This Salt and Pepper Crusted Roast Beef is Sunday dinner made delicious and easy.

Overhead shot of platter of roast beef sliced up, medium rare.

Salt and pepper—nothin’ better.

I truly believe that a nicely cooked quality cut of beef needs nothing more than salt and a few generous cracks of pepper. That’s definitely the case with this beauty! I hit up my butcher for a boneless beef eye round roast, gave it a good and simple dry rub, and roasted it to juicy medium rare perfection. I’m a sucker for horseradish, so I served it with a creamy homespun horseradish sauce—but that’s completely up to you. This recipe is great for both entertaining and a Sunday supper for the fam—and the leftovers are fabulous.

How to slice roast beef.

If you’re looking for deli-style slices for sandwiches, you’re going to want to slice your roast into very thin slices. That’s best done with an actual slicing knife that has a long, narrow blade with a razor sharp edge so you can easily slice through the meat in one smooth motion. If you’re serving up meaty slices for dinner, aim for 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices—much easier to slice!

Overhead shot of platter of roast beef sliced up, medium rare.

How to make a succulent salt and pepper crusted roast beef.

In a world of pressure cookers, convenience, and takeout, trying to replicate a comforting Sunday meal the way our mothers or grandmothers did can seem intimidating. But it’s doable—and this one’s easy.

Here’s what you’ll need.

For this recipe I used a boneless beef eye round roast, but you can use top round or bottom round as well. If you’re having trouble finding any of these, talk to your butcher.

  • Olive oil
  • Coarse kosher salt
  • Coarse cracked black pepper
  • Fresh rosemary

Small white bowl containing dry rub mix of coarse kosher salt, cracked pepper, and fresh rosemary.

Left: uncooked beef with dry rub; right: cooked roast with salt and pepper crust.

 

Here’s what you’ll do.

  1. Preheat the oven to 325º F.
  2. Prepare the dry rub; set aside.
  3. Place the beef into a roasting pan or baking dish. Give it a drizzle of olive oil and then rub the dry rub all over the beef. 
  4. Roast the beef in the oven, uncovered, until it’s medium rare with an internal temperature of 145º F. Roasting time will depend on the exact weight of the beef. Roast it for 30 minutes per pound. If your beef is 4 lbs, that’ll be 2 hours in the oven. Use a meat thermometer to check in on the temperature. Be sure to not overcook the beef, or it will be tough, chewy, and lose its overall quality.
  5. When the beef is ready, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing into it so that the juices redistribute.

Hot tip: Save the pan juices so you can make roast beef sandwiches au jus with any leftovers.

Close up of serving platter full of sliced medium rare roast.

What to serve with Salt and Pepper Crusted Roast Beef:

Hope you enjoy!

If you plan on making this recipe, be sure to snap a pic and tag us on Insta! @killing__thyme.

Overhead shot of platter of roast beef sliced up, medium rare.

Salt and Pepper Crusted Roast Beef

This Salt and Pepper Crusted Roast Beef is Sunday dinner made delicious and easy.
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Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Servings: 6 people
Author: Dana Sandonato

Equipment

  • Roasting pan or baking dish

Ingredients

  • 1 4 lb boneless beef eye round roast
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 TBSP coarse kosher salt
  • 1 TBSP coarsely ground pepper
  • 1/2 TBSP freshly chopped rosemary (optional)

Creamy Horseradish Sauce. (Optional)

  • 1/2 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
  • 2 TBSP horseradish
  • 1 tsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • Pinch of salt and pepper
  • 1 TBSP freshly chopped chives

Instructions

Salt and Pepper Crusted Roast Beef.

  • Preheat the oven to 325º F. Prepare the dry rub; set aside.
  • Place the beef into a roasting pan or baking dish. Give it a drizzle of olive oil and then rub the dry rub all over the beef.
  • Roast the beef in the oven, uncovered, until it’s medium rare with an internal temperature of 145º F. Roasting time will depend on the exact weight of the beef. Roast it for 30 minutes per pound. If your beef is 4 lbs, that’ll be 2 hours in the oven. Use a meat thermometer to check in on the temperature. Be sure to not overcook the beef, or it will be tough, chewy, and lose its overall quality.
  • When the beef is ready, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing into it so that the juices redistribute.

Creamy Horseradish sauce.

  • Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl; whisk with a fork until well combined.

Notes

*Save the pan juices for leftover beef sandwiches au jus.