How-To Guides

How to cook a trimmed rib of beef

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What is a trimmed rib of beef?

Cherished by meat connoisseurs and chefs alike, a bone-in French trimmed rib of beef is the Rolls-Royce cut from the primal rib. It’s a prime roasting joint with an unusual depth of flavour, thanks to the main ‘eye’ of meat that has an abundance of fat marbled through it. This keeps the meat tender during the cooking process and provides a deeply complex flavour.

Clean rib bones extending from the base of the joint give real visual presence, making this an ideal centrepiece for a celebration or event. Keeping the joint on the bone also helps retain moisture, prevent shrinkage, and bolster already abundant flavour. We recommend a medium-rare finish, as this will enhance the flavours and produce a wonderful texture.

Trimmed rib of beef cooking time

We’ve provided instructions for two different cooking methods. If cooking your rib of beef in the traditional way, we recommend cooking it for 18 minutes per 500g after an initial roast of 15 minutes at a higher temperature for a medium-rare result. For a rarer or more medium result, reduce or increase the timing by 4-5 minutes per 500g.  

Roasting at a very low temperature is an excellent alternative technique. Dependent on the size of your beef, this will take a minimum of three hours. A meat thermometer reading of 53-55°C is ideal for medium-rare, 49-51°C for rare, and 57-59°C for medium. A blast of very high heat is essential to achieve an appetising roasted appearance and golden crust.

The best way to cook rib of beef

Traditional roasting technique

  1. Remove your rib of beef from the vacuum packaging and pat dry with kitchen paper. Allow it to come up to room temperature.
  2. Preheat oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C/Gas 7.
  3. Rub a little oil into the joint (this gives a better surface for salt and pepper to adhere to) – give the joint a generous seasoning with pepper and good-quality sea salt. A tip here is to rub the external fat with English mustard powder to make it extra crusty and add flavour.
  4. Arrange a trivet of beef bones and chopped onion, carrot and celery — pop the meat onto these in a heavy, good-quality roasting tray.
  5. Give the joint a 15-minute sizzle, add a large wine glass of liquid (we like red wine, white wine, or beef/chicken stock will also work well), then turn the oven down to 170°C/Fan 150°C/Gas 3. From this point on, you need to monitor the joint’s cooking in adherence to the times stated above.
  6. Baste the joint a few times as it roasts.
  7. Check to see if the meat is cooked to your liking (see Top tips) before removing it from the oven to rest.
  8. Remove from the oven and rest uncovered for 10 minutes, before loosely covering with it foil to keep warm. Allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes, making the juices more evenly distributed.
  9. To make a gravy, place the roasting tray on direct heat, scraping all the browned bits and sediment from the base of the pan, add around 250ml of beef or chicken stock, reduce to your desired texture and sieve away the bones and vegetables. A knob of cold butter whisked in at this stage will give an enhanced gloss to the gravy and an added richness.
  10. Carve the joint into slices and tuck in (our classic rib of beef is chined to make carving a mere doddle).

Low temperature roasting technique

This method will result in uniform cooking and a more moist result than traditional roasting. The use of a meat thermometer is essential.

  1. Remove your meat from the vacuum packaging and pat dry any moisture. Allow it to come up to room temperature.
  2. Set your oven to 65°C – this is very low, and if using a gas cooker, the pilot light may be sufficient. This technique will still work at a slightly hotter temperature if necessary, although this will impact timings.
  3. Rub the rib of beef with a little oil and season generously with sea salt and black pepper.
  4. Depending on joint size, roasting will likely take a minimum of 5-6 hours. Aim for 49-51°C for rare, 53-55°C for medium-rare, 57-59°C for medium.
  5. Rest for a minimum of 20 – 30 minutes, loosely covered in foil. You can reach this stage up to 1 hour before serving,
  6. 10 minutes before you wish to serve the beef, place the joint into the oven at its highest setting.
  7. Roast for 6-10 minutes until a well-roasted appearance is achieved – this brief roast will ensure the outside is perfectly caramelised, but internally, the joint does not overcook.
  8. Carve against the grain into thin slices (between ½ and ¾ inches in thickness).

Top tips

  • A check you can do to ensure your meat is beautifully pink is to push a skewer through the thickest part of the joint and leave it for 10 seconds. Take the skewer out and touch it to your inner wrist — it will be warm for medium-rare.

Roast rib of beef recipe

Take a break from your usual go-to Sunday roast and wow your guests with this herb & pepper crusted rib of beef.

Jorge hails from the Black Mountains where he grew up surrounded by hardy, native livestock. His passion for cookery was sparked by his upbringing, but developed and intensified alongside his respect for British breeds, and zeal for nose-to-tail eating. In 2009 trained chef Jorge launched Swaledale in Haworth, and took his native-breed led whole-carcass butchery philosophy to high profile restaurateurs. Jorge is a passionate procurer and hanger of meat, and is keen to showcase the sublime taste and texture that comes from ageing, higher fat content, and an older carcass. Jorge proudly invests in native-breeds, as maintaining their market demand is crucial to their very survival. Jorge studied Creative Writing at Leeds University, and is a former Welsh athletics champion. He lives with his wife, ceramicist Amy Thomas and their 2 children, Fynn and Bea, on a remote grouse moor in West Yorkshire.