The first thing you need to do is determine the cooking time for your prime rib roast, here is a handy chart to help get you started. HOWEVER, different cuts and different ovens cook differently – your first temperature check with a meat thermometer should be about half way through the cooking time. If you’re not using a meat thermometer, don’t bother cooking a roast since you’ll inevitably cook the meat to the wrong degree of doneness.

If you only like beef medium or well-done don’t waste your money on a prime rib – it tastes little different than cheaper cuts when done to this extent.

Ingeredients:

1. Prime rib roast that is well marbled, but shouldn’t have very large chunks of hard fat scattered across the entire face of the roast. It should be at least 3 ribs-anything less should be grilled like a steak.
2. pinch sea salt
3. couple pinches ground pepper
4. couple pinches garlic powder (optional). NEVER USE GARLIC SALT-IF YOU OWN ANY YOU SHOULD THROW IT OUT, AND SERIOUSLY CONSIDER A LARGE CHARITABLE DONATION AS PENANCE!
5. handful parsley washed and dried (optional)-DON’T use freeze dried parsley for this or anything else!!
6. dab of butter

Cooking:

1. Rub the butter on the exposed faces of the roast. Evenly sprinkle the top (fat) side with the spices.
2. Place roast, fat side up and ribs down, at the bottom of a roasting pan uncovered with the parsley (if using) loosely scattered on it.
3. Pre-heat oven to 425, then put roast in for 10 minutes.
4. After 10 minutes turn temperature down to 325 and open the door until the temperature comes down to this level, close door and set timer to 50% of the remainder of the recommended cooking time.
5. Put back in if necessary, and continue checking after no more than 15 minute intervals. Once it hits 100-110 it will get to 120 very quickly.
6. The roast must come out when the internal temperature hits 120.
7. Let sit 10-15 minutes and then peel back the top fat layer and carve. If you baste it periodically with its own juices at the exposed ends, it will keep these areas moister.

These roasts are virtually idiot proof if you do two things: buy the best quality cut, and fanatically check the internal temperature regularly during cooking.

Gravy:

1. Pour off the excess fat in the pan while the roast sits, and put the pan across two burners on the stovetop on medium heat (take out any parsley and discard).
2. Add a cup of water and a splash of worcester and a splash of red wine.
3. Simmer for a couple of minutes-this makes a great thin gravy.

DO NOT ADD ANY PRE-MADE GRAVY MIXES OR THICKENERS. YOU WANT TO TASTE THE ROAST IN THE GRAVY, NOT CHEMICALS AND PRESERVATIVES!

Final point: NEVER, ever try roasting vegetables with the meat. The steam they let off will change your cooking times, and effectively steam the prime rib instead of roasting it.

Instead, put your veg in a separate roasting pan and splash a little olive oil and/or butter on them with a couple pinches ground pepper and some fresh parsley and/or coriander leaves and roast before the meat, then reheat while the roast is sitting.

If you’re feeling energetic, instead of doing the veg first start with the meat, and after reducing the oven temperature pour off whatever fat has dripped and take the meat out.

Add the drippings to the veg, and roast them through. Then put the meat back in and continue cooking (you’ll probably have to add about 5-10 minutes to the prime rib cooking time). This gives the veg an extra rich flavor.

Happy Roasting!