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I am endeavoring to very slow roast a 3 lb. / 1.4 kg. Boneless Cross Rib Roast. This is a first for me. I want to cook it in a ceramic surfaced Dutch Oven in an electric oven. The articles that I have been reading do not mention any adjustment to time or temperature for high-altitude (7300 Feet / 2134 Meters). Can anyone suggest an adjustment for this altitude for my project?

Thanks for any thoughts.

Mike
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  • What method are you trying to modify? Which approximate temperature and roasting time is in the recipes you're reading? – user141592 Oct 03 '20 at 07:29
  • I want to cook the roast at Low and Slow to get the maximum flavor. My planing roots in these two articles: Slow cooking of red meat - Slow roasting

    Meat is Love: Slow Roasting for Perfectly Pink Roast Beef

    My oven is old: "Warm" shows as 200F roughly. My plan is to preheat to 250 then cook for 45 minus to kill the bacteria. Then drop back to the "Warm " setting for at least two hours following the second article then check for doneness.. But this recommendation does not account for my altitude and seems to run against the grain of the times in the first article.

     – Mike Oct 03 '20 at 14:36

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No adjustments are needed. The main reason that high-altitude cooking is hard is the reduced boiling point of water at low altitudes. But here, where the meat will be under the boiling point of water for the whole cook time, this is hardly an issue. Check out this article from the Spruce Eats:

Dry-heat cooking techniques like roasting or grilling are not affected in the same way because high altitudes don't alter the way air is heated.... Note that the temperature isn't affected, just the moisture content of the food. So a grilled steak might be drier at high altitude than at sea level — even if it's not overcooked temperature-wise.

I don't think that the issue of dryness is a big deal here; since you are cooking a large cut, only the surface will dry out. In fact, increased surface dryness would be a benefit if you plan to sear the meat after cooking. I highly recommend searing the meat if you plan to serving it hot; browning adds great flavor and texture that I think you will miss otherwise.

Benjamin Kuykendall
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  • Thanks for the info: very helpful. " I highly recommend searing the meat if you plan to serving it hot" ... so if I am making the beef for later use, like sandwiches, the searing does not bring any more to the flavor? – Mike Oct 04 '20 at 19:13
  • To serve hot, I always sear the meat to get a nice crisp crust. Obviously crispness is not an issue if you wrap and chill the meat, but even served cold, a sear will bring a good flavor to the party. It also helps render any excess fat. It is a trade-off though: you might end up slightly overcooking the meat right under the seared layer (getting the dreaded "grey ring") and loosing a little tenderness. This is best avoided by searing hot and fast. For steaks and boneless roasts, this means on the stove in a ripping hot cast iron pan. – Benjamin Kuykendall Oct 04 '20 at 20:01
  • Thanks again. Your comments are very helpful to the beginner. The exchange reminded me that I have a old Teflon coated thermostatically controlled fry pan. I dug it out and cleaned up today. It should work nicely for searing. – Mike Oct 06 '20 at 00:18