Prime rib coasted in a thick garlic crust with an umami kick, slowly smoked on a gas grill with Jack Daniel's wood chips finished with a cast iron sear to lock in flavor and served with a spicy horseradish cream sauce. A classic holiday recipe.
Remove the Prime Rib from packaging and pat dry. If there is excess fat on the outside, consider trimming it off now, leaving a layer at least ¼” thick.
5 to 8 pound bone in prime rib roast
Score the prime rib fat cap by running a knife gently along the fat, pressing about ¼” in and then rotating the roast, and making a cross hatch pattern by running the knife again perpendicular to your previous cut.
Season the beef liberally with salt on all sides.
1 tbsp Salt
Place the roast on a wire rack sitting on a rimmed baking sheet in the fridge for 24 to 48 hours.
Season & Bring to Room Temperature
Mix the Olive oil, mustard, umami powder, 1 tbsp Garlic Junkie and Cowboy Crust (or steak seasoning) in a small bowl.
Rub the mustard spice mix all over the prime rib in an even layer.
Whisk the chopped rosemary and remaining Garlic Junkie seasoning in a bowl together.
4 tbsp fresh Rosemary, 4 tbsp Garlic Junkie
Sprinkle rosemary mix over the meat, pressing as needed, to form a thick crust on all sides.
Allow the roast to come to room temperature, about 1 hour.
Prep the gas grill
Prep the grill for indirect heat by setting 1 burner to high and the others off, to maintain 225F with a cool side and a hot side.
Make your foil packet, or arrange your wood chips in a smoker box and place over the direct heat.
Grill the Prime Rib
Place the prime rib in a cast iron skillet, bone side down.
If using a probe thermometer, make sure it is properly inserted into the meat and set up now.
Place the skillet on the cooler side of the grill.
Close the lid and allow the prime rib to cook until the internal temperature reaches 120F. About 30 minutes per pound with a grill running at 225F.
Carefully remove meat from the skillet and set aside.
Sear the Prime Rib
Turn the heat up on the burners until the cast iron skillet is just smoking. The cast iron skillet will have drippings from the meat in it and can get smokey.
Sear the roast on all sides, about 2 to 4 minutes a side, until a good crust forms.
Rest
Remove the prime rib from heat and tent with foil.
Allow the prime rib to rest for 20 to 30 minutes before slicing.
Make the Horseradish Cream Sauce
While the meat rests, whisk together the horseradish, mayo, heavy cream, black pepper, minced chives and salt to taste.
4 tbsp Prepared horseradish, ¼ cup mayo, 1 tbsp Heavy cream, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tbsp fresh chives, ¼ tsp Salt
Add more or less horseradish for your desired taste.
Cover and chill until ready to serve.
Slice and Serve
Slice the bones from the prime rib in an even cut by running the blade of your knife along the edge of the bones.
From there, slice the beef into even portions and serve with horseradish cream sauce on the sides.
Notes
We used Ooomami, an umami powder to add a subtle extra beefy flavor. Garlic Junkie because it's an amazing chunky garlic spice blend (read, no mincing required), and Cowboy Crust because it has a little kick of coffee for a really savory crust for this prime rib. If you don't have those, use 4 to 6 cloves of freshly minced garlic, coarse sea salt, and a robust steak seasoning as the blend to coat the meat. Make sure to check your prime rib as the weight of the meat, your elevation, and weather will influence the cook time on the grill. This recipe also works on pellet smokers and traditional grills.