I am hosting Christmas Eve dinner this year and plan to serve a rib roast. Actually, I had planned to serve a tri-tip roast because it’s a bit more economical and we have already exceeded our Christmas budget for the year, however by the time I made it to the store they were sold out of tri-tip roasts so I was forced to purchase a rib roast. Forced, ha! This is going to be delicious! And easy. No, really. It is easy. You can do this, I promise.

Rib roasts, rib-eye roasts, tenderloin roasts, tri-tip roasts...all taste best when they are cooked using dry heat, either roasted in the oven or on the grill. The secret for a juicy, flavorful, tender roast is to use a meat thermometer. Either an oven-proof thermometer or an instant-read thermometer will be fine.

First, I am going to mix up a few herbs and salt and rub it all over the roast. This will make a nice “herb crust” on the outside of the roast. (I used 1T dried oregano, 1T dried thyme, and 2 tsp. kosher salt.) You may prefer to omit the herb crust and serve your roast with an au jus sauce or another type of pan sauce.

Place your roast in a shallow roasting pan. Don’t add liquid. Don’t cover it. Just the roast and the pan, very simple.

Do you have an oven-proof meat thermometer? If so, insert it into the center of the roast. Make sure it’s not touching the bone, just the meat.
If you don’t have an oven-proof thermometer, don’t worry! You can use your regular meat thermometer to start checking the temperature near the end of the roasting time.

Place the roasting pan in a 350 degree oven. How long should we roast it? That depends on the weight of your roast and the degree of doneness (rare? medium-rare?) you want when you sit down to dinner.

My roast was 5 pounds (two ribs) and I roasted it for two and a quarter hours; after about 1 1/2 hours I started checking the temperature. My family prefers medium-rare or medium (depending on which kid you ask!). So, I let the roast reach 125 degrees then I removed it from the oven and tented it with aluminum foil. Allow the roast to rest about 15 minutes. It will continue cooking under the foil, the internal temperature will rise 5-10 degrees which is exactly where I want it: 135=perfect medium/medium-rare.

Here is a guideline for Oven Roasts. There is a lot of information on this chart. It is a little overwhelming, however there are many roasts available in the meat case and they can all be prepared at different times or temperatures. I like to use this chart as a starting point for the cooking times when I am preparing an Oven Roast. I don’t let the cooking times tell me when the roast is ready, though. I always rely on my meat thermometer to do that.

Easy! I hope you'll try an Oven Roast soon. You won't regret it!

***Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a KitchenAid Gourmet Distinctions 16 1/2 Inch Roaster w/Rack. See the previous post for details on How to Enter.