Prime Rib Roast

Prime Rib Roast

Flavor: 5 Out Of 5

Alternative Names: Rib Roast, Standing Rib Roast

The rib section consist of ribs 6 through 12. The large end, ribs 6-9 is a little more fattier than the smaller end ribs 9-12 which contain the large rib eye muscle. The naturally tender, rich flavor prime rib is known as the king of roast. Many consider the rib a special occasion roast, only cooking it once or twice a year.

To bring out additional flavor and produce a more buttery texture you can dry age the roast for a few days. Age the beef in the refrigerator by leaving it uncovered on a wire rack over a pan to catch the drippings for at least a day or as long as 3-4 days.

When you are ready to cook the rib roast, trim off any dried pieces after the aging. It is common for a roast to lose 5%-15% of its weight during the aging.

Cooking Instructions
Prime Rib Roast

Prime rib roast can be cooked at different temperatures with different results. We discuss two ways that yield good results. The first way is our favorite, there is a little more work involved and it takes a little longer but its worth it.

The second method is a quicker and easier method which will please most but not quite as juicy from center to outer edge.

Cooking Method 1

Rib Roast Recipes

Many of the finest restaurants that serve prime rib roast use low temperatures to achieve those great juicy beefy flavors.

In our experience cooking rib roast at higher temperatures of the 350-450 degree range will cause a roast to dry out on the outer parts and shrink anywhere form 3/4 to 1lb or more depending on the size of the roast by the time its done cooking.

A low temperature of 250 degrees will cook the meat evenly through from the center to the outer edge without any drying out, leaving the meat tender and juicy. You might be concerned about the possibility of bacteria and it has been shown that this way of cooking is actually safe but to have piece of mind there is a way to solve this and at the same time give the roast a nice brown surface.

Bacteria grows from the outside and a way to get rid of bacteria is to sear the roast first. Searing the roast will seal in the juices and look very appealing when being served.

1. An hour before cooking, remove the prime rib roast from the refrigerator to bring to room temperature.

2. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and set the rack to the lower middle position. Take a heavy bottomed roasting pan and set the pan on 1 burner or 2 burners if you have a large pan and set the temperature to medium-high.

Once the pan is hot sear the roast on all sides for 1.5 - 2 minutes per side excluding the bones side. A large heavy skillet can also be used to sear the roast.

3. Carefully remove the roast, set a wire rack in center of the roasting pan and place roast fat side up on the rack. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook uncovered.

4. Cooking prime rib to a temperature of 135-140 degrees (medium-rare) for maximum flavor and tenderness will give you a tender juicy roast or 140-150 degrees (medium) but no more, anything more will begin to dry out the roast. Depending on the size of the roast, cooking times for roast beef will take 25-30 minutes per pound, so you must have an instant-read thermometer to make sure you don't overcook.

Remove roast from oven and tent with foil. Let it rest at least 15- 20 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute themselves evenly throughout the roast. When cooking at 250 degrees the roast will only rise another 2 degrees or so during the resting time. Cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices on platter and serve.

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Below is a cooking chart for beef roast. Remember you should always use an instant-read thermometer to check the doneness of a roast. In method A because a temperature of 250 degrees is used the temperature will only rise about 2-4 degrees during resting time.

Doneness	Description	Meat Thermometer Reading
Rare	Red with cold, soft center	125-130 degrees
Medium-Rare	Red with warm, somewhat firm center	135-140 degrees
Medium	Pink and firm throughout	140-150 degrees
Medium-well	Pink line in center, quite firm	150-155 degrees
Well-done	Gray-brown throughout and completely firm	160-165 degrees

Cooking Method 2

The second method is a non-risky way to cook a prime rib roast, it will give you a tender, juicy roast that won’t embarrass you.

1. An hour before cooking, remove the roast from the refrigerator to bring it to room temperature.

2. Preheat oven to 450°F. Season with salt and pepper, place meat fat side up on rack in roasting pan. Roast meat 15 minutes.

3. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and a roast cooking time about 15-18 minutes per pound is a guideline.

Cook rib until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of meat registers 135-140°F (medium-rare), which will give you maximum flavor and tenderness or 140-150°F (medium) but no more, anything more will begin to dry out the roast.

Remove from oven, tent with foil and let stand at least 15-20 minutes.

The internal temperature will rise about 5-10 degrees during resting time. Remove the rib roast 5-10 degrees before the desired doneness. Remember you should always use an instant-read thermometer to check the doneness of a roast.

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