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There is nothing better than a beautifully smoked prime rib with a side of mashed potatoes along with some creamy horseradish and au jus for dipping. It's time to fire up those smokers and make this succulent master piece!
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Why this recipe is AMAZING
Prime rib is delicious when baked in the oven, but add natural smoke flavor to that meat and it takes this prime rib roast to the next level. By keeping it simple with the seasonings, the meat has a chance to really shine through. Let's get to it!
Buying the meat
Prime rib roast is a cut of meat that comes from the ribs of the cow. A rib roast is where the popular rib eye steak is cut. You are essentially buying several rib eye steaks that have not been cut yet.
When buying prime rib roast, don't let the word 'prime' at the beginning fool you into thinking every cut of beef for sale is of Prime beef rating. It is possible to buy a rib roast with a beef rating of 'choice' or 'select' which will have less marbling of fat.
Most local grocery stores or butchers will carry rib roast and are commonly cut to order when it comes to weight. It is also possible to buy prime rib roast 'bone in' or 'boneless'. Either way produces a great finished roast and bones are easily trimmed before or after cooking if you buy a bone in rib roast.
How much to buy?
Having a dinner party and trying to figure out how big of a prime rib roast to buy? Figure about 1lb of uncooked prime rib per person. So if you are having a dinner with 8 people total, buy an 8lb prime rib roast.
How to Make Smoked Prime Rib
I'm going to show you step by step how to smoke the perfect prime rib which is the absolute BEST meal for Christmas, New Years, or any important occasion!
Prepping the prime rib
Most prime rib will come already trimmed to about ¼" of fat along the outside of the roast. If not, you will want to use a sharp fillet knife to trim the fat. Don't cut off all the fat, that is where great flavor resides! You don't want too much though, so trim to ¼" thick.
I like to keep it simple when it comes to seasoning prime rib. Rub a light coating of olive oil or mustard as a base and then sprinkle liberally with a 50:50 mixture of kosher salt and coarse black pepper. Adding a little thyme also gives a nice flavor and look to the finished roast.
The smoker
I use a RT-590 Recteq pellet smoker when smoking prime rib, but any stick burner (traditional wood burning smoker) or pellet smoker will do. Traeger also provides several different pellet smoker models to choose from. Pre-heat your smoker to 225°F and clean the grates.
Smoking the rib roast
Maintaining 225°F in your smoker is the perfect temperature to get a great smoke flavor into the meat. Expect about 40 minutes a pound when smoking, so a 6lb prime rib roast will take about 4 hours to smoke.
***However, the max amount of time a roast should take is about 6 hours*** Once you reach a 9lb roast, the cooking time does NOT keep increasing the heavier the roast.
Sear
The next step is to choose whether you want to sear or reverse sear your prime rib. Either way is fine, a reverse sear will give you more of a smoke flavor to the finished prime rib.
For this prime rib I seared the roast in my oven BEFORE smoking for 15 minutes at 450°F. Simply line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and stand the rib roast, bones down, on the tray. 15 minutes will give it a nice crust. Then transfer to your smoker to finish.
Reverse Sear
A reverse sear is when you smoke the meat first and then perform the high heat treatment at the end of the cooking. This will add more smoke flavor to the meat as you don't have the crust from a regular sear encapsulating the meat from the smoke of the fire.
Once the meat reaches 10°F below your desired doneness, remove the roast from the smoker and increase the temperature to 450°F. Once temp is reached, place the rib roast back on the grill and finish cooking for several minutes until the desired internal temperature is reached.
Finished temperature
Most pellet smokers will come with thermometers that will plug into the smoker and can be placed into the meat for a constant temperature reading. If you don't have one of these, an inexpensive digital meat thermometer is a great investment. I use these for just about everything I smoke. I highly recommend adding one to your grilling arsenal.
I like to pull the roast from the smoker at 130°F IT if I sear before smoking or 120°F if I am going to reverse sear. Allow to rest on a cutting board for 20-30 minutes for the juices to redistribute before carving.
Slicing
There are two ways to slice a rib roast when serving. The first is to slice between the bones for a large 1.5" cut of beef to serve. Slice this way with the roast resting upright on the rib bones. Each serving will include a bone when slicing this way.
The second is cutting the rib bones from the meat and discarding them before slicing into individual servings. The bones will be cut off together, running a large long knife just above the top of the bones. With the roast resting on the meat, rib bones up.
