Prime Rib - Pull it earlier if you are going to reverse sear? (and a couple other ?'s)

KiterTodd · December 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EggHeads! NYE food questions for you...

I have a 6.5 lbs boneless prime rib roast from a nice local butcher.
I'd like my finish to be on the high end of medium rare...135-140 (I'm okay if it hits medium, as long as it is still pink)
Party starts at 6 (when I want to be in FTC) and I'll serve before 7 based on crowd arrival.
Service will be stand-up party buffet style so I'll probably cut thinner shavings people can eat on bread or with their fingers, rather than thick slabs. I honestly haven't really decided yet the best way to serve a prime rib as appetizerish, but I'm going for something like that. (open to suggestions)

So, what temp should I pull it? I want to air on finishing early thus it could be in FTC for an hour or more.

-I'm thinking on at 1:30PM with the egg between 200-250, indirect.
-It should be ready to pull around 5:00 when the temp hits 120.
-I raise the temp up in the egg, reverse sear it and it's probably in the cooler by 5:30, wrapped nicely in foil and towels until I am ready to serve.
I'd pull at 125, but I'm concerned the reverse sear is going to add more heat and I risk a well-done finished product.... specially with me letting it sit longer than 20 minutes.

What do you think?
Should I error on putting it on earlier or later? I know from experience with pork and brisket that I can keep it in FTC for 1-2 hours and it'll be hot when I serve it.

My goal is to be out of the egg by 6:00. I want to be in party mode at that point, serving cocktails and not standing over the grill.

Appreciate any advice. Thanks!
:-bd

KiterTodd · December 2014

Here it is...a rolled rib roast (prime rib de-boned and tied). I didn't have any fresh rosemary, so I had to go with dried tonight but I'll put the good stuff on tomorrow before I cook it.

That's olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary and lots of garlic. (lots of salt also, but it just seems to disappear when you rub it on the roast!) I'm actually not sure how much is too much vs. not enough. I do think the salt really brings out the flabor of a nice prime rib roast...

anton · December 2014

I pulled my 9 lb boneless at 115F, rested in foil, cranked egg to 550, then seared approx 6 mins each side,internal reached 127F, it was perfect. YMMV Some research I read says if you need to wait for timing purposes, cook to low temp then rest FTC for a longer window, then when ready to eat, sear, slice and serve immediately, you don't want to be FTC ing the seared product from what I learned, hope this helps or someone else will chime in.

SMITTYtheSMOKER · December 2014

I would cook indirect up front (as you suggest) but go hotter, more like low 300's. Do your reverse sear and rest for only 10/15 minutes. I would not FTC this piece of meat, I like the fresh sear to come to the plate, I feel you will lose the crunch of the char by putting in the cooler for an hour.

Your cooking time should be app 1 hour.

abpgwolf · December 2014

I recommend pulling at 120 and FTC until you're about ready to serve and searing. I did this Christmas day and the results were incredible. I also used a rub with rosemary that was a big hit with our family.

I hope all goes well, let us know how it turns out.

Scottborasjr · December 2014

I agree with everything @SMITTYtheSMOKER‌ said except for time of cook. If you have the roast sitting out at room temperature for a long time before hand he's dead on in my estimation. If you are going from fridge to grill triple the estimated time for a indirect cook. No offense Smitty.

Oh wait didn't take the sear into account. I've never seared prime rib. 300-320 till it's done. My bad. Take away previous comments. Happy New year!

KiterTodd · December 2014

Thanks guys.
This is my first prime rib and yes, I'm serving it for a crowd. If past Egging experience has been any lesson, I usually nail it the first time and then will spend several cooks trying to recreate the quality of my first cook.

) So, odds are good it'll at least be edible.

I'm going to try for a low and slow based on most (not all) of the recipes I have read which state I have a better chance of getting tender meat with consistent redness throughout....and of course not overshooting it.   We'll see what happens.

Thanks for the tips on the sear.   I don't mind losing the crunch as long as the flavor is there, BUT, if the cook comes up sooner than expected I'll take the advice and hold it in FTC until 15 minutes before I want to serve it and then I'll have the BGE cranked up and will sear it before serving.    I think.....   we'll see how the evening plays out.

