Prime Rib
Updated Dec. 19, 2023
- Total Time
- About 7 hours, plus overnight dry brining
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 7 hours, plus overnight dry brining
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:8 to 12 servings
- 1(4-rib) standing rib roast (about 10 pounds)
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
- ¼cup olive oil
- 2tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or thyme (or a combination)
- 2tablespoons minced garlic (about 5 large cloves)
- ½cup pan drippings (from the roast)
- 2tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
For the Prime Rib
For the Jus
Preparation
- Step 1
The night before you plan to cook the prime rib, place the roast on a rimmed sheet pan or platter. Season all over with 2 tablespoons of salt and refrigerate, uncovered, overnight. Two hours before cooking, let the roast sit on the counter to come to room temperature.
- Step 2
Arrange an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and heat to 250 degrees.
- Step 3
Position the roast with the tips of the bones facing up. With a sharp carving or chef’s knife, create a flap by slicing between the meat and the bones, staying as close to the bones as possible and stopping just before they’re separated from the roast. Flip the roast so the bones are underneath and the meaty side is up. Use several pieces of kitchen twine to secure the bones back in place against the roast, tying between each set of ribs. (This will make it easier to remove the ribs when carving, after the meat has been roasted.) Alternatively, a butcher can do this for you.
- Step 4
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, rosemary, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Rub all over the meat. Place the roast bone side down on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet or on a rack in a large, shallow roasting pan. Roast for 3½ to 4 hours, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat registers 125 degrees for medium-rare. Remove the prime rib from the oven, tent it loosely with foil and allow it to rest for at least 20 minutes and up to 1 hour. (The temperature will rise 5 to 10 degrees as the roast rests.)
- Step 5
Meanwhile, increase the oven temperature to 500 degrees. When the oven comes to temperature, remove the foil and return the roast to the oven until the meat is nicely browned all over, 5 to 10 minutes. (Be careful not to let it get too dark.) Transfer the prime rib to a large carving board.
- Step 6
Make the jus: Carefully pour about ½ cup of the pan drippings into a medium saucepan set over low heat. Sprinkle the flour on top and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly, about 1 minute. Whisk in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced (but not thick like gravy), 3 to 5 minutes. Taste and season, if necessary — the jus should be meaty and pleasantly salty.
- Step 7
Remove the flap with the bones from the prime rib, slicing in between the ribs and the roast to separate the two sections. Thinly slice the roast crosswise and serve the meat and the ribs with the jus on the side.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
amart
Reverse sear is the only way to go. So is rare beef. I remove my roast at 110/115, tent and hold at least 1 hour or more before the sear, giving me time to finish the rest of the meal or enjoy my guests. Seasoning 24-48 hours ahead is also key, as with any cut of beef. I never trim and will likely select the largest eye I can find, bones cut and tied. Even a choice grade can be excellent using this method.
polly
Using a leave-in thermometer makes roasting expensive beef ribs worry-free. The sear at 500 after resting an hour is usually accomplished in 5 minutes or less. The only thing I do different is to salt and season two days ahead and then refrigerate uncovered. This seasons and dries the outside of the meat and results in more flavor and better browning.
Richard Gilroy
We’ve used this method — basically Alton Brown’s technique — for a rib roast for years, but there is one caveat: When you you put the roast back in at 500 degrees, it will smoke a lot. So you really need to have a fan that exhausts externally. Unfortunately, we never have had that luxury, so the smoke alarms always let us know when the final sear is complete.
Kristin Racoosin
If you like Yorkshire Pudding with your Prime Rib (like we do!), then it is best to sear first so you will have enough drippings! Sear at 500'F for 10-15 min, then reduce heat to lowest oven setting (170-200"F), slather with oil, garlic, and rosemary. Roast to desired temp (I remove at 120'F), tent and rest for 45" while Yorkshire pudding is baking... IT WILL BE A PERFECT 130'F... adjust to your favorite serving temp!
Bob R.
Easiest way: heat oven to 500°, keep it turned on 5 minutes for each pound of roast, turn it off after the alloted time, and then do not open the oven AT ALL for two hours. Splendid results all the time.