Once the bones are separated, the meat can be sliced into however thick pieces you desire. ½" to 1 ½" is best when serving.
What goes with prime rib?
There are some staple condiments that are a MUST when eating prime rib. The first of those being:
Horseradish
Oh yeah, that little spice that's strong enough to clear your sinus. I love it! It can be bought in either creamy horseradish (most popular) or you can go with straight raw horseradish (very strong).
The second MUST is a:
Au Jus
A great flavored au jus (thin gravy that accompanies meat) is for dipping the meat. The easiest way is to buy a packet, just like a gravy packet, and prepare it that way. You will always have enough for everyone and it's great tasting. Easily found in the gravy isle of your local grocery store.
What about side dishes?
Mashed potatoes! Nothing goes better with prime rib than some creamy great tasting mashed potatoes. Cree from Cooking With Bliss has a great Herb Garlic Mashed Potatoes recipe that will pair perfectly with this smoked prime rib.
The other side dish I love to pair with this great tasting roast is asparagus. Check out this roasted asparagus recipe from Jo-Anna from A Pretty Life, it will definitely round out this meal with some healthy greens.
Old Pro Tips
- Place a water pan in the smoker if using a stick burner. It is not necessary when using a pellet smoker
- Rest the meat for 20 - 30 minutes before slicing to allow the juices in the meat to redistribute.
- Remove the bones before smoking and tie back to the roast with twine for aesthetics, remove and discard before smoking, or leave them in and remove before serving. Either way can be done and will not affect the final result of the roast.
FAQ
225°-250° is the best temperature to get a great smoke flavor but not too low that it will take all day long to cook.
No. You won't taste the mustard and it's a low calorie binder. I like to use yellow mustard or olive oil.
Applewood is my favorite. It is not as strong as mesquite or hickory and gives it a nice subtle flavor.
Ingredients
- 8 lbs Prime Rib Roast
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoon black pepper (coarse)
- 1 tablespoon thyme (dried or fresh)
Equipment
Instructions
- Rub roast with olive oil on all sides and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and thyme. Make sure to have an even amount on all sides of roast.
- Place roast bone side down on a pre-heated smoker at 225°F. Smoke until reaching 10°F shy of your desired internal temperature, about 30-40 minutes per pound. Larger roasts over 9lbs will take about the same amount of time as a 9lb roast. Adjust temp between 200° to 250° while smoking if it appears it will finish early or too late. Remove prime rib from smoker, set aside, and increase temperature to 450°F.
- Place roast back on smoker to reverse sear until a nice crust is formed and your desired Internal Temperature is reached (refer to temperature chart in post above).
- Remove and allow to rest for 20-30 minutes. Carve into 1" steaks and plate.
- If searing in an oven before smoking, place roast bone side down on baking sheet in a pre-heated 450° oven on the bottom rack for 15 minutes. Remove and then smoke until your desired internal temperature is reached. Allow to rest for 20-30 minutes.
Pro Tips
- Place a water pan in the smoker if using a stick burner. It is not necessary when using a pellet smoker
- Rest the meat for 20 - 30 minutes before slicing to allow the juices in the meat to redistribute.
- Remove the bones before smoking and tie back to the roast with twine for aesthetics, remove and discard before smoking, or leave them in and remove before serving. Either way can be done and will not affect the final result of the roast.
Nutrition
Chris says
Similar to Keith above, I’m doing one for Christmas on my brand spanking new GMG Ledge. My question for you is, once 120° is reached on the smoker, should I keep the roast warm in the oven while the pellet grill reaches 450° for the reverse sear? This is my second day using the GMG, and my experience with my older pellet grill is that it can take a while to get to 450°, and not having used the GMG before I don’t know its quirks. Thanks for the recipe and thanks in advance for your response!
Will says
I've never used a GMG before and am not sure how long it takes to reach 450°. My pellet smokers don't take that long to reach 450° so I do not put in the oven. You can keep it warm in the oven at 220°F while you wait if you think it's going to take over 15 minutes to heat up. The other option is to loosely tent the prime rib with aluminum foil while you wait.
Chris says
Thank you!
Ray says
Are the calories / fat etc per serving or Total for the roast?
If its per serving, the fat alone is 2.5 days worth for each person!
Yikes!
Thanks!
Will says
It's per serving. There is a lot of fat on prime rib! You can also trim some of the fat off before smoking.
