STANDING BEEF PRIME RIB WITH AU JUS ...TO DIE FOR!

I cooked my first genuine bone-in standing rib roast last Christmas for my family, and it was spectacular, if I do say so myself!  I bought two items in late fall in preparation for this day that I don't think I could have managed without.

First was this large roasting pan....$40 at the link below and probably one of two kitchen gadgets I didn't own.

https://www.hayneedle.com/product/cuisinart711716urchefsclassicstainlesssteelroastingpanwithrack.cfm?ltype=child&tid=CUI473-1

The other was this digital thermometer...$14.00 on Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013A81VW4/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Both purchases were brilliant, as my roast could have been a disaster without them.

BEEF – STANDING RIB

(NOTE:  Beef stock and Au Jus recipes below)

Select a large end standing rib roast - plan on 1 RIB for every 2 people and then ADD ONE MORE RIB for good measure. 

INGREDIENTS:

Oil

Kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper

       

NOTE:  IF YOU ARE MAKING AU JUS, RESERVE THE PAN DRIPPINGS!!!

OPTION 1 -  DIRECTIONS FOR OVEN ONLY:

Preheat oven to 450˚

Prepare the meat:  Brush the roast with oil; rub with fresh pepper.

Place in a shallow roasting pan on a rack, fat side up, and bake uncovered 15 minutes.

Reduce heat to 325˚ and continue baking about 15 minutes/pound until temperature reaches 120˚ - 124˚.  

Remove from the oven and cover lightly with foil and let rest 30-45 minutes.  Slice and enjoy!

OPTION 2 - DIRECTIONS FOR GRILL/OVEN:
This is what I did...the intent is to slightly sear the outside of the roast to seal in the juices.

Prepare a charcoal grill for direct cooking.  Coals need to be VERY hot.

Prepare the meat:  Brush the roast with oil; rub with fresh pepper.

Place on a shallow roasting RACK (like the one I bought), fat side DOWN and place over hot coals – CLOSE LID ON GRILL - for 15 minutes.   Carefully rotate roast to fat side UP and return to the charcoal – CLOSE LID ON GRILL – for 15 minutes.  Remove from the grill and place rack in roasting pan, insert thermometer, and place in pre-heated 325˚oven.

Bake about 14-15 minutes/pound until temperature reaches 120˚ - 124˚. 

Remove from oven and cover lightly with foil and let rest 30-60 minutes before serving.  Serve with individual bowls of Au Jus. (See below)

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BEEF STOCK AND/OR AU JUS

BEEF STOCK (make a week ahead and freeze, as this process is VERY time-consuming - but you will have wonderful stock on hand for soups, gravies, etc.)

Note:  DO NOT ADD ANY SALT TO THIS UNTIL YOU ARE READY TO USE IT IN IT'S FINAL FORM.... (as the volume reduces, it will cause the stock to become way too salty)

Makes about 3-4 quarts

Time:  2 DAYS! But worth every minute!

INGREDIENTS:

6-8 pounds soup bones - THAWED*** 

Oil

2 large onions, peeled and quartered

10 peppercorns

Cheesecloth for straining liquid

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375°F.  Rub a little oil over all the bones and onions.  Place everything EXCEPT PEPPERCORNS in a large, shallow roasting pan.  Roast in oven for about 30 minutes; turn the bones and roast another 30-40 minutes until they are lightly browned.  If bones begin to char at all during this cooking process, lower the heat.  They should brown, not burned.

When the bones are lightly browned, remove them and the roasted onions and place them in a large (12 to 16 quart) stockpot.  De-glaze the roasting pan by placing it on the stove-top on very low heat (may cover 2 burners), pour 1/2 cup to a cup of hot water over the pan and use a spatula to scrape up all of the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.  Pour the browned bits and water into the stockpot.

Add peppercorns to the stockpot.  Fill the stockpot with cold water to 1 to 2 inches over the top of the bones (4-6 qts probably).  Put the heat on high, bring the liquid to a low simmer, and then reduce the heat to low.  If you have a candy or meat thermometer, the temperature of the water should be between 180° and 200°F (boiling is 212°F).  The stock should be at a bare simmer, just a bubble or two coming up here and there.  (You may need to put the pot on your smallest burner on the lowest temp, or if you are using an oven-safe pot, place it in the oven at 200°F.)  Cover the pot loosely and let simmer for 4-8 hours.  DO NOT STIR THE STOCK while cooking.  Stirring will mix the fats in with the stock, clouding up the stock.

As the stock cooks, fat will be released from the bone marrow and any meat pieces and will rise to the top.  From time to time, check in on the stock and use a large metal spoon to scoop away the ‘scum’ that rises to the surface.  Discard that. 

After about 4 hours, remove one bone and see if the marrow is soft.  If it is, use a crab pick or a long, thin knife to scrape out the marrow from all the bones into the pot.  (Return bones to the pot.)  Continue cooking the as long as you can but at least 4 more hours.

At the end of cooking time (4 hours minimum, 8 hours if you can do it) use tongs or a slotted spoon to gently remove the bones and onion pieces from the pot and place in a colander over a shallow pan to drain.  Then discard.  DO NOT STIR THE STOCK.  Let the stock cool completely and then cover the pot and refrigerate overnight.

Once the stock has chilled, the fat will have risen to the top and solidified.  Remove it and discard – or save for some other project.

After removing the fat, heat the stock to barely WARM – not boiling.  Place a colander on the top of another large pot (8-quart) and line with 3-4 layers of cheesecloth.  Pour the stock SLOWLY through this to strain it of remaining solids. 

REDUCING THE STOCK

Note: The more the level of the stock drops, the faster the process goes.  Watch it closely.

Measure the depth of the stock with a clean knife and lay the knife aside.  Return the stock to the burner and bring to a boil.  Reduce to a slow gentle simmer and cook UNCOVERED until the volume has been reduced by HALF.  (Measure depth of liquid with a different knife – then check depth every 20-30 minutes – I had about 1-1/2 quarts of reduced stock when I finished the reduction, but this will vary)  Allow to cool and then freeze in 1 C portions.

*** My grocery store only has FROZEN soup bones but they have lots of marrow.  If you can get shank bones with a little meat on them, ask the butcher to slice them lengthwise to expose the marrow.  Use about 4-6 pounds of the soup bones and 3-4 pounds of shank bones.

AU JUS (makes about 4 nice – 2 oz servings)

INGREDIENTS:

       

                Pan drippings from roast (the one you're serving)

1/2 C         QUALITY red wine (one you would drink)

2 C           reduced beef stock (that you made ahead)

                S&P to taste

Bring beef stock to a simmer – add about 1/2 C to the roasting pan and scrape to de-glaze the pan.  Using a fine wire mesh sieve, add the pan juices to pot.  Add wine and bring to a boil – cook over med/low heat until reduced by about half - watch closely as this goes pretty quickly.

Remove from heat and add kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Serve warm in shot glasses!  Freeze any leftover au jus in little plastic ‘bathroom’ cups – these are about a one-serving size.  (I use leftover au jus to warm up a slice of Deli roast beef.  Just heat it in a shallow pan and add the beef slices – Voila!)

One final word - DO NOT SALT the stock!!!  If you salt it and THEN reduce it for au jus, it's like a salt lick!  I learned this the hard way!