Spiced Sirloin Roast for Two

Marinate the roast at least 30 minutes before you want to cook it. To do so, in a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup, garlic, sweet paprika, hot paprika, sea salt, and black pepper. Put the roast and the marinade in a zip-top plastic bag and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, rotating the bag every so often.

Preheat oven to 225ºF. Remove roast from marinade and pat it dry with a paper towel (discard the marinade). Add the remaining 1 tablespoon sesame oil to a medium oven-safe skillet over high heat; once the oil is hot, add the roast and sear on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.

Transfer the roast to the oven (in the same frying pan you seared it in) and cook until it reaches your desired level of doneness. For about medium doneness, at this temperature this roast (1-pound size) took about 45 to 50 minutes and registered about 140ºF to 145ºF on a digital instant-read thermometer (the temperature will rise about 5 degrees while resting). Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let it rest about 10 to 15 minutes at room temperature before slicing (and then be sure to slice across the grain).

While the meat rests, make the pan sauce. Mix together the butter and flour in a small bowl and set aside. Put the pan that you cooked the beef in over medium heat; add the beef stock and use a wooden spoon to scrape up all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Whisk in the butter/flour mixture and cook until the sauce is reduced by about 2/3. Strain the sauce if desired, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve the sauce drizzled over the beef.