Janice
I've been doing it this way for almost 15 years. It comes out perfect every time. There is one downside, the lack of initial high heat in the beginning, which is the more common approach, means there are very little pan drippings produced. So hard to get enough for the Yorkshire pudding, to say nothing of au jus. So just plan on serving it with horseradish sauce instead. Oh, I give it three days uncovered in the fridge before cooking. And never need more than 5 minutes to brown it at the end.
DRC423
Per another note, follow the NYT's 1966 recipe, reprinted in 2011, which has produced perfectly cooked prime rib for me every Christmas. It could not be simpler. (And don't forget a good Yorkshire pudding to go with it). https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/magazine/30Food-t-001.html
Shawn
Why not simply add the garlic ,rosemary and olive oil to the initial 24 to 48 hour fridge seasoning . I have done this myself and found the results delicious . While I do take it out of the fridge for 30 mins or so before roasting I find that the residual cold in the roast helps prevent over cooking . Do be careful with the additional salt though as it can get to be too much .
Bello
Have no idea what the flap is all about…which way to cut, why it’s done or how big it is? Pictures or diagram would be sooo useful.
David
Here’s a link to a video with cut and tie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXSI860dyL4
Sandy S
Made this yesterday. 6.5 pounds, oven at 200°, meat got to 120° after a little less than 4 hours. My innovation this time: after a 30-minute rest I blasted it in my gas grill preheated to 650° (including the rotisserie burner) for 5 minutes. Scary, but terrific. And no smoke in the house.
Lou C
In my opinion, if the only thing stopping you from using this method over, say, Sam Sifton’s recipe, is Yorkshire Pudding consideration, you should just by beef tallow for the puddings and use this recipe. This turned out heavenly for me! I had a mediocre result using Sam’s, personally. In my case the temp rose a bit higher than I expected after removing it at 125°, so I think I’ll remove at 115° next time, otherwise this recipe was perfect.
Jim M
Take out at 115 degrees to be a bit more rare. Cooking time to 115 degrees was about 4 hours for a 7 lbs, 4 bone roast.
jeanne
Butcher only had boneless rib eye - how does it change the cooking process? I’m assuming that I’d have to raise it on a rack (or root vegetables?). Anything else to watch out for? Thank you to everyone who contributes to this amazing site!
Bello
Have no idea what the flap is all about…which way to cut, why it’s done or how big it is? Pictures or diagram would be sooo useful.
MikeF
Very confusing text, especially concerning the "flap" and Step 7: "Remove the flap with the bones from the prime rib, slicing in between the ribs and the roast to separate the two sections. Thinly slice the roast crosswise and serve the meat and the ribs with the jus on the side." Are the ribs being served along side the meat, unattached? Photo is not very helpful in conveying the story of the flap and rib bones.
David
Here’s a link to a video with cut and tie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXSI860dyL4
Aaron M.
We followed the recipe and were rewarded with the best Prime Rib we've ever made over the years. We questioned the searing at the end but decided to try it and now will follow this recipe every time we make prime rib.
Ariel Burns
If you're serving baked potatoes, don't put them into the oven with the roast at 500 degrees, or your potato skins will be wooden!
Howard
This worked well, although I think there should be cooking times for smaller roasts. I did a 3 rib [6.5] roast and it was done in two hours. The leave in thermometer registers about 5 degrees higher than the instant read thermometer. I suggest people use both. Bottom line: A wonderful roast. This will be my go-to method in the future.
Sunny
We made this for the Christmas dinner which was a HUGE HIT! Excellent recipe recipe that deserves a 5 star rating. We plan to make this again and again for years to come!
Dan St. James
I used a cast iron pan on our outdoor grille to perform the sear. I like that you can get the side menu items accomplished between slow cooking the roast early and searing the roast at the very end. I always thought au jous sauce was light and close to the consistency of a watery liquid? This aus jous is more like gravy, the way the recipe calls to make. First time today and will make again! Merry Christmas!!!
Theresa
this was excellent- I have also done the sear and then load slow cook, and I found this more favorable, and it also allowed time to bake potatoes and rolls and get everything on the table at once.
Bette Sullivan
Perfect.I started an 11.97-lb roast at 1 pm and carved it at 6. I watched the temperature, not the time.
Lou
Yum. We've used this recipe for several years now. Having your butcher separate the ribs and tie them back on makes for an expert cut.
Pam Kueppers
Fabulous!
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