Getting ready to roast an outrageous prime rib

[Qwerty]

Bravo dude.

Looks brilliant.

[Jon Savage]

Dang that looks great.

'nuf said.

[sickchangeup]

So wait. In the oven, low and slow. And then you blasted it in the oven at 500? And then torched it to finish? I'm not sure what step you took in between it being 122 after 2:45 and it being 125->130 before torching.

That is one very nicely marbled piece of meat! I'm especially happy to see the "calotte" remain medium rare, that very frequently winds up more cooked than the rest. Very nice!

As far as aging, I've found that upto 30, maybe 40 days you get a pretty consistent effect in the meat, but that after say 50 days or so, it really matters how/where/what is going on with the aging. Which is to say that a 65 day aged steak from Primehouse here in the city was dense and sour, whereas a 60 day aged steak from Craftsteak was very beefy and a little funky, but neither dense nor sour. The first was quite challenging for a newbie at the table, whereas the second was less so. A few steaks in the 50 day range varied similarly from barely affected to slightly challenging.

[paulraphael]

I posted final notes on the method here.

As far as aging, I've found that upto 30, maybe 40 days you get a pretty consistent effect in the meat, but that after say 50 days or so, it really matters how/where/what is going on with the aging.

That makes a lot of sense. My butcher ages some meat himself in his own walk-in, and has some done by a vendor. I doubt there's a lot of scientific repeatablility, especially in the meat he ages himself.

Edited December 28, 2008 by paulraphael (log)

[tim]

Paul,

I did not realize what a beautifully marbled roast you were cooking. The uncooked roast looks marvelous and I can almost smell the finished roast.

Congratulations... and what kind of wine accompanied this glorious meal?

Tim

[paulraphael]

I'll have to find out if my dad wrote down the wines ... he was sommelier for the night. i just asked for some fairly mighty bordeaux. A couple were st. emillion, another (the really good one that i didn't get to try!) was something i'd never heard of. and we had some kind of prosecco with the cheese.

you mention the smell ... it was way more pungent than the flavor. when the roast first started cooking, the funk was thick enough to cut with a knife.

[Marlene]

It looks fabulous Paul. I have trouble getting past the smell on really aged beef. Ours will get smoked New Years Eve. I may not have any choice since we've been without power here all day so far!

I still want to know if I should sear that huge hunk first before putting it on the smoker. I can't imagine trying to sear a 24 lb roast afterwards and no, I don't have my torch up here with me.

[David Ross]

I thought I would share some past photos of my Prime Rib. While I have been intrigued by all the cooking methods discussed here-I will probably bore you with how I prepare Prime Rib.

My method for cooking Prime Rib is boring. It isn’t trendy in terms of current cooking fads. I don’t use any special equipment. I use a roasting pan that has a rack. No meat thermometer. I don’t sear the meat and then roast it. I don’t fool with the oven temperature-starting at a high temperature and then turning down the heat. I don’t slow-roast and then blast the meat at the end of cooking. Boring is my mantra.

The recipe I employ uses these ingredients-

Prime Rib

Olive Oil

Salt, Pepper and Cajun Seasoning

Potatoes

I rub the meat with olive oil and then sprinkle it with salt, pepper and whatever Cajun spice mixture I have on hand. My favorite seasoning is Paul Prudhomme’s “Steak Magic."

I set the oven to 325 degrees. I put the roast on a rack in a roasting pan. I cook it for exactly 22 minutes per pound. That goes for a roast that is 4 pounds or a hefty beast like an 8 pounder-22 minutes per pound at 325. Always. The results, as you witness below, are medium-rare.

The last hour and a half, (one hour isn’t enough time), the last hour and a half I put in some Russet potatoes that I’ve peeled and cut into large chunks. The potatoes have to be placed directly under the roast to catch all the beef drippings.

After about an hour, I’ll stir the potatoes in the roasting pan so they get thoroughly coated on all sides with the beef fat.

I let the roast rest for only 15 minutes once I’ve taken it out of the oven-wait longer than 15 minutes and the roast starts to get cold. I don't particularly care for cold Prime Rib on the "first cut." We'll have cold Prime Rib tommorrow.

So as you can see, the number of ingredients is simple. The cooking technique, while calling for some precise indications, is simple.

The results, in terms of taste, texture and pure deliciousness, are as complex as the most sumptuous haute cuisine you've ever tasted.

A Prime Rib Roast for the incredibly low price of merely $14.99 per pound. From the old-fashioned butchers at Egger's Meats, Spokane, Washington.

A thick layer of fat is essential so that it bastes the roast as it cooks-and drips glossy fat down on the potatoes. Good butcher shops respect a layer of fat on a Prime Rib.

Do not, under any circumstances, cut the rib bones off the roast and then tie them back on. The bones add flavor, which is lost if you cut them off and then "tie" them back on the roast. The strings you see here are only used to bundle the roast together and to hold the fat cap in place.

Now why would we want to fool with cooking this beauty any other way than plain, simple, oven-roasting?

Out of the oven-a delicious, caramelized, crispy crust and a roast oozing juices.

