Roast rib of beef with port

Method

1. Take the beef out of the fridge a couple of hours before cooking it.

2. Preheat oven to 240C.

3. Rub the beef all over with plenty of salt and pepper then put it on top of the halved red onions in a roasting tray. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes then turn down the heat to 190C and roast for a further hour and 15 minutes for medium rare.

4. Once cooked, transfer both beef and onions to a rack over a large dish. Loosely cover with tin foil and put back in the oven with temperature off and the door left slightly ajar. Leave to rest for at least 30 minutes.

5. To make the sauce: in a large pan, reduce the port, by three quarters and add the orange juice and soy. Reduce by half and add the beef stock. Bring to the boil, turn off the heat and set aside.

6. While the beef in resting, drain the fat from its roasting tin and use the port sauce to deglaze the pan. Heat the roasting tin, allowing the sauce to boil for a couple of minutes until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Transfer to a saucepan, add the dried cranberries and rosemary, stir in the butter, season and set aside.

7. To make the celeriac puree: boil the celeriac in plenty of salted water for about 15 minutes until soft. Strain in a colander and press with the back of a spoon to extract as much of the water as possible.

8. Put the celeriac back into the pan and pour over the whipping cream. Break it up with a potato masher, turn the heat back on and bring to the boil. Spoon into a food processor and blend for 4-5 minutes until totally smooth. Season and set aside.

9. To serve: cut the whole piece of beef from the ribs by running a knife between the bones and meat. Carve into thick slices and serve with the port sauce, the celeriac puree and the onions from the roasting tray. Scatter over the orange zest.