Prime Rib

Get the Recipe: Prime Rib

4.80 from 39 ratings

Yield5 people

Prep3

Cook3 30

Resting Time1

Total3 4 30

Ingredients

5 lb bone-in, prime rib "standing rib roast"
5 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt

Prime Rib Dry Rub

1¼ teaspoons mushroom powder
2½ teaspoons onion powder
1¼ teaspoons garlic powder
2½ teaspoons black pepper, fresh ground
¼ cup canola oil

Equipment

1 cutting board
1 boning knife
kitchen twine
1 cooling rack
1 baking tray
1 roasting pan
1 roasting rack optional
aluminum foil

Print Recipe

Instructions

You'll need to purchase your standing rib roast 2-3 days before you plan to cook it. Try to find a "standing rib roast" that has strong marbling in the rib cap and thin spider-webbing fat marbled into the center eye cut. As soon as possible, get the roast out of store packaging and prep it for the dry brine.
If the bones have not been pre-cut off the roast, take a boning knife or other long thin knife and cut the main roast free from the bones. Make sure you are cutting as close to the bone as possible, so you don't lose mass from the prime rib unnecessarily. Keep the ribs for au jus. Next, cut off the tapered tail of the rib cap for a more circular shape (prevents uneven cooking) and easier trussing. That can also be kept for au jus.
Trim down the fat covering the rib cap (fat cap), if it has one, to between 1/4-1/2in (.6-1.2cm). Then, run the tip of your knife along the outside of the roast to score the fat cap in a 1.5in (3.8cm) crosshatch pattern. Be careful not to cut into the meat. Next, use a paper towel to pat the prime rib dry.
Sprinkle and rub 1tsp (2.5g) of salt per 1lb (455g) over the entire roast. Be sure to rub the salt into the scoring you've done and spread it as evenly around the roast as possible.
Next, truss up the roast without the bones attached. To do this, cut a very long piece of kitchen twine. If it helps with an estimate, you will be creating loops that go around the roast every 1in (2.5cm) or so. It's better to go longer, than you think you need, as it's easier to cut excess twine than not have enough and need to start over.
First, decide which end of your roast is going to be the "front" and which is going to be the "back". Starting at one end of the twine, tie a loop around the "front" of the roast and knot it. Then, with the loose end of the string create a loop by crossing twine from the tied and loose ends and threading the roast through the loop, until you are roughly 1in (2.5cm) back from the first tie. Next, as if you were tying a shoe, thread the loose end of the twine through your loop where it overlaps and pull to tighten. Make another loop and do the same thing: overlapping; threading; looping; and tightening, until you get to the back of the roast. Tie off the twine, and cut any extra, unused length.
Place the roast on a cooling rack inset into a sheet pan and put it in your refrigerator, uncovered, for between 2-3 days.
On the day of baking the roast, take the dry-brined prime rib out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature for at least 1.5 hours, but no more than 3. Preheat your oven to 200°F (93°C) about 30 minutes before it's time to bake. While the oven is heating up, rub the roast with the oil and dry rub.
Place the prime rib on a roasting rack in an uncovered roasting pan and bake until the internal temperature reaches 125-130°F (52-54°C) degrees. This should take between 2.5-4 hours. (see temperature chart in notes)
Remove the roast, cover it with foil, and leave it to rest for 1 hour.
During this time, bring your oven to the highest temperature it can go, typically between 500-550°F (260-288°C). After, resting, take the foil off of your prime rib and bake for between 6-10 minutes. The outside with bubble, brown, and crisp before your eyes. Do not walk away, you are basically broiling the whole thing. Once, done, take the roast out and feel free to immediately slice and serve with au jus or gravy.

Notes

If you cannot find Diamond Crystal kosher salt, use 2/3 teaspoon (2.5g) Morton Salt per 1lb (455g) of meat. Morton Salt crystals are more compact than Diamond Crystal salt crystals, so measuring by volume may cause you to over-salt your roast if you aren't careful.
The rub ingredients can be increased or decreased depending on the weight of your roast. The ratio is as follows per 1lb (455g) of meat: 1/4tsp (.7g) mushroom powder; 1/2tsp (1.9g) onion powder; 1/4tsp (.7g) garlic powder; and 1/2tsp (1g) black pepper.
If you cannot find mushroom powder, ignore my rub ingredients and buy Lipton's original onion soup mix as a substitute.
Leftover meat will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days after cooking. If you want to freeze your leftovers, they will keep for about a month in the freezer.
Be careful when reheating, as any heat above your initial doneness temperature will cook the meat more. I other words, it's best to slice the meat and then use surrounding ingredients like sauteed onions and mushrooms with hot au jus to reheat the slices. Yum!

Nutrition