Prime Rib Roast: The Slow-Roast Method

By
Danilo Alfaro
Danlio Alfaro
Danilo Alfaro
Danilo Alfaro has published more than 800 recipes and tutorials focused on making complicated culinary techniques approachable to home cooks.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 11/29/22
Tested by
Joan Velush
Joan Velush
Tested by Joan Velush
Joan Velush is a personal chef, caterer, cooking instructor, and former bartender. Her work has included catering services for a variety of events, preparing weekly meals for a number of clients, and offering private cooking classes for children, teens, and adults. More recently she has worked as a recipe tester, an assistant food stylist, and recipe developer in the test kitchens of Fine Cooking Magazine.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Slow-roasted prime rib roast recipe cut on a wooden board
The Spruce
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 5 hrs
Refrigeration, and Resting: 15 hrs 20 mins
Total: 20 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 4 to 10 servings
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
1559 Calories
125g Fat
0g Carbs
102g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 10
Amount per serving
Calories 1559
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 125g 160%
Saturated Fat 50g 248%
Cholesterol 376mg 125%
Sodium 317mg 14%
Total Carbohydrate 0g 0%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 102g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 59mg 5%
Iron 11mg 61%
Potassium 1471mg 31%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

There's just nothing like a slowly roasted prime rib for a holiday meal or special event. This recipe only requires four ingredients but provides a deliciously tender standing rib roast. 

Prime rib is a large piece of meat, but just because it's big doesn't mean you can treat it roughly. It's big, but because it's from the beef rib primal cut it's also tender. As with anything tender, it's best to be gentle with it. To a tender rib roast, a hot oven acts like a hand squeezing water out of a sponge. However, instead of springing back like a sponge, ​the meat stays squeezed. and you're left with a dry, shrunken roast.

That's why the best way to avoid mistakes when cooking prime rib is to roast it gently. A low temperature doesn't squeeze the moisture out. There's little to no shrinkage, and the juices stay in the meat. The result: juicy, prime rib perfection.

The only catch is that the oven doesn't get hot enough to brown the exterior. So this recipe requires you to sear the roast directly in the roasting pan, across two burners on the stovetop. Make sure you have a heavy-bottomed roasting pan that's suitable for the stovetop.

This technique will work equally well for either a bone-in or boneless rib of beef of between five and 10 pounds. For a bone-in prime rib, figure two servings per rib, while a boneless roast will yield two servings per pound.

Enjoy your prime rib with a side of mashed potatoes and asparagus, or whatever your favorite sides are. 

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“The Slow Roast Method for roasting prime rib is easy, hands-off, and foolproof. Roasting at a low temp ensures that the meat cooks evenly throughout, rather than with a well done exterior and a rare interior. This method also leaves you time to get everything else ready while the meat slowly cooks to perfection.” —Joan Velush

Prime Rib Roast: The Slow-Roast Method/Tester Image
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 1 (5- to 10-pound) boneless or bone-in beef rib roast, trimmed and trussed, if needed

  • 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola or grape seed

  • Kosher salt, to taste

  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Prime rib roast ingredients

    The Spruce

  2. The night before you're going to roast, unwrap the meat and let it sit in the refrigerator, uncovered, on a rack positioned inside a rimmed baking sheet. This will allow some of the surface moisture to evaporate, making it easier to get a beautiful brown crust when you sear it.

  3. Three hours before you're going to roast it, take the meat out of the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. This step is important. If the meat is ice cold, the technique won't work as well. (And you don't have to worry about the meat going bad. Any surface bacteria are going to get seared immediately.)

  4. When ready to roast, position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 200 F. Set your roasting pan across two burners on your stovetop over medium-high heat. Add the oil.

    Roasting pan with oil in it

    The Spruce

  5. When the oil shimmers, add the roast and carefully sear it on all sides, using tongs to turn it. Sear it for a total of 7 to 8 minutes until it's nice and brown all over.

    Prime rib roast on oil on pan

    The Spruce

  6. Season the roast generously with salt and pepper. For a boneless prime rib, put a roasting rack in the pan and then set the roast with the fat-side up. With a bone-in prime rib, you can skip the roasting rack and set the roast bone-side down in the roasting pan.

    Generously seasoned roast searing in a roasting pan

    The Spruce

  7. Insert a digital probe thermometer into the deepest part of the meat, taking care not to hit bone. Set the temperature alert to beep when the meat hits 128 F (see note below).

  8. Roast until the temperature reaches 128 F, which will be another 2 1/2 to 5 hours, depending on the size of your roast.

    Prime rib roast with thermometer

    The Spruce

  9. Remove the roast from the oven, transfer to a cutting board, and cover it with foil. Leave the thermometer in and let the meat rest for 20 minutes.

    Roast wrapped in foil on a cutting board

    The Spruce

  10. Once you take the meat out, the temperature should nudge up to 130 F, which is perfect for medium-rare, and within 20 minutes or so it will drop back down to 120 F. At that point, it's fully rested and ready to slice and serve.

    Prime rib roast with a digital probe thermometer on a wooden cutting board

    The Spruce

Tips

  • If you prefer a medium prime rib, take it out at 135 F with a target temperature of around 140 F. Either way, you'll still want to rest the meat until it comes back down to 120 F before carving it.
  • If you don't have a digital probe thermometer, a standard thermometer will do. Just keep an eye on the time and check the roast after about 2 hours.

How to Store and Freeze

Prime rib will keep in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped in plastic or foil, for 3 to 5 days. Individual slices are best eaten in salads or on sandwiches. You can also freeze prime rib for up to 3 months. Wrap it tightly in foil or use a vacuum sealer if you have one. Let it thaw in the refrigerator. Heat it in a low oven (about 300 F) until completely warmed through, and then give it a quick sear in hot oil on the stove top to add some flavor to it again.

What Can I Serve with Prime Rib

Here's a simple au jus recipe you can make while the meat is resting. Or try this creamy horseradish sauce. Prime rib is also great with sides such as mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, green beans, and creamed spinach.