Prime rib perfect for Christmas dinner

I’ve come to think that the best food for Christmas dinner is prime rib. The crispy crust, the tender meat, the savory flavor are hard to beat.

Technically a prime rib is prime grade and anything else is just a standing rib roast or a ribeye roast. These days prime rib is a more a marketing ploy and refers to the cut not necessarily the quality. Of course prime grade is very expensive and hard to get so look for a choice or select grade. Ask if you have a question. Choose a rib roast that has a bright color with milky white fat. Avoid dull colored meat and yellow fat. Also, look for even fat distribution and a good layer of fat around the ends. This isn’t the time to look for a lean cut.

I recently had a 12-pound roast that I wanted to cook. I wanted the finished roast to be easy to cut into portions, so I removed the bone from the meaty section by carefully cutting from the cut rib section with a large boning knife. Cut as close to the rib as you can as you don’t want to sacrifice a chunk of your steak for an extra-meaty rib section, which would be a yummy meal in itself.

I seasoned the freshly cut section with salt and pepper, then replaced the ribs. Then I grabbed some cotton twine and tied the ribs back into place in four sections. The ribs work as an insulator of sorts, helping to keep the adjacent meat from overcooking. I then added my favorite seasoning blend to the fat cap of the roast and let it sit, uncovered, in the fridge for a few hours to dry out the outside of the roast.

I’ve come to prefer the low heat cooking method. I preheat my oven to its lowest setting, 170 degrees. In goes the roast for a long day of baking. The point now is to check it after about six hours. At 170 degrees, my roast had reached 120 degrees with an instant read thermometer, a bit too rare for this house. Checking again every hour or so, the internal temperature finally reached 140 degrees. Now I was checking my temperature in the middle of the roast. The meat toward the ends of the roast would be reading a higher temperature, and would more likely be overcooked if I wasn’t careful. I then removed the roast from the oven and let it sit while I cranked the temperature of the oven to 500 degrees. When the oven was ready, I put the roast back in. Mine was nicely browned in about 12 minutes, though your roasting time may vary depending on the size of it.

If your oven’s lowest temperature is, say, 200, the whole cooking time is going to be less. You’ll just have to check it earlier in the process.

My problem with cooking the roast from the start at a high oven temperature is the tendency of the meat to overcook around the edges, becoming gray and dry. If this isn’t a problem with you and it always works that way, by all means keep cooking it that way.

I always incorporate the cooking juices into a tasty jus to serve with my roast. Never make it with salty bouillon cubes.

LOW HEAT PRIME RIB

Preheat oven to lowest possible temperature setting, 150 to 250 degrees. Season roast well with salt and pepper. Place uncovered in a baking pan, preferably with a baking rack underneath, fat cap facing up. When oven is at temperature, place in oven and bake until center of roast reaches 125 degrees on an instant-read thermometer for rare, 130 for medium-rare, or 135 for medium to medium-well. Any higher and any pink in the middle with going to be gone. Times will vary, depending on the size of your roast and the temperature of your oven. Figure multiple hours at the least. When desired temperature is reached, remove from oven and set aside, covering if desired. Turn up oven to 500 degrees. When that temperature is achieved, place roast back into oven. Again, depending on the size of your roast, the best browning will take place between 6 and 15 minutes. When roast reaches desired brownness, remove from oven and carve and serve as desired right away.

MEDIUM HEAT PRIME RIB

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season roast well with salt and pepper. Place uncovered in a baking pan, preferably with a baking rack underneath, fat cap facing up. When oven is at temperature, place in oven and bake until center of roast reaches 125 degrees on an instant-read thermometer for rare, 130 for medium-rare, or 135 for medium to medium-well. Any higher and any pink in the middle with going to be gone. Times will vary, depending on the size of your roast and the temperature of your oven. Keep in mind that at the higher temperatures, the ends of the roast will be cooked to a higher temperature and likely be cooked a little more than what the thermometer reads. When desired temperature is reached, remove from oven and set aside. Keep in mind that the temperature of the roast will rise after it has been removed from the oven as the center of the roast reaches an equal temperature with the outside of the roast. Cover with aluminum foil and let sit for at least 30 minutes before you carve and serve as desired.

HIGH HEAT PRIME RIB

Note: Cooking times will vary depending on the size of your roast. For a medium-rare roast, take the weight of the roast, rounded up to the next full pound and multiply by five. This will be your cooking time in a 500 degree oven. So, for a 7-pound roast, take the seven and multiply by five, which equals 35 minutes. You would bake the roast for 35 minutes. For medium-well to well, multiply by six.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Season roast well with salt and pepper. Place uncovered in a baking pan, preferably with a baking rack underneath, fat cap facing up. When oven is at temperature, place in oven and bake until required minutes are achieved. Do not open oven. Turn off oven and wait 2 hours before opening oven door. Carve and serve as desired.

AU JUS

1 cup beef broth

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup red wine

Remove the roast from the roasting pan and place pan over stovetop burners on medium low. Whisk in the Worcestershire sauce and wine and scrape up the little brown bits from the bottom of the roasting pan. Bring to a modest boil to reduce slightly and add the broth. Bring to a simmer and reduce slightly. Remove from heat and check seasoning level. Adjust if necessary, probably with a bit of added salt. Serve along with the sliced prime rib.

HORSERADISH SAUCE

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 green onions, finely chopped

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

Combine all ingredients in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.