Christmas Prime Rib

[John Sp]

Hello All,

This year we decided to shake it up a bit and deviate from the traditional lamb for Christmas Dinner. I invested in a ten pound bone in prime rib. I plan to reverse sear it using my 26 OTG for the indirect portion and then spin it up on the performer screaming hot for the sear. I am shooting for rare/medium rare. This will be a progressive post and I will post pics as I go along. Wish me luck!

Four Bone, Ten lb, Prime Rib - Tied for the Grill

Rosemary Garlic Potatoes (EVOO, KS, and Rosemary Garlic Seasoning)

Rubbed with EVOO, KS, and BP and Parked Indirect Over the Taters in the Basement - Grill Running 325F​

 

[Mark B]

Good luck John ! We have a rib roast on the menu instead of turkey this year. I may just use the gasser, it's -18C/-0.4F here and I am getting to be a wimp.

 

[John Sp]

This is looking pretty good - taking a bit longer than I anticipated but so far so good...

About and Hour and a Half in IT at 65F Grill Down to 295 - Added Fuel

About two and a Quarter Hours in IT at 95F - Pulled and Rested While Firing Up the Performer

Happy Happy Rosemary Garlic Taters ​

 

[John Sp]

Spinning Up on the Performer - IT 87F - Indirect - Screaming Hot

Making Au Jus From the Beef Fat (AP Flour, KS, BP, Beef Broth)

Plated with Kari's Scalloped Turnips, the RG Taters, Roasted Brussels Sprouts, and Steamed Green Beans

​

OK this turned out great. The beef was tender and had wonderful bark. The flavor was amazing and the au jus really accented the meat well. The sides were a great accompaniment and the whole family enjoyed the meal. The only issue I had with it was it was a bit unevenly done. I attribute this to my failure to rotate the roast while I was doing the initial cook (rookie mistake). This caused the upper section to finish closer to medium than medium rare. Thanks for looking everyone - Merry Christmas!

Regards,

John

 

[John Sp]

Thanks Mark - let us know how it turned out - that cold weather might actually be an advantage if you want it rare...

Regards,

John

 

[Clint]

Nice looking cook - I especially like the potatoes under the roast (and the roast). When I heard of scalloped turnips I had to google 'what do turnips taste like' because they kind of tasted like horseradish in my last memory. I'm sure they were great too.

 

[Mark B]

Looks like a great meal you have there John. I'm about to season the roast up. I tested the rotisserie and the motor screeched, so I brought it inside for an hour. Now -23/-9, brrr.

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

Beautiful cook, John. That crust you developed is phenomenal!

 

[Barb D]

John, you nailed that one out of sight. Plated pic tells the story of that meal. Yummy for sure.

 

[Dan C. FL]

Looks delish!!! Great job!

 

[Robert-R]

You killed that one! Way to go. Love the plate pic.

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

Spectacular meal John! Gorgeous roast and you did it up right!

 

[Rich Dahl]

That looks wonderful John. It all had to be super good.

 

[DaveW]

Nice looking cook. WRT upper part being more done, I'd wager that this was due to the bones being left in place. They absorb a lot of the heat preventing it all from reaching the meat underneath. It's exactly like how the meat next to the bone is always less done on a Porterhouse or a bone in ribeye.

Additionally, cooking at temps above 250-265ish degrees will give you somewhat of a bullseye effect where the outer edge of each slice will be much more done than the center

vs

The higher the chamber temp, the larger the degree of difference. Conversely, the lower the chamber temp, the more uniform the color.

 

[John Sp]

Thanks Dave - I will try it at a lower temp for the initial cook next time.

Regards,

John

 

[JeffG]

Looks mighty fine to me John.

 

[DaveW]

Thanks Dave - I will try it at a lower temp for the initial cook next time.

Regards,

John

You're welcome John. BTW, there isn't a "right" or "wrong" here, it comes down to personal tastes. Quite a few people I know prefer the bullseye.

 

[DaveMc]

Looks awesome, wish I sang the only one in my house to eat prime rib, really want to smoke one

 

[JayHeyl]

Thanks Dave - I will try it at a lower temp for the initial cook next time.

I've seen recommendations on both extremes. I've seen recipes calling for very high heat for a fairly short initial period, followed by a rest to let the internal temperature equalize, then finishing slowly to hit the desired level of done.

I did it like Dave suggested this year. Three hours twenty minutes at 225F to an internal of 120F (technically 118F), then a long rest, and a final very hot sear just before serving.

From the practical perspective of trying to get a big meal on the table where everything comes together at the same time, I much prefer the latter approach. The rest before the final sear means you can slice and eat as soon as the sear is finished. The roast will also hold for quite a while with no special measures. I simply loosely covered it with foil for the first hour of rest and then tossed a clean dish towel over the foil. Three hours after it came off the smoker it was still 110F internal. If I had put it in the cooler like I initially planned I'm sure it would have held at 120F for hours. This gives you a lot of leeway to get the roast almost finished hours in advance and then take ten minutes to sear it over a blazing fire just before serving. In between you can finish all those other dishes or just chat with your guests and munch on ABTs like we did.

 

[Tony R]

wow!!!!!
Looks delicious