The BEST Garlic Herb Butter Prime Rib (2024)

When the holidays arrive bowls and platters of mashed potatoes, roasted Brussels Sprouts and pies of every kind will overrun tables and kitchen counters across the globe. This year at the center of my holiday table will be a glorious roast of prime rib dressed in garlic herb butter and served with dripping gravy.

Beef, butter, garlic, thyme, rosemary and shallot are life-long friends. Make this prime rib for dinner and you’ll see why. Garlic and shallot gives a roasted sweetness and fullness of flavor, while thyme and rosemary provide a woodsy and floral background note.

Prime Rib with a perfectly roasted exterior browned and glistening; its interior reflecting the rosy red of a movie star’s lipstick, and an aroma that pulls everyone to the table and beckons, “Let’s eat!”

How to Shop for Prime Rib

Prime rib is, without question, a splurge. It’s an expensive cut of meat but it goes a long way in terms of flavor and leftovers. Right about now, I think we could all use a little indulgence and a dinner that feels extra special.

I recommend asking your butcher how far in advance to reserve a prime rib. Some supermarkets have them on hand, but some smaller, independent butchers may need close to a week’s notice to ensure they have one in the manner you’d prefer. Most cut them to order.

Tell your butcher: How many people you’re serving (account for 1 pound per person), and whether you prefer bone-in or boneless, choice or prime cuts. Talk to them, they’ll be thrilled to guide you. For this recipe, I opted for boneless.

• Prime and Choice: These are the most common grades of beef. The classifications measure quality, based primarily on the leanness and marbling of the meat. Prime is higher quality than Choice but both perform exceptionally in this dish. Prime can cost approximately 40 percent more than Choice, so budget is a factor to consider.
• Boneless Roast: I used a boneless roast for this recipe. A boneless roast makes it easier to serve because you don’t have worry about cutting around the bones.
• Bone-In Roast: For bone-in, the butcher will trim the bones from the roast, and then tie the roast with the bones in-place. A bone-in roast will add some additional flavor to the roast, but primarily to the drippings for gravy. The meat nearest the bone will cook at a slightly lower temperature than other parts of the roast, which is not an issue, but something to note.
• Fat Cap: The amount of fat on your prime will vary based on the technique of your butcher. You really don’t need more than 1/2-inch fat cap. Ask them to trim it if there’s more.

How to Make Perfect Prime Rib Every Time

Personally, I do love, love, love a medium-rare prime rib. The outside is colored like deep caramel, while the edges have a gentle crust. The outside contrasts well with the inside of the roast, with its fat softened and rendered, leaving the meat moist and melting. All those in favor of medium-rare? And, the ayes have it.

To get perfect prime rib every time, I recommend cooking the roast in two stages: 500°F to brown the outside of the prime rib, then lower the oven temp to 325°F to finish. This will coax out the beefy aroma and its rich, intense flavors giving you caramelization on the outside while keeping the inside tender and pink.

If you cooked prime rib all the way through at the lower temperature of 325°F, the taste would be flat and monotone. Think of it like choosing elevator music over Dixieland Jazz. If you’re spending money on prime rib, you’re gonna want a party in your mouth.

The moral of the story is: Keep your oven clean to prevent smoking and don’t be afraid of the high heat.

Resting the roast after cooking performs double-duty, both of which are essential: it makes the meat easier to carve, and minimizes the moisture lost when carving.

Use a Meat Thermometer

When it comes to prime rib don’t trust time; trust the temperature. It’s too expensive of a cut to risk oven and human variables (like how often someone opens the door and peeks in).

Get a good meat thermometer and shoot for the internal temperature listed below. Let it sit for 20 minutes before carving. As the prime rib rests the temperature of the meat will climb by 5 to 10 degrees. Meaning the final temperature after resting for a rare prime rib will be around 120°F.

Keep in mind, overdone can’t be undone! Prime rib is best served rare or medium rare. If you slice it and it’s too rare for you, put it back in the oven for a few minutes.

In order to calculate cooking time, provide 10 to 12 minutes per pound for rare and 13 to 15 minutes per pound for medium-rare. In general, an 8 pound prime rib roast cooked to rare will take about 112 to 120 minutes to cook.