The Perfect Prime Rib Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do restaurants make prime rib so tender? ›

How do restaurants make prime rib so tender? The secret to restaurant-style prime rib is cooking the meat super slow at low temperatures. I recommend cooking prime rib at no higher than 200 degrees F. This cooks the meat very slowly, turning the fat into butter and rendering the proteins juicy and soft.

Let it sit on the counter for 4 hours before cooking. Bringing the roast to room temperature is especially important here because a cold roast will take much longer to cook. Step three: Cook it low and slow. Set the oven to 225 degrees F and put the roast in the oven.

What's the Best Cut of Prime Rib? The first cut (sometimes labeled the small end or the loin end) comes from the hind of the standing rib roast near the loin. It's more expensive and generally regarded as the best cut because it has less connective tissue than the second cut and therefore is more tender.

Brown the roast at 500°F (or as high as your oven will go) for 15 minutes. Lower the oven to 325°F to finish roasting: Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F. Roast in the oven until the thermometer registers 115°F for rare or 120° for medium rare, and 130°F for medium.

Cook the Rib

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place the roast fat side up, bone side down, in a large roasting pan. Cook for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 325°F. This allows the heat to sear the roast, trapping the juicy flavors inside while the rest of the meat cooks.

This is one of the most expensive cuts of beef, especially if you seek out a higher USDA grade cut of meat. Make sure you're getting the tender and evenly cooked results you want by using a slow and low roasting method that requires only your home oven and a few pieces of kitchen equipment.

The salt helps trap the heat to better cook the prime rib. “It conducts the heat and seals it,” says Betz.

Overcooking the Prime Rib

That's why prime rib is so expensive: it's a huge piece of extremely good beef. Therefore, it's important not to cook it beyond medium-rare. Going past that temperature means the roast will no longer be tender.

Step 1: Season Overnight

You want to use a significant sprinkling of kosher salt because the salt both tenderizes the muscle and flavors the meat all the way to the bone. Once you've seasoned it, wrap the roast in plastic wrap and allow to sit in the fridge for at least 12 hours (up to 48 if desired).

Cook Time and Temperature:

Start by cooking your prime rib at 500°F for 15 minutes and then lower the oven temperature to 325° F and cook for 10-12 min per pound for rare, or 13-14 min per pound for medium rare, or 14-15 min per pound for medium well. A meat thermometer is essential to ensure you cook it perfectly!

Do you cook prime rib covered or uncovered? ›

Leaving prime rib roast uncovered while roasting allows the meat to develop a nice brown crust. You should only cover the roast with aluminum foil if it is becoming too brown.

Heat the oven to 250°F with the rack in the lower middle position. Cook for 4 to 5 hours or until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the roast is 125-130°F for medium-rare prime rib, or 135-140°F for medium. Take out the roast and tent it with foil.

Marinate in refrigerator at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours, turning bag occasionally. Drain meat, discarding marinade.

Marbling is the streaks of intramuscular fat that run through the meat. The more marbled your meat, the juicier, more flavorful, and tender it'll be. Buying "Prime" graded beef is a good guarantee of this fat content, though it's possible to find ungraded beef with plenty of marbling as well.

Carefully slice the meat off the bones and rub kosher salt all over the prime rib. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 24 hours. Let the prime rib come to room temperature before searing it in an oiled skillet.

Prime rib is best cooked to rare or medium rare, so I aim for about 120 to 125 degrees. 125 to 130 degrees will get you to medium doneness. Don't go beyond that or it'll end up dry and tough. I'll say it once more: A meat thermometer is your best friend!