This week I cooked my first prime rib roast, and I have to say it was easy and yummy. Prime rib of beef can be fairly expensive. Our top choice two-rib cut was $30. Prime goes for more. And I have to say I am not a big fan of prime rib to begin with. I've had all the mediocre prime rib I need for the rest of my lifetime, thank you very much. But this week I found myself in the mood: willing to spend some bucks on a treat, willing to try something new, and hoping for something delicious.
First, the cut. You've got to engage a good butcher in a conversation. Good prime rib meat is usually something you have to special order; it's in such demand, especially in the holiday time of year. You definitely want "top choice" grade or, better, "prime". The difference in grade will be something you taste. Why go to this much trouble and expense if not for the best? In addition to the grade, you need to pay attention to where in the prime rib you are getting the cut from. I've heard some people recommend ribs 12-14. This area tends to be leanest, so I assume that's what this preference is about. We got ribs 2-3 instead and loved it. At this end, there is much more of the fatty side bits (I don't know the proper name for these muscles - I think the butcher called them 'lifters'), which can be sooooo tasty. One downside is that on this end the ribs are shorter and it's really hard to get the roast to sit on the ribs in the oven, which would be the ideal configuration.
Second, is the prep. This is very simple. I made a paste of olive oil, garlic (5 cloves), horseradish (4 tablespoons), rosemary, thyme, black pepper, and lots of salt, and covered the fatty side thickly with it. I also rubbed sea salt into the two exposed meaty sides. I put the whole thing into the oven.
Third, is the roasting. For my first attempt here, I used a 400 degree F oven, but I think next time I'm going to try hotter, maybe 425. I cooked at this temperature for 20 minutes per rib (or 40 minutes total in this case). I then turned the oven off but left the roast in the oven for another 2 hours. This last step did the slow roasting that creates that distinctive "prime rib" flavor in a restaurant. They say for medium rare you should cook to an internal temperature of 125 degrees F, but it's impossible to cook to that and also do the slow roasting, so I just went with the timed method.
The outcome was delicious. The meat was suffused with a light garlic and horseradish flavor. This much meat made 4 sizeable portions. Considering how easy and delicious it was, I'm sure we'll be doing it again.
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