Attempting first rib roast. Ongoing...

[Cook]

Mmmmmmm. Love me some spinalis.

It's good stuff...

 

[mchar69]

Aaaaaack, gravy? On Prime Rib? This isn't a hunk of bottom round or chuck roast. It's freaking Prime Rib. At most, make an au jus.

Oh, I agree, but the gravy is for the potatoes. Had a guest over and she poured gravy on the meat and I blurted out "What are you doing?"
Horseradish sauce and au jus for me.

 

[Happy Hapgood]

Starting to work up the final plan - ruff draft.

Target serving time 1:45 - 2 PM Christmas day.

1. Pull roast from fridge @ 11:30 PM on the 24th to assume room temp no later than 5AM Christmas morning. Place probe in rib to monitor during the night.

2. Coals lit 5 AM for 5:45 roast on temp at 250*F.
Roast on 5:45 AM @ 250*F. Hickory smoke chucks.

3. Between 5 and 5:45 prep roast and tie.
Still undecided on what to use for seasoning. As of now, Ksalt and pepper with canolia oil base.

4. 120 - 125*F IT.

5. Rest 30 mins.

6. Reverse sear on gasser between 400 - 500*F.

7. Hold in oven @200*F if required.

8. Cut off bones and slice.

I still welcome any input on this plan and Thanks to all who have contributed!

 

[Smoking Piney]

Be mindful of the time after you sear if you intend to hold.

Holding at 200 will continue the cooking and will waste the effort you put into getting it done the way you want if you hold at that temp too long. You want to slice and serve soon after resting.

Rib roasts cook surprisingly fast. I would put it on the cooker no more than 4 hours from planned serving time. This will give you time to cook and rest. You can build hold time into the rest if you need to (tent it in an unheated oven) before you sear. If you plan to serve appetizers, that will keep your guests happy while you sear it and bring it in for the big presentation. No need for another rest.

Rib roasts don't hold well with traditional methods, and timing is everything. I agonize over timing every time I cook a rib roast for guests.

 

[Cook]

You say 120-125* internal. My question is this...is that the temp you intend to pull off the pit, or is the final temp you are aiming for. Regardless the answer, remember that a rib loin will go up by a full 10* in the rest. If you're aiming for 125*, you need to pull at 115*. If you are pulling at 125*, you will see 135* meat when you slice. All of this is assuming a rest of at least 30 minutes (which you certainly need).

DO NOT hold in a 200* oven...don't even hold in a 170* oven (the lowest temperature most ovens will go). You'll be overcooked. Heck...I often cook a whole loin at 200*...so there's that.

I will get flack from the "but you'll lose your crust" monsters at this suggestion, but putting the loin in an impeccably clean cooler to rest will work just fine. I have held for more than four hours with nothing but steam coming out when I opened it up for service (catering). I have coolered as many as eight ( 8 ) loins for a single catering job...not one complaint. I've never eaten a crusty prime rib in my life so I don't feel I'm missing anything.

You do as you please...it's your piece of meat.

 

[Smoking Piney]

I will get flack from the "but you'll lose your crust" monsters at this suggestion, but putting the loin in an impeccably clean cooler to rest will work just fine. I have held for more than four hours with nothing but steam coming out when I opened it up for service (catering). I have coolered as many as eight ( 8 ) loins for a single catering job...not one complaint.

Good to know - thanks! :-D

I've always been scared of holding a rib roast for fear of over cooking. Crust is nice, but not a must for me. I just want a well cooked. well seasoned roast.

I have a cambro with plenty of room for a rib roast. :-D

 

[mchar69]

I agonize over timing every time I cook a rib roast for guests.

I agree, that's why last Sunday all sides were ready, plates were warm in the oven,
once the roast was ready, it all came together nicely.

Mike I left a regular old meat thermometer in it to see immediately.
I'd go 225 for 30 min a pound, then high sear under broiler or grill
to brown it nicely .. 20 minutes or more, rolled.. get good Maillard color.
but that's just me.


If you notice, this is a pic after dinner, the cut edges are drying out.
Still tasty, but outside edge overdone.

 

[Smoking Piney]

That's a mighty big pic, mchar. :shock:

 

[mchar69]

That's a mighty big pic, mchar. :shock:

I was hongry. FIXED

 

[Smoking Piney]

i was hongry. Fixed

lol!

 

[mchar69]

Thank you for posting this - so I understand - you pull them at 120 -just say-
and pile 3 or 6 etc.. in a cooler? or 2 to a cooler?
I get it, they should stay pink...and I'll never do that, just wanna know.. thanks!

I will get flack from the "but you'll lose your crust" monsters at this suggestion, but putting the loin in an impeccably clean cooler to rest will work just fine. I have held for more than four hours with nothing but steam coming out when I opened it up for service (catering). I have coolered as many as eight ( 8 ) loins for a single catering job...not one complaint. I've never eaten a crusty prime rib in my life so I don't feel I'm missing anything.

 

[Happy Hapgood]

Dang! Just got finished with a 2.5 hour windows upgrade!

 

[mchar69]

How about some crab-stuffed mushrooms w/ cheese on top, mashed potatoes, some asparagus, and the beefy goodness?

 

[Happy Hapgood]

You say 120-125* internal. My question is this...is that the temp you intend to pull off the pit, or is the final temp you are aiming for. Regardless the answer, remember that a rib loin will go up by a full 10* in the rest. If you're aiming for 125*, you need to pull at 115*. If you are pulling at 125*, you will see 135* meat when you slice. All of this is assuming a rest of at least 30 minutes (which you certainly need).

