How To Cook Prime Rib Perfectly

When it comes to the king of Christmas meats, few entrees can best a classic prime rib. Also known as standing rib roast, prime rib is easy to prepare yet often suffers from over- or under-seasoning and — the ultimate sin — overcooking. And with so many decisions (prime or choice? Bone-in or boneless? What tools do I need?) getting started can feel overwhelming. Whether you've made prime rib before and want to up your game or are looking to recreate a family favorite on your own for the first time, we've got you covered. From picking the best piece of meat to cooking it to perfection, here's everything you need to know.

To get the lowdown on all things prime rib, we spoke with Chef Isaac Toups of Toups' Meatery in New Orleans. His No. 1 tip for buying prime rib is to splurge on a high-quality piece of beef, if you're able. Prime rib doesn't come cheap — which is why it's typically reserved for special occasions — and so Toups said that if you're going to go for it, you should go all out. "Find a good butcher, someone you trust. Find well-marbled meat," he said. "If you get the best piece of meat and you mess it up a little bit, you're still going to have a good steak. But if you start with grade C meat, no matter what you do with it, it's never going to be above a C."

While the average home cook is going to debate between choice or prime cuts of prime rib, Toups recommended wagyu prime rib if you can find — and afford — it. "Wagyu goes even further," he said. "They take these cows, and they really pamper them and feed them a bunch of grain instead of grass. There's always the argument between grass- and grain-fed beef. Grass, which is what they naturally eat, is going to have more of a high-quality beef flavor. Grain is going to give you more of a fat content. So you're always kind of trading. If you go with wagyu, which is grain-fed, it's going to have more fat and it's going to be more luxurious, more melt-in-your-mouth." Though there are times when grass-fed is preferable, for standing rib roast, the more marbling the better. However, keep in mind that wagyu prime rib is quite expensive and can be as much as $100 a pound.

Yes, the choices keep coming. You may next have to decide between bone-in and boneless prime rib. It's hard to go wrong here, so it's really a matter of preference. While some argue that the bone helps insulate the meat and fat, and thus produce a more tender finished product, Toups said that especially for the home cook, boneless is the way to go. "For prime rib, considering you're going to want to slice it and display it, you want no bones," he said. "Otherwise, you have to remove that bone once it is cooked, and you'll expose a whole side that has been fileted open without any of that good, roasty part. That roasted part on the outside of the prime rib is the best part."

For a boneless prime rib, plan on about half a pound of meat per person.

Though prime rib can be an intimidating and expensive cut of meat, you really only need a few essential kitchen tools to cook it properly. "All you need is a large roasting pan with at least 2-inch high sides," Toups said. "And you need your oven at your absolute highest temperature. You need good kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper — I can't stress fresh ground black pepper hard enough." We also recommend using an instant-read thermometer to make sure the meat comes to the exact internal temperature you want for desired doneness. A good carving knife and large cutting board will also come in handy.

The ultimate goal with prime rib is to have a richly browned crust with a juicy, tender center. The key to delicious prime rib is making sure that the meat is cooked to your desired level of doneness, not by time. For rare meat, cook to 120 degrees F; for medium-rare meat, cook to 130 degrees; for medium meat, cook to 135-140; for medium-well meat, cook to 145; and for well-done meat, cook to 155 (but note that anything above medium-rare is considered sacrilege in many circles when it comes to standing rib roast). Feel free to remove the meat from the oven when it's about 5 degrees below your preferred temperature since the internal temperature will rise as it rests.