Timetable for Cooking Roast Beef

Here is a timetable for cooking roast beef, one each for a rib roast with the bone in, a second for a de-boned rolled rib roast (which for some unaccountable reason, is usually called "boned" in cookbooks), and a third for a sirloin tip. If you pierce the meat (say, for instance, to put garlic slivers in little "pockets," the juices may run away - however, if it's an exceptionally tender roast, it is probably worth the trade-off.

allow for "lag time" and pull the meat out before it hits the temp you want
don't put the roast in until the oven is pre-heated
don't salt beforehand - the juices will leave the meat
remember that you can always put it back, but you can't "uncook" it
after your roast is done, let is "rest" about 15 minutes so it can "re-uptake" the juices
begin cooking all roasts AT ROOM TEMPERATURE (and don't force thaw, please)

A timetable for cooking roast beef is nice (and on this page is one for fish) but even better is to get into the habit of using an instant read thermometer. Beef is rare at 140°, medium at 160°, and shoe leather at 170°. Some home cooks, me among them, will even take five degrees off those temperatures. Whatever temp you are aiming for, pull the meat out shy of that because the cooking continues for a while. The worst thing that could happen is that you have to put the meat back a bit. Use this beef roasting chart only if you don't have an instant read thermometer. They make great stocking stuffers at Christmas for grown-ups.

It is important to have the right tools. By the by, if you put the instant read thermometer in the dishwasher, well, it's kaput. How do I know this for a fact? After a big Sunday dinner, the kids often clean up, and, er, well, you know what happens next...