Impress your guests with the best prime rib roast this holiday season. Even if you’ve never cooked a prime rib, don’t stress about messing up. Get yourself a meat thermometer and get cooking that beautiful roast low and slow with this fool-proof reverse searing method.
Holiday season is upon us!!!
If you’re planning on serving prime rib this holiday season, you’re at the right place. We’re going to cook the easiest and tastiest prime rib roast with a practically fool-proof method. But you’ll still need a trusty meat thermometer!
Even if you’ve never cooked this glorious cut of meat, don’t you stress about it. I know it’s intimidating, but I’m going to show you how to roast an evenly cooked prime rib with gorgeous crispy crust!
Reverse-searing method has completely changed my life when it comes to roasting a prime rib. If you’re not familiar with this method, check out this post on how to roast a perfect prime rib. And then read the comments -> rave reviews!!!
This time, we’re going to season our roast with an amazing spice mixture of olive oil, Montreal steak seasoning, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and garlic. You’ll love the beautiful balance of heat, salt and sweetness!
Smear that delicious spice mixture all over the roast and pop it in the oven, preheated to 200°F. That’s right, low and slow is key to evenly cooked prime rib through and through.
This juicy, melt-in-your-mouth tender prime rib roast is going to be the star of your dinner party!!
Now, the big question…
How much prime rib per person should I buy?
General rule of thumb, plan on serving 1/2 pound of meat per person. But I suggest adding an extra pound for just in case (plus, leftover prime ribs isn’t a bad thing at all!). So, if you’re having 8 adults for your dinner party, buy 5lbs boneless prime rib.
If you’re going with a bone-in prime rib, plan on 2 people per rib.
The BEST Prime Rib Roast
Ingredients
- 6 lbs boneless prime rib
- 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons Montreal steak seasoning
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
Instructions
- 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’ll take about 2 hours out on the counter.
- Mix olive oil, Montreal steak seasoning, sugar, Worcestershire sauce and garlic until smooth. Then evenly spread the mixture all over the roast.
- Preheat the oven to 200°F (95°C).
- Place the prime rib on a roasting pan fat side up. (I use this roaster, 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)
- Remove the prime rib from the oven, cover with a foil and rest for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, 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. Rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
What to serve with prime rib?
You can never go wrong with meat and potato combo. Here’re some great potato sides:
- Instant Pot Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
- Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
- Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Crowd-Pleasing Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
And besides potatoes this Warm Quinoa Brussels Sprouts Salad and Creamed Corn are great options too.
Hello and Happy Holidays,
I was wondering could I apply the mixture and marinate it overnight? Also, does it matter if I have a ribeye roast instead of prime rib?
Hi, Walter! Yes, you can apply the mixture the night before. And ribete roast would be perfect as well. Happy Holidays!
I’ve cooked prime rib a bunch of times with the tried & true method of 500 for 40 mins, then drop oven temp to 325 and cook until internal temp reaches desired temp.
I’ve got a 10 lb roast I am going to try your way this weekend but I have one question.
Is the “1 tablespoon minced garlic” the dry minced garlic or the minced garlic in oil you buy in a jar? I don’t see the exact description in the article or recipe.
Hi, Rob. I’m excited for you to try this method. I hope you’ll love it! For minced garlic, I mince the garlic myself. Use dry minced garlic. I have no experience with minced garlic in oil.
My roast is 4LB, would this recipe work and how long would it take at 200. I am cooking this on New Years day
thanks
Hi, Pamela. I’d estimate about 3.5 hours for 4lbs roast to reach 120-125°F at 200°F. Make sure to bring it to room temperature before putting it in the oven.
Excellent!
Awesome, so happy you loved the recipe. Thank you for your feedback, Rosemary!
If you like your meat medium well, will cooking at 200° do it? What would the internal temp be for medium well. And the reversed searing will work?
My roast is 13lbs.
Hi, Dennis. Internal temperature for medium well is 140-145°F. So you’ll want to cook the roast till about 130-135°F. If you want evenly cooked (crust to crust), roasting at 200°F is the best, but it’ll take longer. I don’t have an estimate time, as I never cooked my prime rib past 125°F internal temp, but just for reference it takes about 4 hours for 13lb roast to reach 120-125°F. If you’d like you can increase the oven temp to 250°F to expedite the cooking time. Hope this helps. Let us know how it turns out. Merry Christmas!
We tried this recipe for our Christmas Day meal. I was a bit skeptical, as we normally use the sear first method. However, our prime rib using the reverse sear method came out perfectly and the spice mixture was delightful. We will definitely keep this as our go to recipe for prime rib. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Awesome!!! Thank you so much for trusting my recipe for your holiday menu!! And I really appreciate your feedback. Merry Christmas!!
I am doing a 13# boneless how long will this Take?
Hi, Tony. I’d estimate it’ll take about 4.5 hours at 200°F for 13lbs roast to reach 120-125°F internal temperature. Hope this helps. Let us know how it turns out. Merry Christmas!
I’m making this tomorrow night and I’m nervous about the length of time. My rib roast is boneless and 5.5 lbs. Do you still cook it for3 1/2 hours at 200’F?
Can I do the same thing with a bone in prime rib? It’s my first time making it and I’m getting nervous.
Thanks!
Hi, Nicole. Yes, bone-in prime rib would work beautifully. Hope you’ll enjoy! Let us know how it turns out. Merry Christmas!!!
Awesome Recipe SHINEE. Love your unique spice mixture. Will taste it soon.
Thank you, Ellen!