Roasted Prime Rib is a classic for several reasons. It’s beyond delicious, simple to make, and a true crowd pleaser. While it’s a frequent star of a holiday table, prime rib is something we love any time of year. Once you try this recipe, you’ll see why.
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![this is a picture of a slice of prime rib on a white plate with a dollop of horseradish cream sauce](https://i0.wp.com/rufusforreal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Prime-Rib-Roast.jpg?resize=1536%2C2048&ssl=1)
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Roasted Prime Rib is one of the world’s true delights and a absolute favorite for me. If given the choice in a steak situation, I’ll go with prime rib every time. It’s tender and wonderful, there is usually a sauce (or two!), and that amazing crust. That crust is the stuff of my dreams.
And, don’t let a cut like prime rib intimidate you. It’s arguably one of the easiest beef recipes out there. All to do is slap on a compound butter, roast is quickly at a high heat, and then drop it down to a low heat for a bit. After it’s cooked to your liking, this amazing cut of beef just needs to sit so that the juices reabsorb. Slice and serve and that’s it!
A Roasted Prime Rib is a show stopper no matter when or how you serve it. We love it during the holidays, but it’s a welcome treat anytime of year.
prime rib ingredients
- Prime Rib Roast
- Butter
- Kosher Salt
- Fresh Ground Pepper
- Dijon Mustard
- Fresh Rosemary
- Fresh Thyme
- Garlic
- Sour Cream
- Prepared Horseradish
- White Wine Vinegar
- Heavy Cream
- Fresh Chives
- Beef Broth
- Dry Red Wine
- Worcestershire Sauce
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how to make the best prime rib
Roasted Prime Rib is, if anything at all, super simple. I’ve got the tips and tricks and basic how-to that will make getting this awesome recipe to the table without any trouble at all!
prep
To begin, take the beef out of the fridge and let it rest at room temperature on the counter top for at least an hour. This will help the roast cook more evenly.
While the roast is resting, mix together the ingredients for the compound butter. Make sure the butter is room temperature to ensure easy mixing. You can even throw all of the butter ingredients into a food processor to make quick work of the chopping!
Slather the butter mixture all over the roast. Don’t be shy. It will seem like this is a ton of butter, but this is a large cut of meat and it needs a lot of seasoning. This is what will make that glorious crust that we all love.
roasting
Roast the prime rib in a preheated 500ยฐ oven for 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes, lower the temperature to 325ยฐ. This is when you will need to decide how done you like your roast.
There will be between 10-15 degrees of carry-over cooking after the roast comes out of the oven. Pull your rib roast when there is 10-15 degrees more to go and tent it lightly with aluminum foil.
If you pull the rib roast when it reaches 130ยฐ in the oven, hoping for a medium-rare cook, it will be medium-well after resting. Make sure to account for the carry over cooking.
cooking temps
Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the meat:
- Rare: 120ยฐ F
- Medium Rare: 130ยฐ F
- Medium: 140ยฐ F
- Medium Well:150ยฐ F – I don’t recommend cooking a prime rib past medium.
- Don’t cook a prime rib to well done. Please.
In general, you’ll need 10-15 minutes of roasting time (not including the 15 minutes at 500ยฐ) per pound. Just keep an eye on your meat thermometer to make this part easy.
resting
After you have pulled the roast from the oven and tent it with foil, let it rest. And, I mean at least 30 minutes. This will allow all of those wonderful juices to reabsorb back into the meat creating the wonderful, tender result we all want.
This is one of the most important steps. If you cut into the roast too early, you’ll love precious moisture and, thus, tenderness. Rest the meat. Do it. You’ll be so glad you did.
the horseradish sauce
I am a huge fan of horseradish sauce in general, but on prime rib, *chef’s kiss*!
All you need to do is mix the sour cream, prepared horseradish, white wine vinegar, heavy cream, fresh chives, and salt and pepper together. If you like a bit more kick, add more horseradish!
I like to make this ahead of time so the flavors come together. You can even do this step the day before.
the prime rib au jus
The au jus is a simple beef broth/red wine/pan drippings reduction. After the prime rib is done and is resting, combine the pan drippings with good quality beef broth and dry red wine. Simmer and reduce this mixture by about half. Finish with a splash of Worcestershire and salt and pepper as desired.
I do this in my roasting pan so that I don’t miss out on any fond at the bottom of my pan. If you don’t have a stovetop safe roasting pan, just transfer everything to a sauce pan and proceed.
If you prefer, strain the final au jus with a fine mesh sieve for a more refined look. Keep it warm on the stovetop until you’re ready to serve.
recipe frequently asked questions
This is totally personal preference. This recipe will work for both!
