Instructions: Subject: WHAT DID I DO WRONG? This past Friday I made my first attempt in many years to barbecue a rump roast. I placed it on the spit over medium coals, using a meat thermometer. It roasted for about 2 hours before reaching the medium setting, at which time I removed it from the grill ... When the meat was sliced the center was a nice medium pink. The meat was tough as a piece of shoe leather. What could I have done wrong, or was it just a case of a bad piece of meat to begin with?

Tough to tell long-distance, Jean, but Id say the problem was too hot a fire. Rump isnt the tenderest meat in the world to begin with, and if you subject it to too much heat too fast, the connective tissues are going to tighten up, forcing the moisture out, and resulting in a dry, tough hunk of cow.

Next time, try roasting the meat in an pan, rather than the rotisserie, building your fire by making SMALL mounds of coals on either side of the roast (no heat directly below). If you like, you can place the roast directly on the grids of your grill, placing the pan in the center of the firebox to act as a buffer for the coals.

Place a cover over the roast (if your grill doesnt have a cover, you can improvise one with some heavy wire and heavy-duty aluminum foil.) The heat from the coals should only result in an interior cooking temperature of 250-300 degrees. If it goes down further, dont panic. Anything above 200 will cook the meat eventually, and the slower the better in this case.

You also might try using a more acid marinade (wine, beer, lemon or lime juice in the marinade). The acid will tenderize the meat somewhat (dont expect miracles, though).

Good luck, and let us all know how the next one turns out.

Ive found the most common cause of a tough roast isnt the cut of meat or how you cook it, its how you SLICE it.

When you carve, make sure youre cutting across the grain of the meat. With a tied roast, this usually means that you have to change the angle of your cuts as you go along.

As for the dryness: I like to slightly undercook a roast when I do it on the grills rotisserie. The meat continues to cook for a few minutes after coming off the heat, as you know. Letting the roast rest for that time, like you did, usually gives it enough time to "finish off" without drying too much. Remember that when youre rotisserie cooking, the fat side of the roast doesnt baste the meat nearly as much as a standing roast where the fat side stays on top throughout the whole time.

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