Recipe: Prime Rib Au Jus with Horseradish Cream Sauce

Ta da! The main entree served with the roasted new red potatoes and the country green beans is prime rib.I have not had the privilege to consume a lot of prime rib in my life, but I can tell you the best prime rib I've had is at San Francisco's House of Prime Rib. They serve succulent slices of prime rib cut off the cart right in front of your table. And the best thing is seconds are on the house. They don't advertise this on the menu but guests are allowed a second serving of prime rib--all one has to do is ask.I decided to do a prime rib with horeseradish cream sauce for this year's Christmas lunch because my dad was tired of fried turkey, and as the thought of roasting a duck for the first time at a family holiday gathering was intimidating, I settled on prime rib instead. Originally, I was going to purchase a pre-marinated prime rib from Costco but when I realized that marinating your own prime rib was a fairly simple process, I decided to forego the ready-to-go prime rib at $8.99/lb. and go for the naked slab of USDA beef at $7.99/lb. I bought a five-pound hunk of prime rib, assuming that my family, with their dainty appetites, will only eat about half a pound each. (I heard my relatives are also bringing lobster and chicken wings.)

The must-have tool for cooking prime rib (and just about any big chunk of meat, for that matter) is the digital meat thermometer. We got ours last-minute from Target the other night for roughly $20. Cooking meats--whether it's beef, pork, and chicken, and whether you roast, grill, or fry it--requires an exact temperature reading to indicate doneness. It's a shame I've been cooking all these years without using one; I usually just get John to cut the meat open and look to see if it's pink or bloody or done. But as cooking is as much a science as it is an art, the best way to produce consistent, edible, and desirable results is to use a thermometer. There are even digital talking thermometers for the blind, and I will one day get to blogging about all these independent living aids for the blind (I know I keep saying that, but I promise.)The prime rib should be served with two sauces: an au jus and a horseradish. Au jus is French for "with juice,. In French cooking, au jus is usually made by taking the natural drippings from the roasted meat and served as an accompaniment to enhance flavor. In American cooking, however, au jus refers to a sauce that may or may not be made from the pan drippings but is almost always prepared by combining other ingredients such as beef broth, soy sauce, or worcestershire sauce and reduced to a sometimes gravy-like consistency. American au jus is frequently made separately using additional external ingredients whereas the French au jus is purer in the sense that it's the natural juices produced during cooking.Horseradish cream sauce provides a little creamy kick to the savory meat. I find that horseradish meshes well with beef: think of a roast beef sandwich topped with horseradish sauce. (Hello--Arby's!) So without further adieu, here are the triple decker recipes to make prime rib, au jus, and horseradish sauce.Note: Pictures to come after Christmas. 

Recipe: Prime Rib

Summary: Original recipe from All Recipes

Ingredients

• 1 (5 lb.) standing beef rib roast
• 2 tsp. kosher or rock salt
• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. garlic powder or more to taste

Instructions

1. Allow roast to stand at room tempreature for at least 1 hr.--very important!
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a sm. bowl. Place the rib roast on a rack in the roasting pan, fatty side up. Rub seasoning on the roast.
3. Place the thermometer in the meat, and roast in oven for 1 hr. Turn off oven, and let roast sit inside the oven for 2 to 3 hrs. Do not open oven door--the roast is still cooking. Before serving, turn the oven back on to 375 degrees and roast for another 30 min. or so to heat through. The internal temperature should read at least 145 degrees when ready. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 min. before carving and serving. Serve with au jus and horseradish sauce.

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: USA (General)

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Recipe: Au Jus

Ingredients

• 1 (10.5 oz.) can French onion soup
• 1 (10.5 oz.) can beef broth
• 1 can cold water
• 1/2 tsp. white sugar
• 2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
• 1/8 tsp. salt

Instructions

1. Bring ingredients to boil in a med. saucepan. Strain, discard onions, and serve in sm. ramekins alongside prime rib.

Quick Notes

Makes 3.5 cups. Can be made 2 days ahead.

Cooking time (duration): 5

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: USA (General)

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Recipe: Horseradish Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. sour cream
• 1/4 c. prepared horseradish
• 1 tsp. salt

Instructions

1. Combine ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hr. to develop flavors. Serve in sm. ramekins alongside prime rib.

Quick Notes

Makes 1.25 cups. Can be made 2 days ahead.

Cooking time (duration): 5

Diet type: Vegetarian

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: USA (General)

Microformatting by hRecipe.