Let me show you how to roast a perfect prime rib, step by step, with proven, fool-proof method using reverse sear technique as seen on Serious Eats.
Oh my gosh, do I love me some prime rib!! Thick, juicy and melt-in-your-mouth tender, there is nothing better than perfectly cooked prime rib.
If you’d asked me “How would you like your steak?” like 10 years ago, when I just landed in the U.S., I’d tell you firmly, “Well done.” Cringe, cringe, I know!! Though we eat a lot of beef in Mongolia, steak isn’t common there. And we’re just not accustomed to pink meat. In fact, it took me good 2 years to start ordering medium done steaks. That’s when I met my rancher husband, who wouldn’t let me order well done (aka ruined) steaks.
Fast forward 8 years, I now cook medium and sometimes even medium rare steaks for myself. Oh how things change!
What’s reverse searing method?
When you have this beautifully marbled, perfectly frenched prime rib, you don’t want to mess up, especially if you’re making it for a special occasion. But don’t let the fear stop you from serving this masterpiece for a holiday meal. I’m going to show you a fool-proof, proven method to roast a perfect prime rib!
Now, listen read closely…
You’ve probably heard of searing the meat before roasting to lock in the juices, right? And no doubt, there’s place and time for that trusty technique, but when it comes to roasting a prime rib, that’s not really an ideal method. And I’m not just a crazy lady talking crazy things on the internet.
- Deep brown, crispy exterior.
- Minimum overcooked layer between the crust and interior, aka gray zone.
- Maximum juiciness.
He achieved all three criteria by reverse searing method. What is reverse searing, you ask?
Well, that’s when you cook the prime rib at the very low temperature until it reaches 120°F for medium rare, and then you roast it at the very high temperature for a short period of time. But here’s the important part: before searing at high temp, you’ll need to take the roast out of the oven and let it rest while oven is preheating to 500°F. This way, the roast won’t overcook, because as you know, it takes at least 20 minutes to heat an oven to that high temp, plenty of time to ruin a good roast!
Tip
For perfectly crispy crust, make sure to dry out the roast by resting it uncovered in the fridge overnight.
And while at it, go ahead and salt it too, so that it has plenty of time to penetrate the meat all the way inside.
Let me know if you try this method. I know you won’t regret it.
Thank you for reading!
How to Roast a Perfect Prime Rib
Ingredients
- 5-10 lbs (or 4-rib) prime rib
- 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Optional Add-Ins:
- A head of garlic
- Cherry tomatoes
- Asparagus
Instructions
Prep:
- Place an unwrapped prime rib on a tray. Generously salt all over and refrigerate overnight to air-dry the outside of the prime rib.
- Bring the prime rib to room temperature before roasting. It usually takes about 2 hours out on the counter.
- Mix the cumin, black pepper and garlic powder and evenly spread all over the meat.
- If roasting garlic, slice the top off, drizzle some olive oil and wrap in a foil. (Here's my detailed roasted garlic recipe.)
Roast:
- Preheat the oven to 200°F (95°C).
- Place the prime rib on a roasting pan bone side down (fat side up). (Since I wrote this post, I bought this roasting pan, and highly recommend it.)
- Roast the meat in the oven until the center of the roast reads 120°F (50°C) on a meat thermometer for medium-rare, or 130°F (55°C) for medium doneness, about 3.5-4 hours. (This Thermapen Mk4 meat thermometer is my favorite! Super quick and reliable! <- affiliate link)
Rest:
- Remove the prime rib from the oven, cover with a foil and rest for about 30 minutes.
Sear:
- Increase the oven temperature to 500°F (260°C).
- 10 minutes before serving, pop the prime rib into the oven, uncovered, and cook it until it’s nice and brown, and crisp on the outside, about 6-10 minutes. If desired, roast the cherry tomatoes and asparagus together. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts:
If you have have a boneless prime rib, check out this post:
RMf says
Dinner was spectacular! This is the way to cook prime rib. I’m hooked! Thank you
Shinee says
Yay, so happy you tried this method. Thank you for your feedback, RMf!
Arstella says
What you didn’t mention in you recipe is the BUTTER part of the of this recipe when you were writing the ingredients down. I would have missed that part if I didn’t watch the video.
Shinee says
Hi, Arstella. There’re two different recipes. This one doesn’t have butter, it’s just a dry rub. The other recipe, which you saw video of, is flavored with a compound butter.
Anne E Mitchell says
following the temperature and time of cooking my 5 lb prime rib, was bloody
and rare, I think I needed to turn the temp of the oven to 300 F I did have it at 225, not 200 as given.. managed to recook with good results. loved the coating though. reversed searing was great, although smoked up the kitchen.
Shinee says
Thank you for trying my recipe and for your feedback, Anne. Every oven is different and it’s quite normal for ovens fluctuate 50° up or down. Glad you were able to readjust and cook a perfect roast! And I’m surprised to hear it smoked up the kitchen. Typically, I hear the opposite from people. But then again, every oven is different.
