Internal Temps of Standing Rib Roast while resting?

Theophan

I've cooked standing rib roast ("prime rib") in my Eggs a couple of times, years ago, and they were wonderful. This year, it was pouring rain when I wanted to cook a standing rib roast over the holidays, so I cooked it in the oven inside.   I was terribly disappointed in it being way overcooked!  It was medium, bordering on medium well, for crying out loud.

I'd be really interested in any tips you all could give me.  I have, use and love my Thermapen, and I pulled it at about 112 degrees, figured that'd be fine.  I did not, however, keep measuring it as it rested, and it rested for a pretty long time because the rest of the meal wasn't ready.  What I suspect happened was that the internal temperature kept rising, and got too high, and that maybe before I sliced in and served it before it got that hot.

If aiming for medium rare, what temps do you all pull a "prime rib" roast at, and if it might be half an hour or even an hour before it gets sliced and served, do you think it would keep getting hotter and then overcooked?  I'm really puzzled.  I think when I was cooking in the Egg years ago I pulled it closer to 120 and it was still wonderful, but this time, pulling it at 112 it was way overcooked (for medium rare).

Any help would be much appreciated.

lousubcap

Dang- I plan for around about an 8-10*F rise depending on the size of the roast.  Said, another way, about the rise you are familiar with.  It should not make any difference the method to get the roast to the "pull temp" with the exception if you really cooked it at a very high heat.
Here's a link that's a good beef roast read when you get a chance:
http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com/1996/03/beef-standing-rib-roast-prime-rib.html  

Eggcelsior

Did you cover/wrap it at all? If it's just tented, I'd expect no more than 10-15 degrees in carryover. Did you temp multiple places? I wonder if you hit a fat pocket or something where the temp was a bit lower than surrounding muscle tissue.

NibbleMeThis

Here are two posts that I have done on prime rib/rib roasts:
Twenty Tips for Prime Rib on the Grill
Reverse Seared Prime Rib Roast

I wonder if your thermometer might have needed calibration?  112°f should have had that pretty rare at about 120°f after a rest.  Carry over cooking doesn't go on indefinitely.  It can only rise so much, 5-12 degrees, with the energy it had stored up while cooking.

The slower/lower you cook a big rib roast (cooking temp of 250°f for example), the less it will carry over cooking will raise the internal temperature, maybe 5-8°f.  If you cook the rib roast at higher temps (350°f for example), your carry over cooking will go longer, maybe 8-10°f. But once the energy has been spent, that's it, it won't keep cooking. 

The exception to that rule would be if you treated the roast like a brisket or butt, wrapped it in foil, and put it into a warm cooler.  Then that drastically changes the scenario and yes, it would over cook the roast.

My preferred way for medium rare is to slow roast indirect on the Egg at 250°f until the internal temp hits 125°f then pull the roast. It sits on a raised rack (not flat on a plate or counter).  I have a remote probe thermometer in it and keep an eye on the temp to watch it go up.  Meanwhile, I take out the plate setter, put the grate back in, and raise the Egg temp to 500+°f .  Once the roast quits going up in temp, then I sear the roast on the Egg for about 45 seconds a side.  The final temp should be around 130-135°f.

Hope that helps!  

Darby_Crenshaw

You don't want to even tent it. You are NOT trying to keep it warm. You are literally trying to let it cool a bit. 

It will tise in temp without a foil tent. So why a foil tent?

Theophan

Many thanks for the helpful comments!

I don't recall past years' cooks in the Egg, but this year in the oven (due to big rain) I cooked at 350, and it was a big roast, so maybe that would lead to a bigger temp rise, but it's still mysterious to me.  And I didn't wrap it at all, just left it out while the rest of the meal was being cooked.  I'm NOT sure I probed it more than once, though, and maybe that was my mistake as one of you suggested.  I had it in what looked like a perfect spot to test the temperature, in the middle, not close to bone.  But another time I'll definitely probe more than once.

I can't imagine my Thermapen isn't calibrated right, but it can't hurt to try boiling water.  I'll check that.

Thanks again for the help!

Darby_Crenshaw

i had one done early and yeah, it sailed past the desired temp.  i did a reverse sear, and all that extra heat at the end can be an issue if you don't allowe for it.

i have completely skipped the reverse sear step.  i dry the roast a few days, and go low and slow about 225/250.  the carryover is lessened greatly, you get a fantastic crust, and (as steven mentions) even an overcooked roast will still stay nice and mellow red/pink throughout.  it won't go tell tale grey on you even if you end up over-shooting

fishlessman

you definitely probed a fat pocket if 112 turned to well done at those cooking temps

nolaegghead

I'll stab my food all over with my instant read, moving the probe through slowly so I can paint a mental picture of the temperatures throughout the meat. 

This really helps you understand how it's cooking, what the bones and fat are doing, how much carryover cooking you'll expect.

Only takes two minutes to do. 

Theophan

Darby_Crenshaw said:

... i have completely skipped the reverse sear step.  i dry the roast a few days, and go low and slow about 225/250.  the carryover is lessened greatly, you get a fantastic crust, and (as steven mentions) even an overcooked roast will still stay nice and mellow red/pink throughout.

In addition to being much more careful about how I measure the temp, I think I may try that.  I think just because long years before I got a BGE I roasted standing rib roasts in the oven at 350, I kept doing that with the Egg as well.  But I think next time I may go low and slow and forget about the sear.  I love really good roast beef, and boy, the last time or two, that wasn't what I made!

Thanks again to everyone for the helpful comments!