Perfect for Christmas dinner or an Easter meal; this is a completely foolproof reverse sear rib roast. It cooks low and slow for a tender, juicy bite, then is finished at a high heat. Bright chimichurri comes together in 5 minutes, and I like to serve this with baked mashed potatoes and oyster mushroom Rockefeller for a delicious holiday meal.
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OH GEEZ guys, I made big meat. Perfect, wonderful meat.
The most delicious, easy boneless ribeye roast recipe (aka prime rib!), cooked LOW AND SLOW with a really low oven temperature at first for a super evenly cooked roast, then rested and finished at a super HIGH oven temp for a crispy, delicious crust. The result is juicy, tender, perfectly medium (or rare!) prime rib that everyone will go bonkers for.
Recipe Notes and FAQ
This is one of those very special meals: a slow cooked rib roast, bright, garlicky chimichurri, and any side dishes you like.
I prefer to make a boneless rib roast because I find it easier to work with than bone-in. If you can only find prime rib with the bones in, you can ask the butcher to remove them for you and roast them separately like I did in these pictures.
The method here is a reverse sear method: the roast gets cooked first at a very low temperature, then rests so the juices redistribute. Right before serving, we blast the roast in the oven at a super high temperature to crisp and brown the outer crust. YUM.
This recipe is completely foolproof: it has two ingredients (salt and beef), and the oven does 90% of the work for you. Your only job is to take the temp of the meat every once in awhile, and pick what side dishes you'd like to serve!
In general, yes! Usually prime rib is roasted with the bones on, but they are both the same cut of meat and often prepared in the same way, just two different names.
In this case, a few hours! We use a low and slow method here, which takes 2-3 hours, depending on the temperature of your oven and how large your ribeye roast is.
YES! Ribeye roast is a bunch of ribeye steaks all together, before they've been cut into steaks. It's a lovely marbled, tender part of the beef.
Buying Prime Rib - How Much Per Person?
When you purchase prime rib, you'll want to portion about a pound per person for bone-in, and ½ bound per person for boneless. That will be enough for generous portions plus some leftovers.
Lots of prime rib methods call for cutting the ribs off but then tying them back to the roast for flavor during cooking but I find that adds another step AND prevents the boneless roast from cooking evenly. Instead, roast the ribs (if you have them) alongside the boneless roast using the exact same method.
Ingredients
You need a prime rib (sometimes called a rib roast) and kosher salt. That's it! The quality of the beef and the time we give the roast is the real magic here. I've done fancy dry rubs and crusts on this particular roast before, and honestly I prefer it plain.
Don't trim the beef much if at all; the fat will gently melt and prevent the meat from drying out as it cooks.
Two Notes On Timing:
- This recipe calls for salting the meat overnight, so plan for that. If you forget, it's not a huge deal, but the roast will taste more deeply beefy if you take the step of salting the beef overnight.
- If you can, take the meat out of the fridge an hour our two before cooking it - room temperature meat roasts more evenly, so try to remember.
Step By Step Instructions
To start (the day before), gather your beef and kosher salt. Place a baking rack inside of a baking sheet.
Salt the meat all over, very generously, then allow the meat to sit UNCOVERED in the fridge for 12-36 hours.
Pro tip - Tying the Rib Roast: As to whether or not to tie up the meat, it is completely your preference. If it comes tied up you can feel free to use the string - all it does it help the roast hold its shape a bit better. If your steak isn't already tied and you don't want to mess with it, don't worry about it.
When you're ready to roast the meat, remove the salted roast from the refrigerator for at least one hour. Preheat the oven to 250F. You can roast the prime rib (and the rib bones if you have them) on the same baking sheet as you used in the fridge for the salting/drying, or you can transfer the roast to another baking dish or baking pan.
Roast the boneless rib roast for 2-3 hours until the internal temperature measures 115F. There isn't a good way to tell from the outside if your roast is ready to rest, so use a meat thermometer inserted to the very center (coldest part) of the meat.
