My latest cooking adventure with Prime Rib and why I think it’s ok to be intimidated by cooking something new
Ok, it’s now been a few years since I’ve been cooking SWF beef exclusively and you’d think I would have tried and true recipes for each cut of meat.—Not so much—I learn every time I’m in the kitchen and I’m always experimenting.
This particular time I was slightly intimidated…
By intimidated I mean— that feeling you get when you have a beautiful piece of protein or a vegetable for that matter that you’ve gone out of your way to purchase or grow and you’ve looked up a few recipes, chosen one and then you just can’t get started….It’s painful. You procrastinate, maybe even convince your family to go out to dinner instead of cooking, anything to get away from the cooking stress.
Ok, time for my story. So I had this 7 lb, 4 beef rib roast, I was saving it for a special occasion, one came along and….I did the usual steps. Thawing, rubbing I decided to try the reverse sear method. I was supposed to cook it low and slow at 250 degrees and then sear it in the last few minutes of cooking, then rest it for 20 min to bring it to the correct temperature before carving the roast.
It was getting late in the day….Although I had been in the kitchen the better half of the day—-I had resisted the urge to put it in the oven because I didn’t want to over cook it and I was following a new recipe. I generally slow cook or braise roasts for hours on end so this is a little out of my comfort zone.
One hour later,—well maybe more than that—I loose track— I came back from the barn, expecting to be getting ready to sear and rest the roast and guess what—the roast was only barely warm and the oven was off. “What happened” I exclaimed to the three kids who were scattered about the first floor. For the first time in a while they were all in the same room.
“The oven started beeping so we turned it off”—said Eden joyfully. The boys were just staring at me. “OH CRAP” I said, now what am I going to do? I thought, it’s late, the kids are hungry and the food isn’t even close to being cooked—and I don’t have anything else to serve.
So, on to plan B. I covered the roast and turned the oven up to 375 degrees convection setting—not usually recommended, but whatever. Lets GOO. . . I needed it to cook.
This time I inserted a thermometer when I put it back in the oven, thinking that would be wise—usually I just go by weight—but I didn’t want to mess around this time—after all I was tired and grumpy.
So, I waited for the temp to come up to 119 degrees—which was FOREVER-like hours. And then as I took the roast out of the oven I watched the thermometer go up and up and up to 130 degrees in a split second—the thermometer was going crazy, maybe malfunctioning?—that’s why it had taken so long. “Oh crap, I overcooked this beautiful roast” I said aloud.
Ok then, I thought, I’ll just skip the next 2 steps, the sear and the rest and just get this thing off the bone. Then it will cool on the serving platter and stop cooking.“Ben, please come cut the meat” Silence….
He was fast asleep and the boys were in their rooms. So, with my trusty 6 year old helper by my side I wrestled the roast, cutting off the bones and slicing through the gorgeous Prime Rib steaks with gusto. I was going as fast as I could and throwing the pieces on the plates. I was invigorated—each piece looked more gorgeous than the next. PHEW.
Eden caught an impromptu moment of me carving the infamous but amazing roast. Not usually my job—but I succeeded
So, the sleepy Halley kids had their first Prime Rib and it was amazing!! I made a red wine reduction sauce and added the drippings from the pan. Mashed potatoes and squash were perfect compliments. There was a happy ending for the poorly cooked Rib ROAST.
But, I do have to say this experience gave me empathy for how people feel when I offer roasts or cuts they don’t usually cook for sale. Ground beef customers usually say—“no thanks, I just don’t like cooking those" and I think to myself—“huh—how can that be. Just follow the directions in the recipe, it will be fine.”
But I will say, just take a chance, if you follow your instincts you can usually recover things—Just go with the flow and the flavor will shine through. We can all recover even the craziest evenings in the kitchen.
Take care and be in touch if you have any cooking stories to share and I’ll put them in my next blog with your permission.
Cheers, Amy