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Prime Rib

Prime rib is a bone-in standing rib roast, salted a day ahead and roasted slowly until evenly pink, then crisped in a hot oven for Christmas.
Recipe Prime Rib
  • Difficulty Medium
  • Preparation 20 minutes
  • Cooking 4 hours and30 minutes
  • Servings for 8 people

Prime rib is the grand roast of an American Christmas dinner: a standing rib roast, cut from the rib section of the beef with the bones still attached, seasoned simply with kosher salt and pepper, roasted whole and carved at the table into thick, juicy slices with a browned crust.

The name refers to the rib primal cut, not to the grade of the meat: the roast does not have to be USDA Prime, although Prime or well-marbled Choice beef gives the best results. In this method the meat is salted a day or more ahead, roasted in a very low oven so it cooks evenly from edge to center, and finished in a hot oven for the crust.

It is served with its jus and a horseradish sauce, and in many families with Yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes and creamed spinach.

Ingredients for 8 people

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Method

  1. One to four days before cooking, pat the roast dry. With a sharp knife, score the fat cap in a crosshatch pattern with cuts 2.5 cm (1 inch) apart, deep enough to reach the meat without cutting into it. Rub the kosher salt all over the roast and into the cuts, set it on a rack over a tray and refrigerate it, uncovered, for at least 24 hours.
  2. Place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat it to 95 °C (200 °F), or to its lowest setting if it does not go that low, knowing the roast will cook faster. Season the meat all over with the pepper. Set it bone side down, fat side up, on a rack in a roasting pan, and insert a probe thermometer into the center of the thickest part, away from the bone.
  3. Roast until the center reads 43 °C (110 °F), 3 to 4 hours. Switch off the oven and leave the roast inside, without opening the door, until it reaches 49 °C (120 °F) for rare or 52 °C (125 °F) for medium-rare, another 30 to 75 minutes.
  4. Lift the roast, still on its rack, onto a rimmed baking sheet, cover it loosely with foil and let it rest for at least 30 minutes and up to 75 minutes.
  5. Meanwhile, make the jus: spoon off most of the fat from the roasting pan and set the pan over medium heat. Pour in the beef broth and scrape up the browned bits, then transfer it to a small saucepan and simmer until reduced by about a third, 8 to 10 minutes. Taste and keep it hot.
  6. Heat the oven to 260 °C (500 °F). Remove the foil and return the roast, on its baking sheet, to the oven for 6 to 10 minutes, until the outside is deep brown and the fat is crisp. Alternatively, brown it under a hot broiler for 2 to 8 minutes, watching it closely.
  7. Move the roast to a carving board. Cut along the bones to free the meat in one piece, then slice it across the grain about 2 cm (3/4 inch) thick. Sprinkle the slices with flaky salt and serve right away with the hot jus; the ribs can be cut apart and served alongside. Finally, remember to download our App with exclusive content and fewer ads!

Variations and Alternatives

For more flavor, rub the roast with a paste of garlic, chopped rosemary and thyme and a little olive oil just before it goes into the oven. For easier carving, ask the butcher to cut the meat off the bones and tie it back on: the bones still shield the meat, and at the table you only cut the string. The classic hot-start method, 20 minutes at 230 °C (450 °F) and then 165 °C (325 °F) until done, is quicker but leaves a wider grey band under the crust.

Tips

Ask the butcher for a first-cut (small end) roast of 3 ribs with its fat cap untrimmed. Use a probe thermometer left in the thickest part of the meat, away from the bone, and open the oven as little as possible: the time depends on your oven and on the roast. Take the meat out at 49 °C (120 °F) for rare, 52 °C (125 °F) for medium-rare or 57 °C (135 °F) for medium; with this low-temperature method it rises only a few degrees as it rests. If the roast lags behind with the oven off, heat it again to 95 °C (200 °F) for a few minutes and switch it off. The USDA recommends 63 °C (145 °F) and a 3-minute rest for whole cuts of beef: cook it to that point for pregnant women, young children, the elderly and anyone vulnerable. For a horseradish cream, mix 240 ml (1 cup) of sour cream with 3 to 4 tablespoons of prepared horseradish, 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and a pinch of salt, and chill it for an hour before serving.

Storage

The salted raw roast can wait, uncovered, in the fridge for up to 4 days before cooking. Keep leftover cooked beef wrapped or in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, or freeze it, sliced, for up to 3 months. Warm the slices gently in a little hot jus, or serve them cold in sandwiches with horseradish.

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