When the internal temperature of the meat reads 115F, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 30-60 minutes. This will allow the meat to REALLY rest and the oven to heat way up for the outside crisping happy joy moment.
(this method and these temperatures will yield meat that is medium-rare with some more well-done pieces on the end)
Increase the oven temperature to 550F or as high as your oven will go.
When the roast has rested and the oven is super hot, place the rib roast back in the oven for 15-20 minutes to crisp the crust and get the whole thing really brown.
You can see in the images above that, while there isn't a massive difference, the darkening that you get in that final blast of heat makes the crust of the prime rib so delicious. Salty crispy beef bits, YES.
At this point you'll thinly (or thickly!) slice the prime rib, serve it however you'd like to serve it, and eat!
About The Roasted Bones: I like to separate the bones by cutting between each rib bone and serving them for anyone that wants them as a snack. I NEVER have a problem offloading roasted prime rib bones.
Homemade Parsley Chimichurri Ingredients
I usually make the chimichurri during the first resting period; but it can be made up to a day in advance and kept in the fridge.
For this chimichurri (basically a tangy, garlicky, herby topping), we use parsley, garlic, salt, vinegar, olive oil, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes.
Chop the parsley finely by hand and grate the garlic with a zester or mince it very finely. Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl, and done! Taste the chimichurri and add a few more sprinkles of salt if you'd like.
I love this so much as a sauce for prime rib because the bright, fresh herbs are such a good balance for the deep beef flavor.
What To Serve with Prime Rib
- Crispy parmesan smashed potatoes.
- Broccoli casserole.
- Sweet onion casserole (trust).
- Roasted brussels sprouts (can be roasted while the meat rests!)
- Baked mushroom rice.
- Homemade no-knead bread.
If you've never made prime rib, this is absolutely the recipe to try. It's one of those special-in-its-simplicity holiday meat recipes that you'll make again and again. I hope you love it!
Recipe
Boneless Prime Rib with Chimichurri
Ingredients
Prime Rib
- 1 boneless rib roast about 3-4 pounds (the equivalent of 3 ribs worth, ribs removed and kept separate for roasting)
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
Parsley Chimichurri
- ½ bunch parsley stems removed and finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced or grated
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- crushed red pepper flakes to taste
Instructions
Prime Rib
- PURCHASING NOTE: Some butchers will cut the bones of a bone-in roast for you and allow you to take them home. If you do that, follow the same method for cooking the bones, then cut them apart once they are cooked and serve with the sliced roast.
- The night before you'd like to eat, prepare a small baking sheet with a wire rack inside (skip this if you don't have a rack, a baking dish will work fine). Sprinkle the rib roast all over with the salt, and place it on the rack, uncovered, in the fridge for 12-36 hours.
- The day you're going to cook the roast, take it out of the fridge 1-2 hours before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature. Transfer the roast (and bones if using) to a dry pan fitted with the same rack, or a small roasting dish if you don't have a rack. Preheat the oven to 250F.
- Roast the ribeye roast for 2-3 hours until the internal temperature reads 115F. Check the temperature after 90 minutes and then every 30 minutes after that until the right temperature is achieved.
- Remove the roast from the oven and allow to rest for 30-60 minutes. During this time, increase the oven heat to 550F or as hot as your oven will go.
- Return the roast to the oven for 15-20 minutes until dark golden brown. Remove from the oven, let rest for another 5-10 minutes, then slice and serve as desired.
Chimichurri
- Place all of the ingredients in a bowl. Stir to combine and taste; add more salt or vinegar to your preference.
- Serve spooned over the meat.
Notes
This post was originally published in December 2013 and has been updated with new images and more clear instructions.
I am having a hard time reading the post because the background is black and I am old
Hmm, that's interesting. The background is actually white - perhaps something with your internet browser is causing this?
I like to add a little bit of mustard powder to the rub. It does bring it up a notch.
This looks fabulous. I have bookmarked for Christmas.
Absolutely delicious with the chimichurri