A thick slab of USDA Prime Beef and Crisp Potato Wedges roasted in beef fat.

The gravy, made with pan juices and thickened with a bit of cream and accented with fresh herbs, is only window-dressing for fussy eaters who think Prime Rib should be coated in a sauce. I could care less about a sauce. Just give me the meat-it already has natural sauce.

As the family is sleeping off dinner, the true Prime Rib Connoisseur will steal themselves into the kitchen and gnaw on the roasted bones of the roast-the most delicious part of a Prime Rib.

Edited December 30, 2008 by David Ross (log)

[paulraphael]

David, I'm not sure why you think bones can't contribute flavor if they've been separated from the meat. I suppose it's possible, but it's not intuitive, and I'd like to witness a side-by-side comparison before subscribing to it.

There's one good reason I can think of to leave the bones attached: if you plan to serve the meat on the bones. This is a delcious option, but whether or not you choose to depends on your esthetics, and also on logistics. You're pretty much stuck with serving a huge bone-in rib steak per guest if you do this! Maybe it's a good option in the midwest.

There are two reasons to split the cooking of a roast like this into a low heat and a high heat session. The first should be evident from the pictures. Notice on your roast that there's a band about a half inch to an inch thick along the top edge that appears to be cooked past medium. Compare with pictures of the roast that was cooked with low heat and then browned: no gradient. The entire interior is just barely medium rare. And the exterior is browned and crisped to an even greater degree than on the single temperature roast. Having a gradient isn't a bad thing, but some of us (especially if we're starting with a remarkable piece of meat) like to chase the holy grail of rare or medium-rare throughout. Split cooking temps can get you closer.

The other reason is more subtle, and actually makes a much bigger difference on an unaged or wet aged roast than on a dry aged one. The enzymes resident in the meat that tenderize it and develop the flavors during aging are most active between 70 degrees and 120 degrees F. The more time the meat spends in this range, the more complex flavors will develop. This phenomenon can be exploited in braising as well.

I am very skeptical of using time or weight to determine doneness. The thickness of the roast, not the weight, is what matters. Whether your roast is from the loin end or the chuck end will effect the time more than whether it's 3 ribs or 6. And as Tim predicted, dry age can greatly accelerate cooking time. If I had followed conventional wisdom on time per pound, I would have incinerated a once-in-a-lifetime piece of meat!

[tim]

Paul,

Very eloquent!

Tim

[chemprof]

It looks fabulous Paul.  I have trouble getting past the smell on really aged beef.  Ours will get smoked New Years Eve.  I may not have any choice since we've been without power here all day so far!

I still want to know if I should sear that huge hunk first before putting it on the smoker.  I can't imagine trying to sear a 24 lb roast afterwards and no, I don't have my torch up here with me.

←

Marlene,

I've been doing roasts (both bone-in and boneless) on the Weber kettle with indirect heat (similar to what I would do for smoking a butt) with soaked wood on the fire but don't worry so much about maintaining a low temp. I pull it at 120° and let it rest a bit, then eat! I've never seared it before or after but it seems to get a tasty crust in the kettle. Takes about 2 hours and I've done from 5-10 lb roasts.

Hope that's helpful...

[Marlene]

It looks fabulous Paul.  I have trouble getting past the smell on really aged beef.  Ours will get smoked New Years Eve.  I may not have any choice since we've been without power here all day so far!

I still want to know if I should sear that huge hunk first before putting it on the smoker.  I can't imagine trying to sear a 24 lb roast afterwards and no, I don't have my torch up here with me.

←

Marlene,

I've been doing roasts (both bone-in and boneless) on the Weber kettle with indirect heat (similar to what I would do for smoking a butt) with soaked wood on the fire but don't worry so much about maintaining a low temp. I pull it at 120° and let it rest a bit, then eat! I've never seared it before or after but it seems to get a tasty crust in the kettle. Takes about 2 hours and I've done from 5-10 lb roasts.

Hope that's helpful...

←

That's very helpful, thanks!

David, that is exactly how I cook my prime ribs in the oven, except I use 18 minutes per pound as my guide. I pull it out between 118 and 120 usually.

[Emily_R]

Hey folks -- I've been following this thread with interest, as I've never had a dry-aged steak before. Then today the craziest thing happened to me!

I went to my local (high end) supermarket, and was looking in the butcher's case... He had a whole bunch of dry-aged steaks in there, and I commented how I had recently been reading a lot about dry aged steaks online and wanted to try them someday. Mind you I didn't think that would be someday soon, as the steaks were $25 a pound... Next thing I know, he takes out a 3-pound dry-aged new york strip steak roast, writes "no charge" on it, and hands it to me! I was so stunned I could hardly do the rest of my food shopping! I feel like I just won the lottery!

Just had to share -- I'll report back when I make the roast in a few days!

[Jim Charles]

Next thing I know, he takes out a 3-pound dry-aged new york strip steak roast, writes "no charge" on it, and hands it to me! I was so stunned I could hardly do the rest of my food shopping! I feel like I just won the lottery!

Wow, you did win the lottery, but if you were my wife I'd be watching you a little closer around the meat dept.

