Standing rib roasts or rib-eye roasts are usually known by their colloquial name “Prime Rib.”  This is a great well-marbled piece of beef that is juicy, tender and smooth.  A standing rib roast is a great roast to serve at a holiday gathering or at a dinner party.  With this meal, the accompaniments were a delicious Madeira sauce and the traditional Yorkshire Puddings.

I picked up a two rib (~5.5 lbs) and decided to dry age the beef at home.  It was pretty easy to do.  I unwrapped the beef, patted it dry with towels and stuck it in the back of the refrigerator on a platter for three days.  Dry aging helps concentrate the flavor of the beef.  When I took the roast out of the refrigerator after the three days, the outer layer was cherry red.  I encrusted the roast with a rub of salt, herbs and garlic.  The rub soaked right into the outer layer and became infused.

The rib roast roasted in the oven at 450 degrees to start and then was reduced to 300 degrees.  I removed the roast from the oven when the beef reached 125 degrees.  I held it covered with foil for forty-five minutes where it continued to cook and reached 135 degrees that resulted a perfect medium-rare rib roast.  During the forty-five minutes, I made the Madeira sauce and the Yorkshire Puddings.  The Madeira sauce is slightly sweet and pairs well with the rib roast.  Yorkshire Puddings are delicious herbed bready puddings.  They taste great with the beef and are good to sop up the Madeira sauce.

This recipe takes some time to make. The dry aging takes three days.  Prep time for the roast, sauce and puddings is thirty-five minutes.  Total cook time is two and half-hours.  The result will not disappoint.

I pulled this recipe from the December 2001 issue of Cooking Light.  The recipe yields twelve servings.  There are 304 calories per serving.  Cost per serving is $2.62.  Total cost is $31.51.  The roast was juicy and mouth-watering.  This is a dish that will end up in my recipe box and will be made again.

I paired the standing rib roast with a 2007 Patz & Hall Gap’s Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir.  The lushness of the wine does not overpower the rib roast like some Bordeaux blends.  The pinot noir had the aroma of cherries and cassis.  The flavor had great texture and was smooth on the pallet.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE