Christmas is my favorite time of year not just because of it involves gifts (just kidding) but because of the amazing food we get to eat. Sure, exercising 9 days a week (not a typo) and eating grass and bird food may be perfectly okay 10 months out of the year – don’t you dare say anything come November or December. During this time of the year, we are finally able to indulge in all the pies, cookies, and Prime Rib our hearts and arteries can handle.
We have finally reached the turning point in the year when the air begins to chill for some, while it begins to snow for others. It becomes the official time of year to fire up the oven, and dust off the dutch oven in preparation for all the stews and braised meals headed your way.
Thanksgiving is finally behind us thanks to the last bit of turkey you thawed out last week to make a turkey sandwich and or turkey casserole. Since most people are up to their neck with turkey, it makes sense to begin planning a Christmas dinner without the presence of another giant roasted bird on your table.
Some of you absolutely love turkey and it’s perfectly fine to cook another turkey for Christmas. There are some people who will only eat turkey November and December and avoid it the rest of the year. There is nothing wrong if you are one of those people. Just throwing this out there, but… have you considered trying something else?
Yes, turkey is delicious and personally, I do eat it year around because it’s delicious and really lean. This makes turkey an excellent healthy protein source.
In our household, we shift gears away from cooking a turkey for Christmas because we prefer to indulge in a little something else. There are years in which we serve a pork roast, consisting of a pork loin (not to be confused with tenderloin), shoulder, or butt roast. Any of these cuts are excellent for a Christmas dinner, by the way.
If you don’t fancy pork, you could go with a beef roast instead. There are way too many to list so if you really want to know, go to certifiedbeef.com for the full list. This website is a great resource where you can learn about other cuts of meat and how to cook them.
The Perfect Turkey Alternative
So now that you have been persuaded away from turkey, I would like to make another suggestion; serve prime rib for Christmas. That is the reason why you came here in the first place. Now, it’s time for you to learn how cooking a restaurant quality prime rib.
Making a restaurant quality prime rib roast is actually not complicated. Hard to believe, I know. If you are a fan of medium rare prime rib, be sure to pay extra attention to the tips below. The 6 steps below are crucial to making sure you prime rib comes out perfectly medium rare every time.
Perfect Prim Rib Tips
Make sure you are actually purchasing Prime graded meat. This is the highest quality rating for beef, just because it’s called Prime rib does not mean you are actually getting Prime graded meat. It’s totally okay to ask the butcher for proof that they sold you Prime.
Purchase a meat thermometer. You are spending big bucks and the last thing you want is to overcook the roast. A really versatile thermometer with a massive temperature scale for all types of cooking is made by Chef Remi. Try to avoid poking multiple areas of the meat with the thermometer. Every puncture you make causes juices to pour out which could dry out the meat.
Season the meat well with salt. Salt will initially draw out some moisture but you will be patting the meat dry before cooking so it’s going to be okay.
Let the meat sit out 2-4 hours before cooking. This allows the prime rib to reach room temperature. This step ensures you get the most even cooking possible so that the entire prime rib comes out medium rare. An evenly cooking roast means you do not have to poke as many holes with your thermometer because the temperature reading should be fairly consistent all around.
Let the meat rest for 15-20 minutes after it has been removed from the oven. Do not cut into the meat until it has rested for 15-20 minutes. This step allows the meat to continue cooking until the perfect internal temperature is reached and it allows the juices to be soaked back into the meat. Cutting the meat too soon means all of the natural juices will pour out onto your cutting board.
Never cover up the prime rib with foil while it is resting. You removed the prime rib from the oven for a reason. Covering the meat with foil traps in heat causing the meat to continue cooking.
Now that you are a pro at making prime rib it’s time to get cooking.
Ingredients
3 Rib Roast (roughly 7-8 pounds will feed between 6-8 people)
1 Tablespoons garlic
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped
1 tablespoon softened butter
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Instructions
Pull out the prime rib from the fridge. While the prime rib is still cold, trim down the fat on the fat side (aka fat cap) to 1/2 inch thick if your butcher has not already done this.
Allow the prime rib to sit out for 2-4 hours until it reaches room temperature. Preheat oven to 450°F.
Once prime rib is at room temperature, pat dry with paper towels making sure it is completely dry to the touch. Combine the softened butter and garlic together. Rub the garlic butter all over the prime rib making sure to coat every nook and cranny. Season with salt, pepper, thyme, and rosemary.
Tie the prime rib with kitchen twine by running the cooking twine parallel down the bone and then tying the ends together forming a bridge between the bone and meat.
Put the prime rib on a roasting rack (never allow a prime rib to rest on a pan) fat side up. Place in the oven at 450°F for 20 minutes. Then turn down the heat to 325°F until the thermometer reaches the desired internal temperature (be sure to see chart below). Immediately pull the prime rib out of the oven and allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes until the desired doneness is reached.
Rare 115°F-120°F internal temp will reach 120°F-125°
Medium Rare 120°F-125°F internal temp will reach 130°F-135°F
Medium 130°F-140°F internal temp will reach 140°F-145°F
7. Slice the prime rib and serve with the drippings from the pan. Be sure to remove any excess fat from the pan juices before serving.