If you buy a bone-in prime rib, ask the butcher to cut the bone off and tie it to the roast for you.ย This will allow you to cook the bones with the meat. The bones make a nice base for the meat to sit on, but then you can easily remove them before carving. If using a boneless prime rib, you will want to set it on a rack inside the roasting pan to cook.
This is a personal preference situation as well. In my household, we like rare to barely medium-rare. Just remember, pull the rib roast 10-15 degrees before your preferred final temperature.
The general rule of thumb isย 1 pound of prime rib per person.ย ย That is a lot of protein, but we are carnivores around here. Just remember you’ll also be adding in side dishes.
Hereโs a general guideline:
6 people:ย you’ll need a 4 ยฝ pound prime rib
8 people:ย you’ll need a 6 pound prime rib
12 people: you’ll need a 9 pound prime rib
![this is a picture of a roasted prime rib on a white serving platter with fresh rosemary and thyme sprigs as a garnish](https://i0.wp.com/rufusforreal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Roasted-Prime-Rib.jpg?resize=1536%2C2048&ssl=1)
prime rib tips and tricks
- Let the rib roast sit out at room temperature for at least 1 hour. This will ensure even cooking.
- If you use dried rosemary or thyme, cut back on the amount. Dried herbs are stronger than fresh herbs.
- If you are using a bone-in roast, place it in the roasting pan with the bones down. If using a boneless roast, place it on the rack inside the pan.
- Use a good quality meat thermometer. Prime rib is an expensive cut of meat. You want to cook it to a proper temperature and and a good thermometer will take the guess work out of the equation.
- Allow for carry-over cooking. The roast will continue to cook an additional 10-15 degrees more after you remove it from the oven. Determine your desired doneness and pull the roast at least 10 degrees before it hits that mark.
- Arrange the racks in your oven so that the prime rib will sit in the center.
- After pulling the roast from the oven, LET IT REST. At least 30 minutes. This will allow all of the wonderful juices to reabsorb into the meat. You’ve spent a lot of money and you want the best result you can get. Let the meat rest.
- Cut the meat across the grain to ensure maximum tenderness.
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![this is a picture of a slice of prime rib on a white plate with a dollop of horseradish cream sauce](https://i0.wp.com/rufusforreal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Prime-Rib-Roast.jpg?fit=150%2C200&ssl=1)
Roasted Prime Rib
Equipment
Ingredients
Horseradish Sauce
- ยฝ cup sour cream
- 2-3 tbsp prepared horseradish
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 2 tbsp fresh chives
- kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
Prime Rib
- 6 lbs prime rib roast
- 4 tbsp butter, softened
- 5-6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp fresh ground pepper
- 1-2 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
Au Jus
- 3 cups beef broth
- โ cup dry red wine you can add a little more if you like a more pronounced wine flavor
- 2-4 tbsp pan drippings
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
The Horseradish Cream Sauce
- Mix the sour cream, horseradish, white wine vinegar, heavy cream, and fresh chives together in a bowl. Add kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.
The Prime Rib
- Take the beef out of the fridge and let it rest at room temperature on the counter top for at least an hour.
- Mix the softened butter together with the dijon, salt, pepper, rosemary, and thyme.
- Spread the butter mixture all over the roast. Top, bottom, sides – all over.
- Roast the prime rib in a preheated 500ยฐ oven for 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes, lower the temperature to 325ยฐ.
- Cook until you reach your desired doneness. There will be between 10-15 degrees of carry-over cooking after the roast comes out of the oven. Pull your rib roast when there is 10-15 degrees more to go and tent it lightly with aluminum foil.
The Au Jus
- After removing the roast to rest, simmer beef broth and dry red wine along with the pan drippings until this mixture has reduced by half. Finish with the Worcestershire sauce. Add kosher salt and fresh ground pepper if desired.
Finishing and Serving
- After the roast has rested for at least 30 minutes, slice against the grain. Serve with the horseradish sauce and au jus. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Thank you!
I am so incredibly happy that you are here! I hope you try my Roasted Prime Rib recipe and fall in love with it. If you make this recipe, please share and tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok! And, please leave a comment or star rating below. I absolutely love seeing each and every one of your kitchen masterpieces. It makes my heart so happy! And, as always, if you ever have any questions about any of my recipes, please don’t hesitate to contact me!
Happy Cooking!
–Rufus
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Rufus for Real is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
If you guys make this Roasted Prime Rib, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I absolutely love to hear from you all and always do my best to respond to each and every one of your comments!
This was incredible! Will be doing it again for Christmas.
Thank you so very much! I’m so happy you loved it!