Roast Timer
Choose the cut, type the weight from the label, and get the oven temperature, the time, the temperature to pull it at and how long to rest it. Set the time you want to carve and it works the whole afternoon backwards, fridge to table.
Australian unitsFree, no sign-upReviewed 8 September 2026
Meat
Cut
The weight on the label, before trimming.
Common weights
Doneness
Oven
In the oven for
1 h 50 min
2 kg leg, bone in, medium: 1 h 50 min at 180 °C (conventional). Out at 60 °C, rest 20 min to about 65 °C. Serves about 6.
Oven
180 °C
conventional
Take out at
60 °C
on the probe
Rest
20 min
to ~65 °C
Serves
~6
2 kg
Works backwards from the moment you want to carve, resting included.
10:05 am
Out of the fridge
45 min at room temperature takes the chill off so it cooks evenly.
10:35 am
Oven on
Preheat to 180 °C, 15 min before it goes in.
10:50 am
Into the oven
Roast: 1 h 50 min at 180 °C.
12:40 pm
Out at 60 °C
Tent loosely with foil and rest 20 min. It climbs to about 65 °C.
1:00 pm
Carve and serve
Across the grain, on a warm platter.
- Fat side up on a rack so the base does not stew.
- Push slivers of garlic and rosemary into slits before it goes in.
- Probe the thickest part of the leg, not against the bone.
You need a thermometer for this
Every figure on this page is an internal temperature, and no timer, colour or poke test replaces reading it. An instant-read probe under A$40 pays for itself the first time it stops a roast going grey; a leave-in probe with an alarm is the lazier, better option for a big bird.
Instant-read thermometers on Amazon AURoasting times chart, minutes per 500 g
Conventional oven temperatures; take 20 °C off for fan-forced. Times are for the main phase after any crackling blast, and the thermometer has the final say.
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leg, bone in | 180°C | Rare: 22 · Medium-rare: 25 · Medium: 27 · Well done: 32 | 53°C / 57°C / 60°C / 68°C | 20 min |
| Easy-carve or rolled leg / shoulder | 180°C | Rare: 19 · Medium-rare: 22 · Medium: 26 · Well done: 30 | 53°C / 57°C / 60°C / 68°C | 15 min |
| Butterflied leg | 180°C | Rare: 12 · Medium: 15 · Well done: 18 | 53°C / 60°C / 68°C | 10 min |
| Rack or crown roast | 200°C | Rare: 24 · Medium: 33 · Well done: 43 | 53°C / 60°C / 68°C | 10 min |
| Mini roast, backstrap, rump, round | 220°C | Rare: 22 · Medium: 28 · Well done: 32 | 53°C / 60°C / 68°C | 8 min |
| Shoulder, slow-roasted | 160°C | 60 min | 90°C | 20 min |
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rib roast, sirloin, rump, topside | 200°C | Rare: 17 · Medium-rare: 19 · Medium: 22 · Well done: 27 | 53°C / 57°C / 61°C / 70°C | 20 min |
| Whole fillet (eye fillet) | 200°C | Rare: 12 · Medium-rare: 14 · Medium: 17 · Well done: 22 | 50°C / 54°C / 60°C / 68°C | 12 min |
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rolled loin or leg, with crackling | 240°C 30 min, then 180°C | Juicy, blush pink: 16 · Well done: 20 | 65°C / 71°C | 12 min |
| Belly, with crackling | 240°C 30 min, then 160°C | 25 min | 70°C | 10 min |
| Shoulder, slow-roasted for pulling | 240°C 30 min, then 160°C | 50 min | 92°C | 20 min |
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole chicken | 190°C | Unstuffed: 20 (+20) · Stuffed: 20 (+35) | 74°C / 74°C | 10 min |
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole turkey | 180°C | Unstuffed: 17.5 · Stuffed: 17.5 (+30) | 71°C / 71°C | 40 min |
| Turkey breast, boneless roll or buffé | 180°C | Unstuffed: 20 · Stuffed roll: 22 (+10) | 71°C / 71°C | 15 min |
| Cut | Oven | Time per 500 g | Pull at | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glazed ham (pre-cooked leg) | 160°C | Bone in: 11 · Boneless: 10 | 60°C / 60°C | 15 min |
Sources: Meat & Livestock Australia's lamb and beef roasting charts, Australian Pork's crackling method, the supermarket roast guides for chicken and lamb leg, the Australian turkey guides and the NSW Food Authority minimums.
