Description
A luxurious Garlic Herb Butter Prime Rib roast featuring a rich herb butter made with garlic, shallots, thyme, rosemary, and lemon juice, roasted to perfect medium-rare doneness and finished with a flavorful pan gravy. This elegant roast is ideal for holiday dinners or special occasions, offering tender, juicy meat with a deeply browned crust.
Ingredients
Scale
Prime Rib
- 8 pound boneless prime rib roast
- 1/2 tablespoon salt
Garlic Herb Butter
- 12 tablespoons (6 ounces; 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 10 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 shallot (slightly larger than a golf ball), minced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
Gravy
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour or cornstarch
- 1/2 cup fat from prime rib roast drippings
- 4 cups beef stock or water
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Prep the Prime Rib: Rub the entire prime rib with 1/2 tablespoon of salt and set it on a platter at room temperature for one hour. This salting process draws out moisture for better browning and allows the meat to evenly reach room temperature for easier herb butter application.
- Make the Garlic Herb Butter: In a small bowl, combine softened butter, minced garlic, shallot, dried thyme, fresh rosemary, ground pepper, kosher salt, and lemon juice. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are blended into a flavorful herb butter. Leave the mixture at room temperature for ease of spreading.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Roasting Pan: Preheat your oven to 500°F (or highest oven temperature if below 500°F). Place the roasting pan on a rack in the oven center to heat it, ensuring it will sear the meat as it is placed inside.
- Prepare the Roast: After the roast has rested for one hour, pat it dry with paper towels. Flip the roast so the fat side is down and tie it evenly in 4 to 5 places with kitchen string spaced about two inches apart. Then rub the entire roast all over with the prepared garlic herb butter, starting with the fat side up. It’s fine if the butter clumps a bit if the roast is cool; it will melt as it cooks.
- Sear and Roast: Remove the preheated roasting pan from the oven and place the prime rib fat side up into the hot pan. If you have an oven-safe thermometer, insert the probe into the thickest center part of the roast. Roast for 30 minutes at 500°F to get a deep brown sear.
- Reduce Temperature and Continue Cooking: Lower the oven temperature to 325°F. Continue roasting until the internal temperature reaches 115°F for rare or 120°F for medium-rare.
- Rest the Meat: Remove the roast from the oven, transfer it to a cutting board, and loosely cover with aluminum foil. Let it rest for 15-20 minutes, during which the internal temperature will rise an additional 5-10°F, reaching the perfect doneness.
- Make the Pan Gravy: Leave about 1/2 cup of fat and brown bits in the roasting pan, discarding excess fat if more than 3/4 cup. Place the pan over medium heat on the stovetop. Sprinkle flour evenly over the fat and whisk for 1-2 minutes to cook out raw flour, scraping up all browned bits from the pan bottom.
- Finish the Gravy: Increase heat to medium-high and gradually whisk in beef stock or water. The gravy should thicken in about a minute. Adjust consistency with more stock or water if necessary, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Slice and Serve: After the roast has rested for 30 minutes, remove the strings. Slice the prime rib against the grain into 3/4-inch thick slices and serve with the pan gravy for a rich, herbaceous meal.
Notes
- Enhance the taste and sophistication of your holiday prime rib by dressing it with garlic, thyme, rosemary, and shallot butter for a rich, herb-kissed flavor.
- Salting the roast ahead of time helps achieve a better sear and crust.
- Resting the meat ensures juiciness and allows carryover cooking for perfect internal temperature.
- Use an oven-safe thermometer to monitor internal roast temperature precisely.
- Keep some pan fat for making a flavorful gravy; discard excess to avoid greasy gravy.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (approx. 7 oz)
- Calories: 1317 kcal
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 899 mg
- Fat: 105 g
- Saturated Fat: 45 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 80 g
- Cholesterol: 316 mg
