Ribeye Roast Recipe, Reliably Juicy

Name: Foolproof Ribeye Roast Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 115 min
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt; 1 teaspoon black pepper; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon dried sage; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 3 pounds boneless ribeye roast (USDA Prime )

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A simple dry rub and 75 minutes in the oven are all it takes to produce a beautifully marbled, flavorful, and juicy ribeye roast.

A sliced ribeye roast is served with a silver serving fork.

Ribeye is a fatty and flavorful cut of beef, and this simple ribeye roast recipe is a great way to enjoy its robust flavor. It's an easy recipe: Simply rub the meat with seasonings and cook it in the oven until done. Your main task is to avoid overcooking the roast, and that's easy if you use a meat thermometer. There's no need to marinate the meat before cooking, and you can enjoy the leftovers reheated or cold.

Ingredients

Here's an overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.

To season the meat: Kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, dried sage, and dried thyme.
Ribeye roast: I usually pick a 3-pound roast. If possible, get a USDA prime grade, the highest beef grade.

Variations

The best way to vary this recipe is to use different spices to season the roast. Tasty options include onion powder, smoked paprika, chili powder, and dried oregano. You can use a teaspoon of any additional spice or herb. However, if you use cumin, which is quite potent, use just ½ teaspoon.
Sometimes, I coat the roast with ¼ cup of melted butter before sprinkling it with the spices. This is especially helpful if the roast was over-trimmed by the butcher, leaving a thin or nonexistent fat cap.

Instructions

Just like beef tenderloin roast, the best thing about this recipe is that it's so easy. Simply rub the meat with seasonings, roast it in a hot oven to get the fat cap crispy, then lower the oven and continue roasting to medium-rare. The detailed instructions for making this recipe are listed in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of the steps.

Combine the kosher salt and spices. Rub the mixture all over the roast, pressing to make sure the rub adheres to the meat.

Place the meat, fat side up, on a rack fitted into a rimmed roasting pan and allow it to get to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 500°F. Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the middle of the roast and set the thermometer to 135°F (medium-rare).

Placing ribeye roast in a pan with a meat thermometer.

Place the roast in the oven and cook it for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Keep roasting until the thermometer registers 135°F, about one more hour. Remove the roast from the oven. Loosely cover it with foil and allow it to rest for 30 minutes, then cut it into thin slices and serve.

Featured Comment

I am a very simple cook and found this recipe over a year ago when I wanted to make a special dinner for one of my sons and his family. We all LOVED it, and I have made it for all of my kids and their families and have shared the recipe with them. We’re making it again tonight. - Pamela A Berry

Recipe Tips

How Long To Roast

According to conventional wisdom, after the initial 15 minutes of browning the meat, a 3-pound roast should take roughly one more hour (20 minutes per pound). But the only way to know for sure is to use a meat thermometer. In my oven, for example, after one more hour, the internal temperature usually reaches 120°F, and I need to keep roasting for 8-9 more minutes to reach 135°F.

Fat Cap on Top

Place the roast in the pan with the fat cap on top, as shown in the photo below. This way, the fat will melt into the meat as it cooks, adding moisture and flavor. This will also enable the fat to brown and crisp up.

Let it Rest

It's important to let the meat rest for 30 minutes before slicing it. This will allow the juices to settle and redistribute, preventing the juices from gushing out as soon as you cut into the meat.

Recipe FAQs

Why do you use a boneless roast?

Some say it's best to cook bone-in roasts (prime rib or a standing rib roast) because the bones produce a juicier and more flavorful roast. It's true that the meat portions closest to the bones taste the best. But getting to them is difficult unless you're willing to gnaw on bones!

That's why many home cooks, myself included, prefer to cook a boneless ribeye roast. It's smaller, and you can carve it easily since there are no bones. It is still very flavorful, and the fat cap is sublime.

Should I marinate the meat before roasting it?

