The Bolek Family Standing Rib Roast

1. Sear the rib roast. Heat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. At this point, you want to sear the meat to lock in the juices for the long, dry heat of the cooking process. Place the rib roast in a roasting pan, with a little water on the bottom of the pan, and put in the oven for about forty minutes. When you pull out the roast, you want to see the roast stating to brown.

2. Prepare the rub for the rib roast. While the rib roast is searing in the oven, it is time to prepare the rub. Combine the packs of dried onion soup mix, rosemary, thyme and garlic, along with ground pepper and salt. Make sure that everything is mixed thoroughly.

3. Add the rub to the rib roast. Remove the roast from the oven and place on top of the oven. Take small handfuls of the rub and begin to rub the all of the meat. Be careful when doing this because both the rib and the roasting pan will be very hot. Use all of the rub and try to get the rub on all sides.

4. Continue to cook the roast. Lower the temperature of the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Return the rib roast to the oven, covered, to cook for about three hours. I usually try to cook it for about two and one-half hours initially, and then check the temperature. About once per hour, you should baste the roast with the juices; however, do not keep the roast open for long, as that will prolong the cooking.

5. Let the roast rest. When the roast has reached about 125 to 130 degrees, which between rare and medium rare, I pull the roast out and let it rest for about fifteen minutes. The roast will continue to cook and increase about ten degrees. (I like the rib roast to have a good pink center to it.)

Generally speaking, 120-125 degrees is rare, 130-135 degrees is medium rare, 140-145 degrees is medium, 150-155 is medium well and 160 plus is overdone (at least in my opinion). I have to say that when you cook with a gas range, as opposed to an electric one, the cooking times may be a little less and you may want to check the roast more often during the cooking process to make sure that it does not overcook.

ENJOY!