Bottom round beef

Bottom round is an American name for a cut from the hind leg; the closest British cuts are usually silverside or the outside round. Ask for silverside if you want a joint, or an outside-round steak for braising.

It is lean, so roast it gently rather than giving it a long, hot blast: brown the joint first, then cook at about 160°C and rest it under foil before carving. Slice thinly across the grain; the thinner slices are much more tender.

For a tender result, braise it slowly in stock or gravy until a fork slips in easily, as you would for a beef casserole. If you fry it, cut it thinly across the grain and cook it briefly; a thick steak can turn chewy.

For a whole joint or steak, you can serve it pink if the outside has been thoroughly seared; this is different from minced beef, which needs to be cooked through. The Food Standards Agency advises cooking food thoroughly to 70°C for 2 minutes, or an equivalent combination.

Use it for a British beef casserole, stew or slow-cooked pot roast, where the moist cooking softens the firm cut. Leftover roast is good thinly sliced in sandwiches with mustard or horseradish.

Keep raw beef covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, so it cannot drip onto other food, and use it by its use-by date. Refrigerate cooked beef promptly and eat it within two days.

In the supplied figures, beef topside has 2.5 g fat per 100 g, compared with 4.7 g for bottom round beef. Both are lean cuts, but topside is often chosen for roasting while bottom round benefits from slow, moist cooking.