You could, but it's unnecessary. Ribeye is well-marbled, beefy, and juicy. It tastes great without any marinade. Unlike tough cuts of beef such as London broil, ribeye is also tender enough that you don't need a vinegary marinade to tenderize it.

To what temperature should I cook ribeye roast?

It's best to cook it to medium-rare (135°F). However, ribeye is marbled and juicy enough to taste good even when you cook it to medium doneness (145°F), as recommended by the USDA.

Serving Suggestions

I recommend balancing out the richness of this roast by skipping the starch and serving it with simply prepared veggies such as sautéed broccolini, sauteed spinach, or sugar snap peas.

A simple salad such as arugula salad or tomato salad is always good. And if you want a tasty alternative to mashed potatoes, this mashed cauliflower is wonderful. Or, go all out and make loaded mashed cauliflower!

Storing Leftovers

You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them covered in the microwave at 50% power. Unfortunately, reheating takes them from medium-rare to medium doneness, but this can't be helped.

Unless you simply slice them thinly and eat them cold! They are surprisingly good this way, served with Dijon mustard or sriracha mayo, quick pickles, pickled red onions, and fresh-cut veggies. It's like eating cold roast beef.

A ribeye roast is served on a wooden cutting board with a garnish of parsley.

A sliced ribeye roast is served on a cutting board.

5 from 103 votes

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Foolproof Ribeye Roast Recipe

Tender, succulent, and flavorful, ribeye roast is surprisingly easy to make at home. Simply rub the meat with seasonings, then cook it in the oven until done.

Prep Time10

Cook Time1 15

Rest time30

Total Time1 55

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 450kcal

Author: Vered DeLeeuw

Video

Ingredients

▢ 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or 1 teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
▢ 1 teaspoon black pepper
▢ 1 teaspoon garlic powder
▢ 1 teaspoon dried sage
▢ 1 teaspoon dried thyme
▢ 3 pounds boneless ribeye roast - USDA Prime

Instructions

In a small bowl, use a fork to mix the kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, sage, and thyme. Rub the mixture all over the roast, pressing to ensure the rub adheres to the meat.
Place the meat, fat side up, on a rack in a roasting pan and allow it to get to room temperature, about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 500°F. Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the middle of the roast and set the thermometer to alert you when the roast reaches 135°F (medium-rare).
Place the roast in the 500°F oven and cook it for 15 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Keep roasting until the thermometer registers 135°F. According to conventional wisdom, a 3-pound roast should take roughly 1 more hour (20 minutes per pound). But the only way to know for sure is to use a thermometer. In my oven, after one more hour, the internal temperature usually reaches 120°F, and I need to keep roasting for 8-9 more minutes to reach 135°F.
Remove the roast from the oven. Loosely cover it with foil and allow it to rest for 30 minutes, then cut it into thin slices and serve.

Notes

The only way to ensure the meat is done to your liking is to use an oven-safe meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the roast at the start of cooking. This type of thermometer beeps to alert you when the roast is done. Please don't rely on general timing guidelines or an instant-read thermometer. These methods are unreliable.
If your roast is bigger than 3 pounds, roast it for roughly 20 minutes per pound after lowering the oven to 350°F. If it seems to be getting too dark on top, loosely cover it with foil and keep roasting until your thermometer alerts you that the roast has reached an internal temperature of 135°F.
It's very important to let the roast rest for 30 minutes before slicing it. This will allow the juices to settle and redistribute, preventing them from gushing out as soon as you cut into the meat.
The nutrition info assumes USDA prime (fattier), and the fat is eaten.
The USDA says we should cook whole cuts of beef to 145ºF with a three-minute rest time.
Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them covered in the microwave at 50% power. Unfortunately, reheating takes them from medium-rare to medium doneness, but this can't be helped. Unless you simply slice them thinly and eat them cold! They are surprisingly good this way.

Nutrition per Serving

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Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.

Ribeye Roast

Ingredients

Variations

Instructions

Featured Comment