Roast Beef for "Beef on Weck"

Let meat stand at cool room temperature about 45 minutes before roasting. Preheat oven to 450 °F. Put roast on a metal rack in a roasting pan (fat side up) and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Add about 1/4 inch water to bottom of pan and put roast in middle of oven. Immediately reduce temperature to 350 °F and roast meat until an instant-read thermometer inserted in center registers 120 °F. Cooking time will vary—it will be anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes per pound—depending on size of roast. (120 °F means rare, which is traditional for beef on weck. Internal temperature of meat will rise about 5 °F as roast stands.) Let roast stand, loosely covered with foil, 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.