I Didn't Know That - Roasting

I'm not a big beef eater but now and then I'll cook a roast in the oven.  When cooking in this method I've always used a high sided roasting pan, for no apparent reason other than it was called a roasting pan. Recently I've started cooking my chicken in the oven using a low side pan.  Unlike the beef roast the chicken comes out 'roasted' all over whereas the beef is usually roasted on the top and around the top edges.  While reading through an old cookbook I found the reason.  A shallow pan is better than a deep one for roasting because it allows the heat to circulate around the meat.  Makes sense to me.

I also found that to prevent the meat form scorching while roasting, you can place a pan of cold water in the oven.  Just remember to keep it filled.