Carol says
I made this in my convection oven it was fantastic cooked to perfection
Shinee says
Yay, so happy to hear that. Thanks for your feedback, Carol!
Neil Ravella says
It worked! Placed 14 lb. roast in oven at 200 for about 4 hours. Took it out when it hit 125…went up to about 135 over the next hour…came out perfect and the bones fell off without a knife involved. A real relief for such an investment.
Shinee says
Yay, so, so happy you had a perfect result!! Thank you so much for your feedback, Neil!
Keala says
Followed the directions except omitted the cumin. All I can say is… you delivered on your promise. Came out juicy, flavorful and perfectly done. My son even said, “You did good mom.”
Shinee says
Yay, that’s so good to hear! Thank you for your feedback, Keala!
Kim Hudson says
This will be my 3rd year using this recipe. It’s foolproof! I was very nervous to attempt making prime rib ( definitely don’t want to ruin a beautiful piece of meat). Everyone loved it!
Melissa McCourt-Shmilovich says
Must agree, however based on my oven/professional experience (my oven is not as good as my commercial/work ovens are), I increased the temp to 250, let rest the 30 minutes uncovered (perfect amount of time to roast our brussel sprouts in between), and let roast for 8 minutes and rest another 20 before carving. I used the same method (shorter slow cook time, same high roast time) for a boneless leg of lamb also being served. Both came out medium rare. Perfect to be gifted and reheated for some, and served for us rare lovers immediately.
Janice says
I have to agree with Melissa. And I wished I have read her comment earlier!
Our roast came out perfect but not without some heart attacks, time delays and modifications.
We cooked a 3 lbs bone-in prime rib in a countertop oven at 200°F for 2 hours and 20 minutes and let it rest in the oven for 30 minutes.
Note: Our countertop oven is already on the bigger side, has a convection function and it even has a rotisserie spit. (Not your toaster oven.)
At this point, although it has browned, it was still very squishy by touch (via tongs). And the fat cap has not rendered at all.
Then – we seared it on the stove in a wok because our oven doesn’t go up to 500°F for about 30 seconds per side. The curve surface also worked well with the shape of the roast.
We then roasted it for another 1 hour at 275°F. The fat cap in the roast that was closest to the top heating element have rendered out a pool of grease and the oil was bubbling. Crispy shell also formed but only at the point closest to the heating element.
We probably should have started at the higher 250°F.
Finally, the dinner was served at 11pm but yum! Will definitely do it this way again for this $50 worth of meat. Definitely buy a bottle of horseradish to go with.
E Nelson says
Have you tried this recipe with a boneless rib roast? I’m going to be cooking a 5lb. boneless prime cut that’s been dry aging for 6 days and love the slow cook/reverse sear approach for your recipe, but also need to ensure I don’t overcook it.
Thanks and Merry Christmas
Shinee says
Yes, I have, and it works the same. Here’s my boneless prime rib version.
E Nelson says
Thanks so much – I’ll let you know how it turns out!
Fabian says
Hi, i will try this recipe today. What oven setting would you recommend? Bake, convection bake, or convection roast?
Desiree Thomason says
I’m just trying this for the first time right now, and I had a question actually. What if you have two ovens so that I could be heating the other one to 500 while it’s still cooking at 200. Does it need the rest time?
Kyle McCombs says
yes the rest time allows the juices to distribute evenly and also bring the inside slightly warmer while cooling the outside. Always let your meat rest.
Shinee says
Yes, you should rest it before the final sear for at least 30 minutes.
Scott L says
I have a 13lb bone-in roast. At 225 degrees about how long will it take to get to rare (I assume I should take out of oven when it reads 115). Thanks.
Shinee says
I’d estimate 3 hours to reach 115lbs at 225°F. And yes, aim for 115°F for rare finish.
Carolyn Winget says
I’m laughing because I’m constantly reading Kengi’s book and see you reference it directly- so we must be on to something! I’ve never done it this way but it’s going to be done tonight!
Shinee says
Oh, I love Kenji’s explanations and testing, and this method is definitely a game-changer!! Hope you’ll enjoy it!
Catherine says
This method works every time ! I am no longer afraid to purchase this expensive cut of meat . Thanks
Shinee says
That’s so great to hear, Catherine. Thanks for sharing your feedback. Merry Christmas!
Kathi Teasley says
Looking forward to trying this recipe for the first time this Christmas. I do not have a double oven however, and am trying to figure out how to get bread and roast ready at the same time. Can the roast rest again after the final time at 500 degrees? If so, would you tent again and how long would it stay warm? Thank you.
Shinee says
Hi, Kathi! I don’t have a double oven, and I usually bake things while roast is resting before the final sear. (You can rest the roast for 1-2 hours, tented, before searing.) Works out just fine. And yes, you can rest the roast after the final sear as well. Not sure how long it would stay warm though, the longest we’ve waited was 30min. Hope you’ll enjoy, and please let us know how it turns out!