Form past experience, I don't want to be sweating over the grill. I've done that. I miss out on too much time with my guests.   So as much as possible I want to be off the egg when folks arrive for this cook, anyway.   It's New Years! Drinks need to be dranken.

I'm still open for any advice you can throw at me! Thanks for everything thus far.

Scottborasjr · December 2014

If you are serving it you will spend more time carving it then you should spend worrying about it on the egg. What way or how are you monitoring the cook?. It's almost as hands off a cook as pulled pork once you have your seasoning and prep work done.

carolinakid · December 2014

I would follow what SmittytheSmoker suggested. Foiling will increase the temp. Be sure to pu;; at a lower temp. Certainly 120.

Sea2Ski · December 2014

I am going to comment based on what you said you want. Personally I like my beef more rare than you (I slice at -125 ish), but that is not what you asked for. To achieve what you stated what you want:

I think your rub is perfect.
I like the lower and slower approach if you want even pink throughout. Higher temp will leave some gray on the edges indicating meat that is cooked more. Not bad at all, but you mentioned that you want it even color throughout, so that is why I am suggesting it.
If you are going to slice really thin, then the crunchiness of the crust will not matter, right? So you can skip the sear. Why waste the time. (If slicing thick and serving a "queen" or "king" size slices, that would be a different story.)
You said you want to spend the time with the guests and finish on the higher end of medium rare - 135-140'ish. That would seal the deal for me to proceed the following way: I would go low- 225-240 dome to 128-130 degrees internal then rest uncovered for just a few minutes - (2-5 minutes), then FTC before anyone arrives if possible. The meat should finish in the mid 130's. You can easily let it sit for an hour in the cooler as you said.
Greet the guests, be the gracious host, and socialize. Time will work its magic with the meat. When time to serve, slice it up, and they will all be like: "Wha.......???? How did you do that? "

Regardless how you proceed, you will have a GREAT party!

What's the address again?

blind99 · December 2014

Agree w above about skipping the sear. Simplify your life and don't risk it.

As far as serving - how about small rolls, horseradish sauce, mayo, small slices of cheese - you can cut pieces of prime rib and let them assemble small sandwiches.

KiterTodd · December 2014

Ugh...what triggers the "your comment will appear after it has been approved" message? Too many quotes? I'm going to have to type this again. Those never appear...

You are going to see three seperate posts follow. I guess three quotes is too much for the forum.

Retired RailRoader · December 2014

I did a 8lb. prime rib roast for Christmas. I had the egg stabilized at 250 and the roast was removd from the fridge 1 hour prior to placing it in the egg. The roast was in the egg for 3 hrs. when it hit the 125 mark. I removed the roast from the egg, wrapped and held it in a cooler for another 1 1/2 hrs. The temp of the meat climbed to 134 during this period. I removed my plate setter and got the egg to 500 for the reverse sear. Seared the roast for 5 min. per side removed it from the egg and straight onto the cutting board. This was the result. Good luck.

KiterTodd · December 2014

Scottborasjr said:

If you are serving it you will spend more time carving it then you should spend worrying about it on the egg. What way or how are you monitoring the cook?. It's almost as hands off a cook as pulled pork once you have your seasoning and prep work done.

Probably, right. Thanks. For me though, even when I monitor it with my Maverick and don't open the egg....I'm still tending one way or the other. Must be me, but it isn't as "set it and forget it" as an inside oven cook.

KiterTodd · December 2014

Sea2Ski said:

I am going to comment based on what you said you want. Personally I like my beef more rare than you (I slice at -125 ish), but that is not what you asked for. ..
If you are going to slice really thin, then the crunchiness of the crust will not matter, right? So you can skip the sear. Why waste the time. (If slicing thick and serving a "queen" or "king" size slices, that would be a different story.)
You said you want to spend the time with the guests and finish on the higher end of medium rare - 135-140'ish. That would seal the deal for me to proceed the following way: I would go low- 225-240 dome to 128-130 degrees internal then rest uncovered for just a few minutes - (2-5 minutes), then FTC before anyone arrives if possible. The meat should finish in the mid 130's. You can easily let it sit for an hour in the cooler as you said.
Greet the guests, be the gracious host, and socialize. Time will work its magic with the meat. When time to serve, slice it up, and they will all be like: "Wha.......???? How did you do that? "
...