[Magictofu]

That's a butcher who is either very confident about the quality of his produce or a butcher who had too many roasts on his hands. Either way, you win.

[Emily_R]

Actually, dumb question here... So the dry-aged roast is cryovacked. Is that a problem? Should I take it out of the cryovacking and -- I don't know, put it someplace dry? The "use by" date says January 4th, though I'd love to wait a little longer until some friends return to town... Can you tell I really know nothing about steak aging?

As to the confidence of the butcher -- its funny, I mentioned this story to another friend who joked that its like a drug dealer -- the first hit is always free! We'll see if when I make it I start jonesing for more...

[fiftydollars]

I'm picking up a three-rib roast tomorrow for butter poaching. It's prime graded and aged 21 days, but other than that it's a plain ol' rib roast from the good folks at Golden Gate Meat Co.

I'll try to report on my success (or lack thereof) as soon as I can. I'll be using the recipe Michael Mina wrote for the WaPo food section. Let's see if Big Mike's recipe can wow the crowd. Wish me some luck...

←

So I butter poached the rib as announced. The results were very good.

Here are the ribs I started with. Golden Gate Meat Co. slices the meat from bone, ties it back together, then wraps it in caul fat (this accounts for the odd specks of fat that appear in photo).

The recipe called for 8 lbs. of butter, but it actually took about 10 to cover the roast.

The roast was a little to tall to cover it in a standard dutch oven, so I flipped it at some point.

It took about 1.5 hours or so to get the roast up to 118-120, which is about when I pulled it out of the oven.

After the poach, I seared the roast in a cast-iron pan using some of the clarified butter. Then, since I was running late and the mood among the guests was starting to turn ugly, I rushed through the final preparations and did not get any more photos. I am really, really sorry about this. My report is obviously incomplete without the money shot.

As promised by Michael Mina the roast did not need to rest after searing. I was able to slice into the blood-red roast right away without leaving behind much fluid. My only note would be that the roast does not get much salt from the butter poach (if any), so it's important to season well before searing.

One (maybe two) of the guests wanted it well-done, so I took some slices and ruined them to order by putting them back in the butter to poach until the desired over-done-ness was achieved.

[zeph74]

I wish I remembered to take pictures of my xmas roast. Well I did remember, but that was after 24 family members had at it.

Note that the remnants are mostly the ends, which are always a bit more done that the middle (which was medium rare).

[Marlene]

The smoked prime rib turned out quite well.

Yes, I know, I need practice tying.

I had trouble getting a picture before the vultures picked off a great deal of the crispy fat

One of the ends of the roast

Some very rare pieces

The roast was not an even thickeness. The thinner end got a little more well done, which was perfect for a couple of the guests, the other end, rare and the middle pretty much blue. There was something for everyone.

It was on the smoker for 4 hours at 200. We were battling -20C temps at the time, so that could account for how long it took, and it could have gone a bit longer, although we had a few guests who loved the blue pieces.

It was however, extremely juicy and tender.

[Tom Gengo]

Hey folks -- I've been following this thread with interest, as I've never had a dry-aged steak before. Then today the craziest thing happened to me!

I went to my local (high end) supermarket, and was looking in the butcher's case... He had a whole bunch of dry-aged steaks in there, and I commented how I had recently been reading a lot about dry aged steaks online and wanted to try them someday. Mind you I didn't think that would be someday soon, as the steaks were $25 a pound... Next thing I know, he takes out a 3-pound dry-aged new york strip steak roast, writes "no charge" on it, and hands it to me! I was so stunned I could hardly do the rest of my food shopping! I feel like I just won the lottery!

Just had to share -- I'll report back when I make the roast in a few days!

←

That is Sooooo cool.

[ChefCrash]

It's that time of year again.

Well marbled 9.2 pounds, choice rib roast. It's aging in the fridge (one week). Will be rubbed with mashed garlic and oil and seasoned with Thyme, Rosemary, cracked pepper and lots of kosher salt. It will roast at 200*F.

[roosterchef21]

Neil Perry (from Rockpool, Rockpool Bar & Grill in Sydney and Melbourne) is dry aging 9+ Grade Wagyu (i.e the steak is almost white it is that well marbled) for 80 days. Insanely good steak. $100 for a steak but worth every penny.

[Aloha Steve]

It's aging in the fridge (one week).

How are you keeping it in the fridge ? Is it on a rack, atop a tray, covered or uncovered ?

Please give a few details.

edited for grammer (of course:) )

Edited December 23, 2009 by Aloha Steve (log)

[paulraphael]

Neil Perry (from Rockpool, Rockpool Bar & Grill in Sydney and Melbourne) is dry aging 9+ Grade Wagyu (i.e the steak is almost white it is that well marbled) for 80 days. Insanely good steak. $100 for a steak but worth every penny.

Pictures!

[roosterchef21]

http://www.rockpool.com.au/blog/2009/09/dry-ageing-beef-rockpool-style/

There's a link for you. Not sure I can actually post the pictures.

And another one of the steak

http://www.foodologist.com/?m=200704

Amazing. Absolutely incredible steak...