Prime Rib Roast

Don't Make These Mistakes

A leave-in probe thermometer is worth more here than any technique. This is an expensive joint and there is no recovering from an overshoot.

Rest before the blast, not after. The crust goes on last so it reaches the table crisp.

Ask the butcher to remove the chine bone and tie the joint back on. It carves in seconds afterwards.

Making Prime Rib Roast

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1. The day before, pat the joint dry and rub the salt over every surface. Set it on a rack over a tray and refrigerate uncovered for 24 hours.

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2. Take it out 2 hours before cooking so it loses some of its fridge chill; raw meat should not sit out for longer than that.

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3. Heat the oven to 110°C / 230°F. Mix the pepper, garlic, rosemary, thyme and oil and rub it all over the joint.

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4. Set it bone side down on a rack in a roasting tin and cook for about 3 hours 30 minutes, until the centre reads 52°C / 126°F for medium-rare. Start checking at 3 hours — weight matters less than shape, and a thermometer is the only honest guide.

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5. Lift the joint onto a board and tent it loosely. Rest 45 minutes; it will not go cold, and the temperature will settle.

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6. Raise the oven to 250°C / 480°F. Return the joint, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the fat cap is crackling and deeply browned.

   Mark done Start 10 min timer

7. While it blasts, set the roasting tin over a medium heat, pour in the wine and boil hard for 3 minutes, scraping the base.

   Mark done Start 3 min timer

8. Add the stock and mustard and reduce by half, then whisk in the cold butter off the heat.

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9. Carve the meat off the bones in one piece, then slice thickly across the grain and serve with the jus.

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Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.

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What's Going On Here

A conventional hot roast cooks in a gradient: by the time the middle reaches medium-rare, the outer inch is grey and overcooked. Starting at 110°C / 230°F keeps that gradient shallow, because the temperature difference driving heat into the meat is small, so the whole joint arrives at 52°C / 125°F almost together. The crust is then a separate, brief job at the end, where fifteen minutes at 250°C / 480°F browns the surface without time to penetrate. Salting a day ahead is a dry brine: the salt draws moisture out, dissolves in it, and is drawn back in seasoned.

Storage and Reheating

Refrigerated for 4 days. Do not reheat slices — serve them cold and rare in sandwiches, which is the better dish anyway.

Swaps and Variations

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

What to Serve Alongside

• Yorkshire puddings and horseradish cream
• Crispy roast potatoes
• A serious Bordeaux

Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Creamy Coleslaw, Boston Baked Beans, Air Fryer Asparagus.

Common Questions About Prime Rib Roast

Prime Rib Roast Nutrition Facts

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (some ingredient lines cannot be read). Why some recipes have none.

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