Awesome! Thanks for breaking it down. Think I'll follow your cook plan. Maybe pull at 125.
I'll take your advice on skipping the sear based on how I am serving.
I'm still concerned that if it sits (FTC) for longer than 20 minutes I risk overcooking the beef based on some recipes I had read. Think that only applies to larger cuts of meat?

KiterTodd · December 2014

blind99 said:

Agree w above about skipping the sear. Simplify your life and don't risk it. As far as serving - how about small rolls, horseradish sauce, mayo, small slices of cheese - you can cut pieces of prime rib and let them assemble small sandwiches.

Great. Thanks!
Yeah small sammies would work out well. Or they can eat it plain. Kind of like pit beef but MUCH better!

blind99 · December 2014

I think if you pull at 125 you'll have plenty of carryover to hit the 135 you want. The variation from the ends to the center will give everyone the doneness they want. It's gonna be great!

Sea2Ski · December 2014

blind99 said:

I think if you pull at 125 you'll have plenty of carryover to hit the 135 you want. The variation from the ends to the center will give everyone the doneness they want. It's gonna be great!

This ^^
But remember, the lower and slower you go, the less variation there will be.....

KiterTodd said:

I'm still concerned that if it sits (FTC) for longer than 20 minutes I risk overcooking the beef based on some recipes I had read. Think that only applies to larger cuts of meat?

I really think you will be fine. This is why I have it sitting unfoiled for about 5 minutes. That will cool the hottest part of the roast (the outside) the fastest. But it will not cool the whole thing *that* much. It is similar to running veggies under cold water for a few seconds to stop them from cooking further when first pulled out of boiling water.
If you want, you can leave it out a bit longer uncovered - like 10 mins.
For Christmas, I followed my procedure with a 5 minute uncovered rest followed by double wrap foil then towel and cooler rest. The temps went from 123 to 128 then cooled to 126 at slicing after a 35 min rest in the cooler for the 6.66 lb roast and 135 to 143 and 141 at slicing after a 1 hour FTC rest (wife's side of the family likes med-well beef) for a 7.02 lb roast.

More questions? Fire away! We will get you through this!

KiterTodd · December 2014

ONE more question! (for now)

Cook it fat side up or down?
The picture above is the top of the rolled roast. There is of course a small fat cap at the bottom.

Thanks Sea2Ski, sounds like 125 should do it for me.

Sea2Ski · December 2014

Fat cap up in my opinion. If you are cooking indirect as you stated, I am not sure it really matters. But I would still go fat side up.

I can not tell if the roast has ribs, if so lay the roast on them and use them as the rack.

KiterTodd · December 2014

No ribs, Sea2Ski, it was boned by the butcher, rolled and tied.

Fat up. Check! :-bd

Getting the egg setup now. I think I'll go with Rockwood for this cook since everyone raves about the neutral flavor. Don't want to smoke this prime rib, after all. Just slow cook it.

By the way, I'll use a grate thermometer and still shoot for the 225ish temp.

Sea2Ski · December 2014

It is going to turn out fantastic!

Have fun!

SMITTYtheSMOKER · December 2014

I like to trim all fat off this piece of meat, this allows you to create a nice flavorful bark on all sides. Bark won't set up on top of a fat cap as it tends to render off. Again JMO.

KiterTodd · December 2014

SMITTYtheSMOKER said:

I like to trim all fat off this piece of meat, this allows you to create a nice flavorful bark on all sides. Bark won't set up on top of a fat cap as it tends to render off. Again JMO.

Thanks. It was pretty well trimmed from the butcher, but as it was already tied up when I got it I did not do much additional trimming (didn't have more twine).

'Preciate the tip. Good to know you don't need it on the prime rib.

Mikee · January 2015

I'd pull at 115* knowing it will rise in temperature a few degrees. Once the reverse sears happens, you can adjust the amount of time to get it up to 125*.

Prime Rib - Pull it earlier if you are going to reverse sear? (and a couple other ?'s)

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