My Christmas Dinner

For Christmas we couldn't decide what would be best for dinner. Tradition in our family is to have ham but I find that ham is too played out and quite frankly heating a ham up on the grill is not challenging nor fun. After much debate and doing some research I decided that a prime rib roast (my first on the Weber) would be going on our Christmas dinner plates. I went to our local market and found a beautiful 3.5 lb standing rib roast which would be perfect for the wife and I to enjoy.

I decided to go with the marinading option along with a dry rub to season the beef. I know most people do not like to do much with a good prime rib but I still like to infuse some flavor to pull the beef flavor out and make  it a more satisfying dinner that just a large hunk of red meat on a plate.

The marinade was red wine based and I added fresh rosemary, thyme, and oregano. I then chopped a large shallot and some carrot and celery. I steeped the mixture just to wake up the flavors and allowed it to cool. once it was cool I poured the rib roast which I had put in a large plastic bag. I let the roast sit over night. The next morning I removed the roast and rinsed with cold water. Then I applied a simple dry rub of beef base, coarse salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. Once the dry rub was applied I wrapped tightly with plastic wrap and put back into the refrigerator for 4 hours. This allowed the rub to soak deeply into the marinated meat. i then took to roast out of the refrigerator and allowed it to come up to room temperature.

Outside I prepared the grill for a medium indirect fire and soaked a few small chunks of oak to add a little additional smoke. I placed the rib roast in the middle of grill with the bones down and placed a drip pan below to catch all the drippings so I could make some au jus. I added the oak chunks and allowed it to smoke/roast for 45 mins. I checked the internal temperature of the meat and found it be about medium rare which is what we like in our house. I then removed the roast from the grill and allowed it to rest on the counter wrapped tightly in foil for about 10 minutes. After a good rest it was time for carving.

I have to say we will be doing this again it is a great recipe for special occasion and the wife and I were both extremely happy with how tender, juicy and flavorful the meat turned out. I recommend the marinade/dry rub method it adds a lot of great flavor that compliments the beef flavor without over powering a good cut of meat.