Ray says
Wow, Im sure it tastes great, but those type of calories, fat, sodium etc. are pretty excessive, and that's not even including the sides!
That thing is a heart clogger!
LOL
Tony T says
What type of wood do you recommend to use ?
Will says
Applewood is my favorite. If using a pellet smoker, using a competition or trophy blend of several woods that most companies offer works well.
David Fjeran says
Can you smoke this in a pan to save the juice?
Will says
Definitely! Either use cast iron or an aluminum pan.
Jeffrey Hembury says
I dint see any post above that has internal temps. Would be helpful if you just said in your post here
Will says
Hey Jeff. Under the section "Reverse Sear" in this post there is an image that has internal temperatures and the corelating 'doneness'. ie: medium, medium rare... Use that chart to choose your desired temperature.
margaret chappell says
can I brine the roast before I smoke it?
Will says
Yes! You can totally cover the prime rib in salt the day before and keep in the fridge until you are ready to smoke it.
MJ says
I've got a 16 lb boneless prime rib I am going to smoke on my RecTeq 590. At 30 minutes per pound, that's 8 hours. Plus 15 minutes to reverse sear, plus time to let it rest. Does that sound right to you?
I'm looking forward to it, but I don't want to find it getting done far too early. I'm doing this for a lunch on Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
Will says
I think that will work just about right. Boneless will cook a little faster than bone in, so the 30 minutes should be about right for a rare/medium rare. I doubt it will be done too early. If it goes the other way and you see it taking longer than you anticipated you can always turn the temp up a little to finish it in time. Good luck and enjoy!
Brian says
I am also making a 16 lb boneless rib eye roast… does it make sense or shave some time to cut it in half?
Brian says
Hi MJ… saw your comment about the 16 lb boneless rib roast… just curious how it turned out… I’m making a 16 lb roast for christmas tomorrow and I was also worried that the 8 hrs would be too long! I don’t want it to be done too early
Will says
If it's not a really wide fat roast, plan on a shorter time. Possibly 5 hours. You can always turn the temperature up towards the end if it seems it's not going to be finished on time.
sarah says
this recipe is incredible, as always 🙂
Leslie says
Amazing Smoked Prime Rib recipe!
Pam Greer says
I can't wait to try this on my Traeger!
Freya says
Brilliant recipe, thanks!
Kay says
What a wonderful smoked beef, first time I have made it this way!
Mike says
Can I reverse seal on Blackstone griddle?
Will says
Definitely!
Ramona says
Absolutely delicious. The flavours are to die for. I’ll definitely be making it again
Jessica Formicola says
My family absolutely loves ordering prime rib when we go out. So I'm glad to have found a recipe to make it at home!
Kay says
Can't beat a good roast dinner! Beef is one of my favourites!
Amy Roskelley says
I think I need to make this this weekend for Mother's Day!
Tracey says
Love the simplicity of this recipe
Will says
Easy and delicious!
Angela says
Yum! Thanks for all of the great tips! Mine came out amazing.
Will says
Glad to hear it!
Lara says
Just what I needed for this weekend’s bbq season opener! So delicious!
Will says
O yeah, Time to fire up the grills and smokers!
Audrey says
This is so much simpler than I thought it would be. Who needs the restaurant when you can make your own at home!
Will says
So easy, might as well save money and make it yourself!
Keith says
I cannot wait to smoke my 8 lb Prime rib roast with the bone in it. Pellet smoking it for Christmas Day on my GMG Daniel Boon prime+. I am excited and a little nervous because I never smoked a Prime Rib before. Your recipe calls for only Thyme, I was told to use rosemary as well! Would you recommend it or not?
Also, I bought my roast already because of my location and time restrictions, can I keep it refrigerated or should I freeze it until the day before. It is probably not a good thing to marinate it for a few days? I don’t want to ruin this roast so your advice is crucial to me right now! Thank you
Will says
You can season it with a little rosemary, just don’t go too crazy with it. You can marinate it the night before and keep it in the fridge of course. I’m not sure when you bought the roast and how fresh it was when you bought it. I would hate to see it go bad in the next 5 days, you might want to freeze it since it’s expensive and could be hard to replace if it starts going bad and smelling. You got this man, it’s going to turn out great!
Keith says
I did end up putting in the freezer the day we bought the roast. I did not want to chance it going bad. Thank you for the tips. Can’t wait to smoke this one. We will let you know how it turned out after the feast.