A sirloin roast is the joint we reach for when the Sunday dinner needs to feel special. Sirloin has a band of fat on top that bastes the meat as it cooks and more flavour than leaner roasting joints, so it stays juicy and carves into neat slices. This recipe gives it a peppery crust of English and wholegrain mustard, brown sugar and fresh herbs, roasts it on a bed of onions and carrots, and turns everything left in the tin into a rich red wine gravy. We use the Sirloin Joint 1kg, which feeds four. See every size in our sirloin joint range, hand-prepared by our butchers and delivered to your door.
Skip the middle man and skip the carvery. Hands-on time is about 20 minutes, and the joint is in the oven for just over an hour for medium. That leaves time for roast potatoes and Yorkshires while it rests. Below you will find the ingredients, a numbered method, the timings for rare to well done, the gravy and a short FAQ. If you want the full cooking-times chart for every beef joint, read our Roast Beef Cooking Times per kg guide. This page is about the full roast dinner.
Quick answer: sirloin roast with mustard crust
- Prep: 20 minutes, plus 45–60 minutes out of the fridge
- Cook: 20 minutes at 220°C, then 40–45 minutes at 180°C for medium, plus 20–30 minutes resting
- Serves: 4
- Oven: 220°C / fan 200°C / gas 7, then 180°C / fan 160°C / gas 4
- Meat: 1kg sirloin joint
- Done when: about 57–58°C in the centre for medium when it comes out of the oven
Ingredients (serves 4)
For the sirloin and crust
- 1kg sirloin joint (one Sirloin Joint 1kg)
- 1 tbsp English mustard
- 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
- 1 tbsp soft brown sugar
- 1 tsp black peppercorns, coarsely crushed
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt
- 2 onions, halved, and 2 carrots, halved lengthways (to sit the joint on)
For the red wine gravy
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 150ml red wine
- 500ml beef stock
- 1 tsp redcurrant jelly
To serve
- Roast potatoes and Yorkshire puddings
- Seasonal greens and carrots
- Horseradish sauce
Method
- Bring it up to temperature. Take the sirloin out of the fridge 45 minutes to an hour before it goes in, so it roasts evenly. Heat the oven to 220°C (fan 200°C, gas 7). Weigh the joint to check your timings.
- Prepare the fat. Pat the joint dry with kitchen paper. With a sharp knife, lightly score the fat in a criss-cross, cutting into the fat but not the meat, then season all over with salt.
- Make the crust. Mix the English mustard, wholegrain mustard, sugar, crushed peppercorns, thyme, rosemary and oil into a thick paste. Spread it over the fat and the sides of the joint.
- Start the roast. Put the onions and carrots in a roasting tin and sit the joint on top, fat-side up. Roast for 20 minutes to brown the outside and set the crust.
- Finish the roast. Turn the oven down to 180°C (fan 160°C, gas 4). For a 1kg joint, roast for a further 40–45 minutes for medium, 30–35 minutes for rare or 50–55 minutes for well done. Check the thickest part with a probe: take it out at 48–50°C for rare, 52–54°C for medium-rare, 57–58°C for medium or 65–68°C for well done.
- Rest. Lift the beef onto a warm board, cover it loosely with foil and rest it for 20–30 minutes. It will keep cooking a little and the juices will settle back into the meat.
- Make the gravy. Spoon most of the fat out of the tin, leaving the vegetables and sticky juices. Set the tin over a medium heat, stir in the flour and cook for a minute. Pour in the red wine and let it bubble, scraping up the bits, then gradually whisk in the stock and redcurrant jelly. Simmer for 5 minutes, add the resting juices and strain into a warm jug.
- Carve and serve. Carve the sirloin across the grain into slices about 5mm thick. Serve with roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, greens, horseradish and plenty of red wine gravy.
Butcher’s tips for a perfect sirloin roast
A probe thermometer is the best few pounds you will spend on roast dinners, because every joint is a slightly different shape. Sirloin is long and fairly narrow, so start checking at the lower end of each time range. Keep the joint fat-side up and uncovered in the oven so the fat crisps and bastes the meat, and do not skip the rest: carve too early and the juices end up on the board instead of in the beef. The Food Standards Agency says whole joints of beef can be served pink as long as the outside is properly cooked; if your joint has been boned and rolled, or stuffed, cook it until the juices run clear with no pink in the middle.
For crisp roast potatoes, put them in once the beef comes out and turn the oven back up while it rests; our Goose Fat Roast Potatoes recipe has the method. For more on prepping, timing and carving the cut, see How to Cook a Sirloin Joint.
Feeding a crowd, leftovers and make-ahead
For eight, use the Sirloin Joint 2-2.2kg (Frozen). Thaw it fully in the fridge first (allow about 24 hours), then follow the same method, allowing 70–80 minutes after the first 20 for medium-rare and probing early. You can make the mustard paste up to a day ahead and keep it covered in the fridge.
Cold roast sirloin makes the best sandwiches in Britain, with horseradish and watercress. Cool leftovers quickly, refrigerate them within 2 hours and eat them within 3 days. For more ideas, see What Can You Do with Leftover Roast Beef?. Prefer a leaner roast? Try our Sunday Roast Beef with Yorkshire Puddings, made with topside.
Why this sirloin roast recipe works
The high heat at the start browns the outside and sets the crust, then the lower heat cooks the middle gently so it stays pink and juicy. The mustard, sugar and pepper crust gives every slice a savoury, slightly sweet edge, the fat cap bastes the meat as it roasts, and the vegetables underneath flavour the gravy. Buy a quality joint from an online butcher, give it a proper rest, and you have a Sunday roast that tastes like a special occasion.
FAQ
How long does a 1kg sirloin roast take?
Roast it for 20 minutes at 220°C (fan 200°C), then turn the oven down to 180°C (fan 160°C). For medium, allow a further 40–45 minutes; for rare, 30–35 minutes; for well done, 50–55 minutes. Then rest it for 20–30 minutes before carving.
How many people does a sirloin roast feed?
Allow about 200–250g of raw boneless sirloin per person. A 1kg sirloin joint feeds 4 with a little left over, and a 2–2.2kg joint feeds about 8.
Should I cover a sirloin roast with foil in the oven?
No. Roast it uncovered, fat-side up, so the fat crisps and bastes the meat and the mustard crust browns. Cover it loosely with foil only while it rests.
Can sirloin roast be served pink?
The Food Standards Agency says whole cuts of beef, such as joints, can be served pink as long as the outside is properly cooked. If a joint has been boned and rolled, or stuffed, cook it until the juices run clear and there is no pink in the middle.
What goes with a sirloin roast?
Crisp roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, seasonal greens, honey-roast carrots, horseradish sauce and plenty of red wine gravy. It is a proper Sunday dinner.
