By · Updated

Meat Cooking Calculator

Roasting Times for Lamb and Beef

No ratings yet
Result

—

OneTask is free, with no sign-up, and built by one person.
If this tool saved you time, a coffee helps keep new ones coming.

How the Meat Cooking Calculator works

This meat cooking calculator turns the weight of a joint into a roasting time: a lamb leg or shoulder, a beef topside, a pork roast, a whole chicken or a turkey. Enter the weight in kg or lb and it gives the oven and fan temperatures, the core temperature to aim for, when to take it out and how long to rest it. A 2 kg beef topside cooked medium at 180°C takes 25 minutes per 500 g plus 25 minutes. Pick steak instead to get pan times per side.

How the meat cooking calculator works

Roasting guides in cookbooks and from meat boards follow one formula: minutes per kilogram times the weight, plus a fixed allowance for the oven to bring the outside of the joint up to heat. The page uses the long-standing UK figures, quoted per 500 g, and switches the turkey allowance from 70 to 90 minutes above 4.5 kg. Pounds are converted at 0.4536 kg.

First example. A 2 kg beef topside cooked medium at 180°C: 25 minutes per 500 g plus 25 minutes is 100 + 25 = 125 minutes, so 2 h 5 min. Take it out at about 58°C and rest it 15 to 20 minutes; it climbs to 63°C as it rests.

Second example. A 1.8 kg chicken at 190°C: 20 minutes per 500 g plus 20 minutes is 92 minutes. Poultry comes out only once the thickest part of the thigh reads 74°C.

How many degrees does meat rise while resting? A large roast carries on cooking by 3 to 5°C as heat moves inward, which is why beef and lamb are taken out early. Poultry, pork and ham are not: they must reach their safe temperature in the oven.

Times are a starting point. Ovens run hot or cool, bone-in joints cook more slowly than boneless, and a long thin joint finishes before a round one of the same weight. A probe thermometer settles it, which is why every result includes a core temperature.

Roasting times by weight at the standard oven temperature

Joint Weight Oven (fan) Time Core temperature
Beef, rare 1 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 52°C
Beef, rare 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 40 min 52°C
Beef, medium-rare 1.5 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 28 min 57°C
Beef, medium 1 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 15 min 63°C
Beef, medium 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 5 min 63°C
Beef, medium 3 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 55 min 63°C
Beef, well done 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 30 min 71°C
Lamb leg, medium-rare 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 50 min 57°C
Lamb leg, medium 2.5 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 30 min 63°C
Lamb shoulder, well done 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 30 min 71°C
Pork roast 1 kg 180°C (160°C) 1 h 30 min 63°C
Pork roast 2 kg 180°C (160°C) 2 h 30 min 63°C
Pork roast 3 kg 180°C (160°C) 3 h 30 min 63°C
Chicken 1.2 kg 190°C (170°C) 1 h 8 min 74°C
Chicken 1.5 kg 190°C (170°C) 1 h 20 min 74°C
Chicken 2 kg 190°C (170°C) 1 h 40 min 74°C
Chicken 2.5 kg 190°C (170°C) 2 h 74°C
Turkey 4 kg 180°C (160°C) 3 h 50 min 74°C
Turkey 5 kg 180°C (160°C) 4 h 50 min 74°C
Turkey 6 kg 180°C (160°C) 5 h 30 min 74°C
Turkey 7 kg 180°C (160°C) 6 h 10 min 74°C
Ham, cooked, to reheat 2 kg 160°C (140°C) 44 min 60°C
Ham, cooked, to reheat 4 kg 160°C (140°C) 1 h 28 min 60°C
Steak 2.5 cm, medium-rare per side Hot pan 3 min 57°C
Steak 2.5 cm, medium per side Hot pan 5 min 63°C

Steak

Steak times are per side in a very hot pan, scaled to thickness from the classic 2 cm guide: about 1 minute a side for rare, 1¼ for medium-rare, 2 for medium and 2¾ for well done per centimetre. Turn once or every minute; frequent turning cooks more evenly and takes about the same time.

Sources: FoodSafety.gov safe minimum internal temperatures.

Checked against: USDA: beef roast 145 °F (63 °C), poultry 165 °F (74 °C)

FAQ

How long do I cook a roast per kg?

At 180°C (fan 160°C), beef and lamb take 40 minutes per kg plus 20 minutes for rare, 50 plus 25 for medium and 60 plus 30 for well done. Pork takes 60 minutes per kg plus 30, and a chicken at 190°C 40 minutes per kg plus 20.

How long does a turkey take?

About 40 minutes per kg at 180°C, plus 70 minutes for a bird under 4.5 kg or 90 minutes above it. A 5 kg turkey takes about 4 h 50 min. Check that the thickest part of the thigh reads 74°C, and rest it 30 to 45 minutes under foil before carving.

What temperature should chicken be inside?

74°C (165°F) in the thickest part of the thigh, not touching the bone. The juices should run clear and the leg should move loosely in its joint. Do not take poultry out early to rest up to temperature.

Is it safe to eat pork pink?

Yes, for whole cuts. Food agencies including the USDA lowered pork to 63°C (145°F) with a 3 minute rest in 2011, which leaves a faint blush. Minced pork, sausages and burgers still need 71°C.

Why rest meat after cooking?

The outside of a roast is much hotter than the centre. Resting lets the temperature even out, so the middle finishes cooking and less juice runs onto the board when you carve. Cover it loosely with foil so the crust does not steam.

See also: all Unit Converters tools, Everyday Maths, Loans & Savings, Dates & Time, Health, Home & DIY, Education, Science, Creative, Garden & Farm, Gaming & PC, Work & Business, Fun, Maps & GPS, DIY & Building, Cost Estimators, Sport & Clubs.

Related tools

Cooking Time Calculator

Convert recipe times and temperatures between oven, fan oven and air fryer.

Oven Temperature Converter

Celsius, fan, Fahrenheit and gas mark oven temperatures, any direction.

Recipe Scaler

Scale a whole ingredient list to a new number of servings.

Pasta And Rice Portion Calculator

How much pasta, rice or grain to cook per person, with water and timing.

Baker's Percentage

Baker's percentages, dough hydration and true sourdough hydration from gram weights.