What Is Beef rib roast and How Can I Use It?
Beef rib roast rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 5 recipes to cook with it.
Key Points
- A beef rib roast is the rich, marbled rib-section cut sold as standing rib or prime rib.
- It is the most tender, forgiving roast, so season it simply and let the meat shine.
- Roast low at 250°F (120°C), pull at 130°F (54°C) for medium-rare, and rest 20 minutes.
- Buy it well-marbled in a higher USDA grade; figure about two diners per bone-in rib.
What is beef rib roast?
A beef rib roast is the big, tender beef roast from the rib section, the same muscle that ribeye steaks come from. Left whole and bone-in it is the standing rib roast, and when it is the centerpiece of a holiday table most people call it prime rib.
It is the king of roasting cuts. Generously marbled and from a muscle that does little work, it cooks up rich and tender with very little effort, which is exactly why it costs what it does.
Roasting a Rib Roast
This cut is forgiving, so let the meat carry the dish and keep the seasoning to salt and pepper, with garlic if you like.
Roast it gently. Either sear in a hot oven and drop the heat, or cook the whole time at a low 250°F (120°C) for the evenest result, then pull at 130°F (54°C) for medium-rare.
Remember the roast climbs another 5 to 10 degrees while it rests, so account for that carryover.
Rest it a full 20 minutes before carving, then slice across the grain. A bone-in roast like the Rib Roast of Beef with Horseradish stands tall on its own ribs and carves into thick, rosy slices.
The pan drippings are too good to waste. Spoon them over the meat or stretch them into a horseradish-spiked sauce or a Yorkshire pudding.
Buying and Storing
A rib roast is sold bone-in or boneless and priced by the rib; figure about two people per rib, or roughly ½ pound (225 g) of boneless roast per person. Bone-in stays a touch juicier and looks dramatic on the table.
Look for thick, even marbling and a good fat cap. This is a cut where a higher USDA grade, Choice or Prime, genuinely pays off in tenderness and flavor.
Keep it raw on the bottom shelf of the fridge and cook within three to five days, or freeze it up to a year wrapped tight. Leftover slices reheat poorly, so enjoy them cold or barely warmed as roast beef; they keep three to four days.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 牛肉烤肋骨
- British (UK) term
- Beef rib roast
- en français
- côte de boeuf rôti
- en español
- carne de res asado de costilla
Recipes using beef rib roast
There are 5 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Blue Cheese Minestrone
A slow-simmered minestrone built on beef bone and ham hock broth with kidney beans, broken lasagna noodles, cabbage, and crumbled blue cheese. Rich, meaty, and deeply satisfying.
Rib Roast of Beef with Horseradish
Rib roast of beef crusted with hot English mustard, roasted to medium-rare, and served with whipped horseradish cream sauce folded with toasted walnuts.
Sam Arnold's Cross Rib Roast
Cross rib roast braised with vegetables, black olives, tomatoes, red wine, and a bouquet garni for 2 hours until fork-tender. The strained pan juices make a self-thickening gravy with no extra steps.
Roast Beef with Fresh Garlic Seasoning Salt
Overnight-seasoned beef rib roast rubbed with fresh garlic, paprika, turmeric, and thyme, then seared at high heat and slow roasted to medium-rare.
Roast Beef in Bourbon Sauce
Spit-roasted beef rib roast marinated in bourbon, dry mustard, and vinegar, then grilled over hot coals and basted with the heated marinade sauce.
