How To Cook Bottom Round Roast

by Joost Nusselder | Last Updated:  June 24, 2021

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Are you searching for the best way on how to cook bottom round roast? A sure-fire perfect and no-fail slice of meat? No need to go further because we have what you are looking for. And it’s so simple –just as a good recipe of beef should be –all about the bottom round roast beef itself and no other fillers.

How-To-Cook-A-Bottom-Round-Roast

In contrast to the popular belief, the bottom round roast is fairly flavorful. It actually has a great low-fat content that might make it justly tough, yet cook it appropriately, and you’ll surely be left with a mouthwatering, mouth-melting juicy meat.

How To Make A Bottom Round Roast Tender?

Tough meat cuts like the bottom round roast are not just cheaper than leaner meat counterparts. When they are cooked tender, and adequately, they may deliver even more flavor. Nevertheless, you may not get any of this without doing anything with the meat. To make a bottom round roast meat tender, you need to cook it slowly and at low temperatures.

Remember, low temperatures may allow the meat to cook even more evenly. If you opt to cook it at a high temperature, you may end up with a well-browned outside, yet its inside may have a small part of the desired doneness since most are overcooked.

The slower you take in cooking it, the more time you may have for the meat’s connective tissue to break down, providing you a much tenderer roast. Additionally, when you cook it slowly and in low heat for hours, the collage in the meat may eventually break, leaving you strips of tender and juicy meat.

How To Cook A Bottom Round Roast Medium Rare?

How-To-Cook-A-Bottom-Round-Roast-Medium-Rare

It is recommendable that you cook any beef to at least 140° Fahrenheit. This is essential in killing food-borne bacteria that may multiply quickly at warm heats below the said point. Nonetheless, some beef fanatics think that this is way too much and 130° Fahrenheit is the best for medium-rare beef.

Additionally, a bottom round roast is ideal for medium-rare cooking as it may turn dry and chewy when done overly. However, with proper monitoring of the internal temperature, you might be able to create a juicy, tender roast.

  1. Prepare the roast a day before by rubbing on your preferred paste for seasoning. Make sure that the beef is dry enough in holding the paste. Cover it evenly with the paste and then seal it in plastic wrap then put in in the refrigerator overnight. Remove it from the ref several hours before you cook it, and then allow it to come up to room temperature.
  2. Preheat the oven to 475° Fahrenheit. Move the bottom round roast to the roasting pan, and then put a meat thermometer (like these top choices) into the leanest part of the meat.
  3. Roast the beef at 475° Fahrenheit for about 30 minutes. And then reduce the heat to about 350° Fahrenheit and keep on roasting. Observe the meat thermometer for the desired level of cooking. Anything that’s below the internal temperature of 130° Fahrenheit is rare. You shouldn’t roast to an internal temperature of above 140° Fahrenheit or the roast maybe medium and not medium-rare.
  4. Transfer the roast from the oven when it has finally reached your preferred temperature. Let it rest for about 15 minutes before you slice and serve. The surface juices may reabsorb into your bottom round roast.

Best Way To Cook Bottom Round Roast

As we have said earlier, since the bottom round roast is a kind of lean meat, it might be somewhat tough to cook. You might not be able to dry cook or grill it –since it may become tough and chewy. Indeed, it isn’t filet mignon, yet when you cook it the proper way, it may be a delicious and hearty piece of meat.

Hence, the best way to cook the bottom round roast is by roasting and braising. These are the best solutions. The slow and constant heat that comes inside the oven will allow the outside of the bottom round roast to be brown, while the internal temperature of it may rise slowly to 135.

To achieve the best outcome in cooking the bottom round roast when roasting, you must look and create for the best outer texture for a tender bite. Keep in mind that it is best to cook it low and slowly since high temperature and fast cooking might just result in a hard texture of the meat.

How To Cook Bottom Round Roast?

The bottom round roast is a low-cost cut of meat, which is taken from the rear leg of a cow. Even though indeed, the bottom round roast might certainly be robust at times, with the proper care and attention, this meat may be able to reach its very tender and delicious potential in the twinkling of an eye.

Bottom Round Roast In Instant Pot

Bottom-Round-Roast-In-Instant-Pot

Things you need:

  • 2 tbsp honey
  • Generous amount of salt and pepper
  • 1 tbsp of thyme
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 2 tbsp of minced garlic
  • 3 cups beef or vegetable broth
  • 1 lb. potatoes, cubed or quartered
  • 2 to 3 cups of sliced mushrooms
  • 1 large white onion, diced or sliced
  • 3 lb. bottom round roast

Instructions:

  1. Add all of the wet spices and ingredients to the Instant Pot and then stir to mix
  2. Add in the meat and vegetables (optional), excluding the potatoes
  3. Close the lid then set the timer for about 20 minutes on a low pressure
  4. Do a swift release and add in potatoes
  5. Cook for extra 5 minutes on low pressure and then allow the natural release when it’s done
  6. Remove and serve!

