A standing rib roast of beef, which is called Prime Rib, is one of the most luxurious pieces of meat you can serve. As such, it is usually reserved for special occasions like holidays.
In my 2009 post for Prime Rib I never gave the actual recipe and technique. At that time I was still experimenting with what worked best. After several years and various tests, I've now settled on this method which produces a succulent prime rib of beef, that is more equally cooked from edge to edge.
 | |
 |
The goal for this classic holiday cut of beef is a deep brown crisp crust that when sliced reveals a juicy pink center that extends from edge to edge, without it being nearly raw in the middle. With that said, you will have end caps which will always be slightly more done, even with sous vide, as you will brown them. Save these for those prefer more well cooked meat.
Both my classic roasted and sous vide techniques achieve this. I prefer to use the sous vide, as it is a no fail, always perfect method as you can't overcook the beef. However, when you have a big boy like I did earlier this year, it simply is too big to fit into a bag for submersion into the water bath. So today I'm giving you the classic oven roast method, and a link to the sous video technique I follow from the maker of the Joule, Chef Steps.
Prime Rib, bone in
Butchers twine
Coarse salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Horseradish Cream Sauce
8 ounces sour cream
2-3 tablespoons prepared horseradish (more to taste)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Instructions
4-12 days in advance: Select a bone-in prime rib of beef of the best possible grade. Prime grade is better than Choice, but also most expensive. Either can be good. Prime is obviously a bit better because of the fat marbling throughout the meat. Purchase dry-aged beef if available. Avoid wet aged. Dry aging concentrates flavor and makes the meat more tender. If you are ordering the beef from a butcher, ask that it be cut from the chuck end of the beef, as it is more flavorful and tender. Also ask him to french the bones and trim the fat, which will save you significant time. You'll need about one pound of bone-in prime rib per adult when purchasing.
1-4 days in advance: Trim any excess fat off the meat until it is only about one-half inch thick. Leave the remaining fat in place. Remove the bone rack now by slicing down as close to the bone as possible to remove them all in one piece. Cut slits in the surface of the fat about one inch apart cutting in both directions to make a cross-hatch (X) pattern. Cut down to, but not into, the meat scoring only the layer of fat. Rub 2-3 tablespoons of course salt all over the meat working as you can to get as much down into the cut surface as possible. Using butchers twine, tightly tie the bones back to the meat where they were removed by running the twine between the bones and around the meat. Place in the refrigerator uncovered for 24-96 hours to tenderize and dry out the surface for ultimate browning.
Cooking day: Preheat the oven to 200F-225F degrees with the oven rack set in the middle but down far enough so the roast is at least two inches from the broiling element. Place the beef, fat side up, on a wire rack over a cookie sheet or roast pan that keeps the meat up out of drippings and provides for air circulation. Season generously with freshly cracked pepper. Place the meet into the pre-heated oven and roast until the meat at the center reaches 110F degrees, approximately 4-6 hours, depending on size. Turn the heat off but keep the roast in the oven for 30-75 minutes longer, until the meat reaches 120F degrees for rare or 125-130F degrees for medium-rare.
While the beef is roasting, make the horseradish cream sauce by mixing together the above ingredients and let sit at room temperature until the meat is ready to serve.
When the beef hits the desired temperature, remove it from oven and let rest for 30-90 minutes. When you are nearly ready to eat, re-position the oven rack if necessary so that it is approximately eight inches from the broiling element. Make a ball from aluminum foil and place this until the fat cap on the bone end so that the surface of the roast is evenly exposed to the broiler. Broil until the top of the roast is well-browned and crisp, approximately 2-8 minutes. (If you do not have a broiler, set the oven to 500F with convention on if available, and roast for 10-12 minutes.)
Transfer to a carving board and remove twine. Cut the strings and release the bones. Slice each piece into 3/4 inch slices and serve with horseradish cream sauce.
Slice the meat between the bones and use for another meal, or if it's a more casual dinner put them on a platter and let diners chew this delicious meat off the bone. It is highly flavorful.
Note about Au Ju: This technique does not render any significant drippings from which you can make the famed Beef Au Jus. This as you may know, is a flavorful thin gravy that sometimes is used to top the beef prime rib during service. However, because we have successfully trapped all of the juices inside the beef, it will not produce any adequate quantity for which to make au ju. As such, I use the horseradish cream sauce. If you wish to make an au ju, you can do this separately by roasting ox tails, beef shanks or other fatty cuts with carrots, celery and onions and using their drippings to make the classic au ju.
Both my classic roasted and sous vide techniques achieve this. I prefer to use the sous vide, as it is a no fail, always perfect method as you can't overcook the beef. However, when you have a big boy like I did earlier this year, it simply is too big to fit into a bag for submersion into the water bath. So today I'm giving you the classic oven roast method, and a link to the sous video technique I follow from the maker of the Joule, Chef Steps.
Bone-In Prime Rib Roast
Oven Technique
IngredientsPrime Rib, bone in
Butchers twine
Coarse salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Horseradish Cream Sauce
8 ounces sour cream
2-3 tablespoons prepared horseradish (more to taste)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Instructions
4-12 days in advance: Select a bone-in prime rib of beef of the best possible grade. Prime grade is better than Choice, but also most expensive. Either can be good. Prime is obviously a bit better because of the fat marbling throughout the meat. Purchase dry-aged beef if available. Avoid wet aged. Dry aging concentrates flavor and makes the meat more tender. If you are ordering the beef from a butcher, ask that it be cut from the chuck end of the beef, as it is more flavorful and tender. Also ask him to french the bones and trim the fat, which will save you significant time. You'll need about one pound of bone-in prime rib per adult when purchasing.
1-4 days in advance: Trim any excess fat off the meat until it is only about one-half inch thick. Leave the remaining fat in place. Remove the bone rack now by slicing down as close to the bone as possible to remove them all in one piece. Cut slits in the surface of the fat about one inch apart cutting in both directions to make a cross-hatch (X) pattern. Cut down to, but not into, the meat scoring only the layer of fat. Rub 2-3 tablespoons of course salt all over the meat working as you can to get as much down into the cut surface as possible. Using butchers twine, tightly tie the bones back to the meat where they were removed by running the twine between the bones and around the meat. Place in the refrigerator uncovered for 24-96 hours to tenderize and dry out the surface for ultimate browning.
Cooking day: Preheat the oven to 200F-225F degrees with the oven rack set in the middle but down far enough so the roast is at least two inches from the broiling element. Place the beef, fat side up, on a wire rack over a cookie sheet or roast pan that keeps the meat up out of drippings and provides for air circulation. Season generously with freshly cracked pepper. Place the meet into the pre-heated oven and roast until the meat at the center reaches 110F degrees, approximately 4-6 hours, depending on size. Turn the heat off but keep the roast in the oven for 30-75 minutes longer, until the meat reaches 120F degrees for rare or 125-130F degrees for medium-rare.
While the beef is roasting, make the horseradish cream sauce by mixing together the above ingredients and let sit at room temperature until the meat is ready to serve.
When the beef hits the desired temperature, remove it from oven and let rest for 30-90 minutes. When you are nearly ready to eat, re-position the oven rack if necessary so that it is approximately eight inches from the broiling element. Make a ball from aluminum foil and place this until the fat cap on the bone end so that the surface of the roast is evenly exposed to the broiler. Broil until the top of the roast is well-browned and crisp, approximately 2-8 minutes. (If you do not have a broiler, set the oven to 500F with convention on if available, and roast for 10-12 minutes.)
Transfer to a carving board and remove twine. Cut the strings and release the bones. Slice each piece into 3/4 inch slices and serve with horseradish cream sauce.
Slice the meat between the bones and use for another meal, or if it's a more casual dinner put them on a platter and let diners chew this delicious meat off the bone. It is highly flavorful.
Note about Au Ju: This technique does not render any significant drippings from which you can make the famed Beef Au Jus. This as you may know, is a flavorful thin gravy that sometimes is used to top the beef prime rib during service. However, because we have successfully trapped all of the juices inside the beef, it will not produce any adequate quantity for which to make au ju. As such, I use the horseradish cream sauce. If you wish to make an au ju, you can do this separately by roasting ox tails, beef shanks or other fatty cuts with carrots, celery and onions and using their drippings to make the classic au ju.
Comments
Post a Comment