See that’s the problem I have with cooking. I need procedures and numbers but too much guidance is “lower”, “longer”, “til it’s hot through”, “brown the mince” (which my mind immediately asks ‘how brown?’)
for mince, it's dead easy. you will get a feel for how brown.
when you cook it, you should not see any pink bits and it should be a firm-ish texture rather than soft and squishy when you prod it.
do you cook on gas or electric oven?
you need to look at the way your joint of meat looks....if it is long and thin then it will cook through quicker than short and thick.
short,thick joints you should cook for longer at a slightly lower temperature.
cooking procedure-as I said before , preheat oven first to operating temp.
then 1hr/kilo(under foil/in roasting tin)
+ 30 mins( foil or cover removed)
+ 10-15 mins out of oven standing time before serving.
i would say under normal circumstances a meat joint should go in around gas mark 4/ 180c on electric.
In the case of something like a huge 3-4kg christmas ham I would lower that to gas mark 3, but have it on for something like 5 hours.
cooking is quite subjective-there is not a set process for taste, but there are guidelines for safety.
It depends on the tastes of the people you are cooking for. Some people have steak rare, some prefer well done.You will find your own sweet spot for cookery by experimentation!