Slicing Roasts

My rule of thumb: hot meat should be sliced thickly, cold meat thinly. Carving a roast in thick slices keeps it from cooling too quickly and keeps it from drying out. Carving cold meats thinly maximizes flavor by exposing more surface area and creates tenderness.

Think thick-sliced roast pork tenderloin vs. shaved ham. It's also possible, for some cuts, to have the best of both worlds. The best cuts of beef do well under quick, high-heat roasting, but some cuts (e.g. silverside) do better cooked longer at a much lower temperature. I bake silverside roasts pretty slowly, on a bed of sliced onions, leave it to cool completely after cooked, even to the point of fridging it after it cools to room temperature, then slicing it thinly once chilled. It's easier to cut then, too. It's good cold at this point but I prefer to mix the slices with the onions and reheat. Take it out of the oven when it's extra-rare to allow the slices to be reheated without overcooking them, or less rare to use the thing as cold lunchmeat.