Cook Rump Roast Low And Slow For Perfectly Tender Beef Stew

What is a rump roast anyway? Is it like the cow equivalent of a pork butt? No, not really, because the former does come from a cow's hind end, but the latter is cut from the shoulder of the pigRump roast also goes by a few other names, including bottom round roast and the less anatomically evocative round tip roast, but at the end of the day (or the cow), all that matters is the fact that a bovine behind by any other name can be pretty tasty despite its less-than-elegant origins.

Rump roast does best if you cook it by way of one of the best-known culinary mnemonic rhymes — low and slow. (This is something it actually does have in common with pork butt.) The reason for this is that cow rears, unlike human heinies, get quite a workout as the cow moves around, so the rump roast is a pretty muscular piece of meat and needs a lot of softening up. While you can heat the meat on its own (check out our extra-alliterative rump roast recipe) and it's ideal for making chicken fried steak, you can also turn it into a one-pot meal by stewing it with a selection of vegetables.

If you have an Instant Pot, you may be itching to use this expensive appliance, and the good news is, it's a perfectly acceptable way to cook a rump roast beef stew. No, it won't be done in an eyeblink, since the meat and vegetables will take some time to brown, plus there's the necessary time to preheat the pot and then release the steam once the stew is done. Still, the stew itself only requires about an hour's worth of cooking time.

The slow cooker, of course, is ideal for making a pot roast or stew with your rump roast. Pan-sear the meat to brown it; then toss it in the crockpot with carrots, potatoes, onions, and some water or broth and let it cook for eight hours or so. If you don't have a slow cooker or don't feel like clearing off counter space, though, there's another way to achieve the same effect: using your oven. Put the meat, vegetables, and liquid in an ovenproof pot or pan, cover it with a lid or piece of foil, then set the temperature to 175 F and cook it for eight hours or at 200 F for four hours. The former temperature is analogous to a crockpot on low (these run between 164 F and 182 F). The latter is similar to the high setting (this generally reaches a maximum of 205 F).