DO NOT hold in a 200* oven...don't even hold in a 170* oven (the lowest temperature most ovens will go). You'll be overcooked. Heck...I often cook a whole loin at 200*...so there's that.

I will get flack from the "but you'll lose your crust" monsters at this suggestion, but putting the loin in an impeccably clean cooler to rest will work just fine. I have held for more than four hours with nothing but steam coming out when I opened it up for service (catering). I have coolered as many as eight ( 8 ) loins for a single catering job...not one complaint. I've never eaten a crusty prime rib in my life so I don't feel I'm missing anything.

You do as you please...it's your piece of meat.

BAM! Sound like a good plan and Thanks!

 

[Demosthenes9]

Starting to work up the final plan - ruff draft.

Target serving time 1:45 - 2 PM Christmas day.

1. Pull roast from fridge @ 11:30 PM on the 24th to assume room temp no later than 5AM Christmas morning. Place probe in rib to monitor during the night.

2. Coals lit 5 AM for 5:45 roast on temp at 250*F.
Roast on 5:45 AM @ 250*F. Hickory smoke chucks.

3. Between 5 and 5:45 prep roast and tie.
Still undecided on what to use for seasoning. As of now, Ksalt and pepper with canolia oil base.

4. 120 - 125*F IT.

5. Rest 30 mins.

6. Reverse sear on gasser between 400 - 500*F.

7. Hold in oven @200*F if required.

8. Cut off bones and slice.

I still welcome any input on this plan and Thanks to all who have contributed!

Couple of issues. First and foremost, there's no need to bring the loin to room temp first. Go straight from fridge, to the counter for seasoning (if not dry brining) then into the smoker. IF you absolutely want to bring to room temp first, then you need to factor that into your planned cook time as it will be much, much shorter. For example, it might take 5 hours in a 225 degree chamber for a PR to go from 40 degrees to 120ish. IF you are starting with a PR already at about 65 - 70 degrees, it will reach 120ish in much less time than 5 hours. It won't be a straight line linear function either as it takes more time at lower temps to go up 1 degree. It might take 30 mins to go from 40 to 45 degrees, where as later in the cook it might take 15 mins to go from 80 to 85.


Trying to figure out the best order to address other things as things can vary. Guess it would work to skip ahead to the sear. You definitely want to let the meat rest for the 30 mins before searing. BUT, when to actually sear depends on how the cook matches up to your timeline. IF the roast comes out about 45 mins before you are ready to eat, then rest it for 30, do the sear and then carve it up.

On the other hand, IF your PR is at temp well ahead of time, let it rest then hold it without searing. As others have noted, you definitely want to avoid holding at 200. After venting for the 30mins, cover with foil and put it in an unlit oven. If you have one, put a temp probe in the oven to monitor temp. Turn the oven on and set it for the lowest temp possible (mine is digital and 170 is the lowest it will go.) As the oven temp ramps up and hits 145ish, turn the oven off and just let it coast. When temp drops back down to 135ish, turn it on again, rinse/repeat.

This can be a PITA, but at 140ish, you can hold a PR almost all day.

Check your clock and when you are about an hour away from serving time, remove the PR from the oven, take off the foil, crank the oven up to 500 then do the reverse sear.


One important thing to note is the cooking time for PR is NOT, NOT, NOT determined by the weight of the loin. Basically, three things determine cook time, 1. chamber temp, 2. initial internal temp of the loin, and lastly, the thickness of the loin at it's shortest dimension. An 8lb 3 bone loin that is 5 inches thick will take just as long to cook as a 18lb 7bone loin that is also 5 inches thick. Said another way, that 18lb 7bone loin will cook just as fast as the 8lb 3bone loin.

***** yes, there are times when stars align and it works out that a PR took 30 mins per pound to cook, but believe it or not, that is coincidental. A loin that was X thick happened to weigh just the right amount so that the numbers worked out.

 

[Happy Hapgood]

Some more Great input my Friends! This thing is starting to come together. Based on all the input, minor tweaks will be needed but now I'm feeling a lot more confident about the this cook!

 

[Demosthenes9]

Some more Great input my Friends! This thing is starting to come together. Based on all the input, minor tweaks will be needed but now I'm feeling a lot more confident about the this cook!

Cool. FWIW, PR is actually one of the easiest cooks to do. People just get freaked out because it's usually an expensive cut of meat.

Keep your temps below 250 if you can, cook til 120 - 125, rest, (hold if necessary) sear, serve. Should take around 4 hours plus/minus 30 mins straight from fridge (unless your's has a larger than avg girth).


If you haven't read it yet, check out Gore's post starting this thread:

https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=150482


Forgot to mention, my prep is to slather in olive oil then hit it hard with Ksalt and coarse ground pepper

 

[tom b]

I think I'm going with Q-salt....

 

[Cook]

Good to know - thanks! :-D

I've always been scared of holding a rib roast for fear of over cooking. Crust is nice, but not a must for me. I just want a well cooked. well seasoned roast.

I have a cambro with plenty of room for a rib roast. :-D

I've never had one go up more than 10 degrees (+/- a couple of *). That's why I always cook at 10* under my target.

 

[Cook]

Thank you for posting this - so I understand - you pull them at 120 -just say-
and pile 3 or 6 etc.. in a cooler? or 2 to a cooler?
I get it, they should stay pink...and I'll never do that, just wanna know.. thanks!

If they are pulled at 120, they will be 130 within the hour. And yes, in the past I have held up to 8 in a cooler.

Pro Tip: If held unwrapped in a cooler for an hour or more, the juice that collects in said cooler will be some of the best "natural" au jus you will find.