Sous Vide Bottom Round Roast

Sous-Vide-Bottom-Round-Roast

Things you need:

  • ½ tsp. coarse kosher salt per pound of the meat
  • 1 bottom round roast –approximately 3 lbs.
  • 1 tsp. of ground thyme
  • 2 tsp. of dried oregano
  • 2 tsp. of onion powder
  • 1 tbsp. of garlic
  • 1 tbsp. of ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp. of dry mustard

Instructions:

  • Prepare –season the roast with the kosher salt. Give the salt to be absorbed by the meat for about 1-2 hours, if you can.
  • Get the sous vide immersion circulator ready, according to the instructions and set its water temperature at about 131° Fahrenheit. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Season the bottom round roast with this mixture.
  • Put the spiced bottom round roast into a gallon resealable freezer bag. Plunge the freezer bag carefully into the water bath ’til most of the air has already been removed, then seal the bag. When the bag is finally submerged, cook the bottom round roast for about 30 hours.
  •  After 30 hours, remove the bag from the water and then submerge it in a large container that’s filled with a 50/50 mixture of water and ice for a minimum of 30 minutes, in order to lessen the core temperature of the meat to a safe temperature range of about 34 to 38° Fahrenheit.
  • Cook –you can opt to grill the roast. When the grill ready, remove the meat from the bag and put it on the cooler side of your grill as farther from heat as possible. Allow the roast to smoke, ’til it reaches an internal temperature of about 125° Fahrenheit, approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes. (Note that the roast may already be cooked to medium-rare due to the sous vide step. Your goal is simply smoke it.)
  • Remove the bottom round roast from the griller, slice into thin slices, and serve!

Bottom Round Roast Dutch Oven

Bottom-Round-Roast-Dutch-Oven

Things you need:

  • 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup of cold water
  • 1 small rutabaga
  • 6-8 medium carrots
  • 8-12 small white onions
  • 10 ½ oz. of condensed beef broth
  • 1 tsp. of salt
  • ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tsp. of dried marjoram leaves
  • 1 tsp. of leaf thyme
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 cup of onion
  • 3-4 lbs. of bottom round roast
  • 2 tbsp. of butter
  • 2 tbsp. of olive oil

Instructions:

  1. Gather all the ingredients.
  2. Heat the butter and oil in the Dutch oven over medium heat. Brown the bottom round roast for approximately 20 minutes, turning all its sides to brown.
  3. Add the sliced onion, thyme, bay leaf, garlic, pepper, marjoram, and salt to the meat drippings. Mix and cook for approximately 30 seconds.
  4. Pour the beef broth and bring it to a boil.
  5. Reduce the heat, cover, and then simmer slowly for about 2 hours. You need to turn the meat every once in a while.
  6. Add the rutabaga, small onions, and carrots.
  7. Cover and then simmer for approximately 30 minutes or ’til the veggies are already tender.
  8. Transfer vegetables and meat to a hot platter and keep them warm.
  9. Remove the roast, slice, and serve it with gravy (optional).

Also check out these Dutch Ovens vs Camp Dutch Ovens for that perfect stew and roast

Bottom Round Roast Recipe

Bottom Round Roast Slow Cooker

Bottom-Round-Roast-Slow-Cooker-Recipe

Ingredients:

  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 tbsp. cornstarch
  • 2 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 cup of water
  • 1 clove
  • 1 minced garlic cloves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 sliced onions
  • 3 lbs. beef bottom round roast

Instructions:

  1. Rub each side of the roast with salt and pepper.
  2. Make light cuts in the meat and fill it with minced garlic.
  3. Put 1 to 2 onion slices at the bottom of the crock-pot and put the meat on top of it.
  4. Add the leftover onion slices, bay leaves, garlic, water, soy sauce, and clove.
  5. Put the lid on and set the cooker on low cooking temperatures. Cook it for approximately 8 hours.

This slow-cooked beef bottom round roast is served best with gravy and mashed red skin potato and steamed veggies.

Joost Nusselder, the founder of Lakeside Smokers is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food with BBQ Smoking (& Japanese food!) at the heart of his passion, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2016 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.