How to cook a eye of round roast in oven is here. Of course our oven baked Top Round Roast Recipe is delicious too with a dry rub, but this is another favorite. Made with sautéed onions, mushrooms and gravy for dinner it should be on your meal plan this week.
This is a simple beef recipe you’ll love. Once you get the hang of about how long it takes you can change up the seasonings and what you serve it with. A healthy budget friendly, Dutch Oven recipe protein packed meal that shouldn’t be cooked too long or it will dry out.
What is Eye of Round Roast?
The Eye of Round Roast is a cut of beef that comes from the round primal, which is the rear leg of the cow. It is a lean and relatively inexpensive cut known for its tenderness when cooked properly. The “eye” in its name refers to the round, lean, and cylindrical shape of this piece of meat.
This cut is very lean, which means it has minimal marbling (intramuscular fat). While leanness is a health benefit, it can also make the roast prone to drying out if overcooked. You want this cut to become fork tender medium rare like our picnic pork roast, that will make it the most delicious.
How to Cook Frozen Eye of Round Roast
If you wanted to make something like this right out of the freezer you would need to follow our Frozen Roast in the Oven directions and temperature. Believe it or not you still get a tender outcome that is juicy.
Ingredient Notes
We typically will cook a 2 lb eye of round roast, timing is 1-2 hours per pound at 180 F. so it doesn’t take long.
Olive oil is best for searing the outside in the first step. This is vital to lock in the juices so they don’t leak out when cooked the rest of the way. Most times I will coat with our pot roast seasoning too so it sticks to the outside.
Into the pot I will add 1 package mushrooms baby bellas, sliced because I make gravy with these and the drippings when done.
As for the necessary liquids to cook it with I will use wine and beef broth together. This will give it enough to steam to tender and create a sauce at the bottom you can thicken at the end and serve together.
When preparing, consider marinating it. Use a meat thermometer to monitor doneness, and allow the thick piece to rest before slicing to help retain its juices and tenderness.
Can you make this in a slow cooker?
Last but not least you could make it low and slow with our Eye of Round Roast Slow Cooker recipe. Over cooking round roast will make it nearly flavorless, dry, and chewy. You want to pull it out 5 degrees shy of what you want it to be as it will increase that amount as it rests before slicing and serving.
What Temperature Should Eye of Round Roast be Cooked to?
The recommended internal temperature for Eye of Round Roast varies depending on your desired level of doneness. Pink medium rare is best. Remember that it will increase 5 degrees while resting.
Rare 120-125°F
Medium Rare is the best internal temperature at 130-135°F (54-57°C)
Medium 140-145°F
Medium Well 150-155°F (66-68°C)
Well Done 160°F (71°C) and above
How to Slice Eye of Round Roast
Place the piece on a clean cutting board. If it has a bone, orient it so that the bone is facing down on the cutting board. This provides stability while you slice. Examine to determine the direction of the grain (muscle fibers). Slicing against the grain (perpendicular to the direction of the fibers) is essential for tender slices.
- Begin slicing from one end, using a carving knife. Make the first slice about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, depending on your preference. If you’re serving the roast to a group, consider the portion size when deciding on thickness.
- As you continue to slice, maintain the same thickness for each slice. Use the previous slice as a guide for the next one. Consistency in slice thickness ensures even cooking and presentation.
- Remember to always slice against the grain. If you’re not sure about the grain’s direction, look for the lines of muscle fibers and cut perpendicular to them. Slicing this way makes each bite more tender.
- When using the carving knife, use a gentle sawing motion rather than pressing down forcefully. This helps maintain the integrity of each slice.
Work your way down, slicing and arranging the slices on a serving platter as you go. Once you’ve finished, arrange the slices on a platter. You can garnish the platter with fresh herbs or other complementary ingredients if desired. Printable recipe card is below, let us know what you think.
Eye of Round Roast in Oven Recipe
Equipment
- 1 dutch oven
Ingredients
- 2 lb Eye of Round Roast, timing is 1-2 hours per pound at 180 F.
- 1 small onion, diced or sliced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 package mushrooms, baby bellas, sliced, 2 cups
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 4 tbsp Sherry
- 1 tsp thyme
- 2 cup beef broth
Instructions
- With Gravy – Preheat oven to 180 degrees F. Pat the meat dry with paper towels, then sprinkle all around with salt and pepper. Heat up your Dutch Oven over medium high heat. Add oil. Fry on all sides, turning over until it is browned on all sides. Pull out the meat out of the pot and set aside.
- Add the chopped onion and garlic to the same pot. Fry until light golden brown. Add mushrooms. Fry for a couple more minutes.
- Add liquid ingredients. Add meat back in. Cook for about 1.5 hours per pound or until the middle thickest part reaches the internal temperature you want. 125 degrees = medium rare is ideal.
- Without Gravy – Preheat oven to 180 degrees F. Blot meat dry with paper towels. Mix together our pot roast seasonings and rub all over meat. Set a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet and spray with non stick spray, lay meat on top. Then bake for 1.5-2 hours per pound until it reaches 125 F.
- For 2 lbs. it will take about 3 hours but time varies. Check temp. after 2 hours as well as liquids in bottom. May need to add more broth if it evaporates too quickly. When reaches 125 degrees, allow to rest outside of oven for 10 minutes before slicing against the grain and serving with gravy from bottom over the top.
- Never overcook eye of round roast, if at all possible! Because this is such a very lean cut of beef, it can easily overcook if you don't keep a careful watch with your instant-read meat thermometer. Over cooking round roast will make it nearly flavorless, dry, and chewy.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Are eye of round roast and bottom round the same?
Not really but Bottom Round Roast is similar, cooked basically the same way so you could use these directions below with either cut. You could do this with How to cook Bottom Round Roast Beef style as well if you wanted to slice thin when done.
Always allow thick cuts of meat to rest for about 10-15 minutes after it has finished cooking. This resting period allows the juices to redistribute throughout the meat, making it juicier and more flavorful.
