchy roast potatoes: