Okay, so I got volunteered to cook the family Christmas dinner this year. I bought a gigantic 18.5 lb standing rib roast, and I haven’t the first clue what to do with it. Well, cook it, of course, but how? I’ve heard everything from a high heat method - 500* for an hour and a half, then turn off the oven and let it cook for another 2 hrs. Then there’s the low heat method - 185* for 6 hours.
Can anybody help? What’s the easiest, most foolproof method of cooking my HUGE 18.5 pound prime rib?
This is how I used to do it when I was working in a restaurant:
Season well, Salt-pepper-garlic powder-paprika. Season both sides and rub in. Place in roasting pan fat side up. Cover with foil. Let stand at room temp for 30 plus minutes. Pre heat oven to 325 degess F. If you have a convention oven Great. Put in pre heated oven and cook to desired doneness(you need a thermometer: 120 -160 rare to well done.) Remove from oven and let stand.
We would remove the foil for if you wanted the fat to brown.
Get a digital probe thermometer. You just bought a $200+ chunk of meat, don’t ruin it by skimping on a $20 thermometer. Stick the Thermometer into the middle of the meat so it’s not touching bone. Salt, Pepper and Oil it and Stick it in an oven until the thermometer hits 130F. Both the high and low heat method work. It depends on how much time you have and whether you like a browned crust or uniform interior better. Take it out and let it rest for an hour and then carve and serve.
I just did a boneless one about half the size of yours, 8.5 pounds. I rubbed it with seasoning, placed it in a 500 degree oven for 5 minutes per pound, then shut the oven off and left it for two hours. Remember, no peeking. It came out rare, which is just what I was looking for.
Spot on directions, but I will temper it with some clarification, as I followed a written recipe almost exactly like this the first time I made prime rib and was rather disappointed…
If the center is at 130F when you take it out and you let it sit for an hour, this will be (to my taste) a rather well-done roast. The (very) center will end up being around 140F in the end, which is slightly pink, and the rest of the roast verging on medium well as it gets closer to the edge.
I’ve done several more passes at it and have established that to get it the way I like it (a more consistent medium rare) would be to roast at high temperature for the first 30 minutes (450F), then turn the heat down to 300F for all but the last 20 minutes, when I kick it back up to 450F again, using an estimated total cooking time of 15 minutes per pound. The center should be 120-125F. I let it sit for 30-45 minutes (an hour seems rather long, though we are talking a ginormous 18+ pounder here in the OP and my typical roasts have been of the 8-12 lb. variety), at the end of which the center should be 130-135F, the edge crispy and the center evenly rare (not mostly brown with a pinkish center). Perfect! No need to make gravy with the pan drippings when the roast’s this juicy… Just serve with horseradish and sour cream!
Oh… And there’s nothing like fresh rosemary placed on and stuck into the roast surface under the string ties. Ohhh yeah. Coarse ground pepper, kosher salt, garlic wedges, fresh rosemary and extra virgin olive oil are all you need (though I find Worcestershire sauce splashed on it during the 30 minute “bring to room temperature” pre-cooking phase adds a nice flavor as well).
I usually cook a 4.5 pound roast. Normally it’s only for me, and maybe a friend or two. Even prime rib gets tiresome after a few days, so that’s plenty. I use a 450º oven for half an hour, then turn the heat down to 375º until the meat thermometer reads a bit below ‘rare’ and then remove the roast to a plate. By the time I’ve made the pudding (actually I mix it beforehand – by the time I bake the pudding) the meat somes out nicely on the rare side of medium-rare.
I just bought a 5 lb one for my family. I’m grilling ours. Over indirect heat, probably 1.5 hours or so. Comes out great.
Also, I’ll second the probe thermometer suggestion. Greatest lesson I ever learned about cooking large cuts of meat. You can get them done exactly right every time.
Thanks, everybody, for your great ideas. I think I will go with the slow & gentle method, probably starting fairly early in the morning. Now, do I have a roasting pan big enough?!?
I’ll report back here on the results. If there are any survivors of my cooking, that is.
I guess I failed to mention that my “Christmas Dinner” is today, the day after Christmas. That’s when the family is able to get together.
The roast is in the oven, with the electronic probe in it, set for 130*. Once the internal temp reaches 100*, it will be displayed on the oven, so I can always remove it sooner. Today’s the day. Slowly, gently, lovingly. Wish me luck!
And yes, ** John DiFool, **the “Flintstones” theme has been in my head all day.
My mother did a 17.5 lb standing rib roast yesterday, long and slow. It was the nicest cut of meat I can remember. Butter-tender, beautifully seasoned with wonderful flavour. pretty well done on the outside cuts, bloody on the inside, something for everyone. And the soup those bones will make! There were 10 for dinner, and we had almost 1/2 the roast left over.