How the timer works
Every cut has a minutes-per-500-gram rule from the Australian producer charts, an oven temperature, and a floor for small joints, because a 600 g mini roast does not scale down neatly. Crackling cuts get a hot opening phase before the main one. Choose fan-forced and the temperatures drop 20 °C and the time comes back about a tenth. Then the serve-time plan subtracts the rest, the cooking, the preheat and the time out of the fridge from the moment you want to carve, so the answer is a clock time rather than a sum.
The thermometer decides
The chart gets you to the right hour; the probe gets you to the right minute. Ovens run 10–20 °C off their dial, a cold joint straight from the fridge takes longer than one that sat on the bench, and a thick, squat leg cooks slower than a long thin one of the same weight. Start checking 15 minutes before the timer says, pull at the figure shown, and let carryover do the last few degrees during the rest. The meat temperature guide has every pull and rested figure and the food-authority minimums alongside.
Christmas lunch, worked backwards
A 5 kg turkey for 1 pm: out of the oven at 12:20, in at 9:25, oven on at 9:10, out of the fridge at 8:25. A 5 kg glazed ham can go in at 11:00 and be resting by 12:45, and a 2 kg pork loin is a two-hour job from crackle to carve. The plan prints, so pin it to the fridge. If two things need the oven at once, remember the ham is already cooked and forgives being early; the bird does not forgive being late.
Sizes that feed a table
- Bone-in roasts (leg of lamb, rib of beef): 250–300 g per person, so 2.5 kg for eight.
- Boneless roasts (rolled sirloin, easy-carve lamb, pork loin): 180–200 g per person, 1.5 kg for eight.
- Whole birds: a 1.6 kg chicken serves four; a 4 kg turkey 8–10; 6 kg 12–15; 8 kg 20 or more.
- Ham: a 4 kg leg serves 12–16 alongside other dishes and leaves a week of sandwiches.
Slow cookers and multicookers
The pull-apart cuts, lamb shoulder and pork shoulder, are just as happy in a slow cooker on low for 8 hours or a multicooker under pressure for 60–75 minutes; you lose the crackling but gain the oven for everything else. Everything with a doneness choice belongs in the oven.
Roast times — Frequently Asked Questions
How long does roast lamb take per kilo?+
A bone-in leg at 180°C takes about 25 minutes per 500 g for medium-rare, 27 for medium and 32 for well done, so a 2 kg leg is roughly 1 hour 50 minutes plus 20 minutes resting. Boneless and easy-carve joints are a little quicker at 19–30 minutes per 500 g, and a butterflied leg only 12–18. Pull it at 57–60°C for pink and let it rest.
How long does a 2 kg roast beef take?+
At 200°C, a rib roast, sirloin or rump takes 15–20 minutes per 500 g for rare, 20–25 for medium and 25–30 for well done, so 2 kg is about 1 hour 15 minutes for medium-rare. Whole eye fillet is faster, around 25–35 minutes for a seared 1.5 kg piece. Rest 20 minutes.
How do I get pork crackling to crackle?+
Dry rind, scored at 1 cm, rubbed with oil then salt, and a blast of heat: 240°C (220°C fan-forced) for 30–40 minutes until it puffs and crackles, then down to 180°C for 30–35 minutes per kilo until the meat reads 65°C. Leave the roast uncovered in the fridge overnight if you can; moisture is the enemy.
How long does a turkey take per kg in Australia?+
About 35 minutes per kilo at 180°C with the breast covered in foil, uncovered for the last 30 minutes to brown, plus 30 minutes if it is stuffed. A 5 kg bird is close to 3 hours. Pull it at 71°C in the inner thigh and it rests to the 75°C minimum in 40 minutes under foil.
How long do I heat a Christmas ham?+
A pre-cooked leg ham is already safe to eat, so you are warming it to 60°C in the centre while the glaze caramelises: about 20 minutes per kilo at 160°C, basting every 15 minutes. A 5 kg ham takes around 1 hour 40 minutes. Keep the oven moderate or the sugar in the glaze burns before the middle is warm.
Do I change the time for a fan-forced oven?+
Drop the temperature by 20°C and expect it about a tenth quicker; the timer applies both when you choose fan-forced. Then trust the thermometer: ovens vary more than any chart, and the pull temperature is what decides.
What size roast do I need for eight people?+
Allow 250–300 g of bone-in meat per person, or 180–200 g boneless. A 2.5 kg bone-in leg of lamb or a 2 kg rolled beef roast feeds eight with leftovers. A 4 kg turkey serves 8–10; a 4 kg ham 12–16 with other food on the table.
Should meat be at room temperature before roasting?+
Half an hour to an hour on the bench takes the fridge chill off so the centre and the outside do not finish an hour apart. The serve-time plan builds that in. Do not leave it out longer than an hour, and never poultry in a warm kitchen.
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