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Boneless rib roast can be absolutely delicious when cooked properly, and understanding how long you need to cook it for to your preferred doneness can be a great help in the kitchen.
As boneless rib roast comes in different sizes, it is best to know how to work out cooking time for yourself, so that you land up with tender, moist beef every time, no matter the size of the roast.
What is the best cooking time for a boneless rib roast? The best cooking time for a boneless rib roast will depend on how you want it cooked. The rib roast is also best when cooked at a high temperature first and then cooked at a lower temperature for the remainder of the time.
Whether you like your boneless rib roast rare or well-done, we have listed all you need to know about cooking times and how to work it out yourself, to accommodate a whole lot of different size roasts you might cook at home!
What Is Boneless Rib Roast?
Boneless rib roast is a cut of beef that comes from the primal rib section.
This section of meat is on the top of the ribs, but once it is sliced off, it is much easier to work with as you do not have to worry about carving around the bones yourself.
This cut of meat is also known as boneless prime rib, boneless ribeye roast, and standing rib roast.
Boneless rib roast makes for a great cut to roast in the oven, as it often has a fat layer on the top of the roast which provides flavor and moisture to the meat as it cooks.
Boneless Rib Roast Cooking Time Chart
You can’t have one set time for how long the boneless rib roast needs to be cooked for, as you will most likely have a preference on how it should be done.
When cooking a beef roast such as boneless rib roast, you can choose how you want it done, with the options being rare, medium-rare, medium, or medium to well-done.
The rarer you want the boneless rib roast cooked, the less cooking time it needs.
You can check the boneless rib roast as it cooks to check doneness, but to take the guessing work out of it, you can follow guidelines on how long the roast needs to be cooked per weight to achieve a certain level of doneness.
While the cooking time per weight varies, cooking the roast on high heat for a few minutes before turning it down is a great trick that helps ensure the roast turns out beautifully moist and brown on the outside.
Here is a chart showing the cooking time for boneless rib roast, per 450g weight to the different levels of doneness For example, if you have a 900g roast, then you would double that amount of time and so on.
The first column of roasting on high temperature is the same for all doneness and all weights, but you must then calculate the last column depending on the weight of your boneless roast.
| Rare | 10 minutes | 15 minutes |
| Medium-rare | 10 minutes | 20 minutes |
| Medium | 10 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Medium-well done | 10 minutes | 30 minutes |
Should Boneless Rib Roast Be Left To Rest After Cooking?
The secret to a tender, moist and juicy boneless rib roast is to allow it to rest after cooking. This gives the boneless rib roast time to absorb all the juices, instead of them running out when you cut it straight out of the oven.
To properly let it rest, it is a good idea to loosely cover the boneless rib roast with aluminum foil while it is still in the tray.
Leave it to sit between 15-20 minutes, or longer if you have the time. During this time, the juices will distribute nicely all over the joint to make each slice tender and juicy.
Choosing The Best Boneless Rib Roast
There are some tricks that help you pick out the best boneless rib roast from the store. It is always worth buying your meat from a butcher, but knowing what to look for can help you pick out some good options at the grocery store as well.
Here are some of the characteristics to look for when picking out a boneless rib roast, to ensure it has the best flavor and best tenderness.
Fat Cap
Boneless rib roasts should have a layer of fat on the top of the roast. This fat layer on the top of the roast adds some great flavor and moisture to the meat as it cooks.
The fat layer should be left on when the roast is cooked, and the roast should be cooked with the fat side up.
Marbling
Having marbling in the boneless rib roast is important to ensure juiciness and flavor. Marbling can be seen as little white flecks of fat within the meat of the roast.
The more marbling that’s present on the roast, the more flavor and tenderness it will have.
Have a look through all of the boneless rib roasts on offer to find the one that has the most marbling present!
Weight
One other factor to consider when choosing the boneless rib roast is the weight and size. You don’t want to find the perfect boneless rib roast, only for it to be too small for the number of people you are wanting to serve.
A general guideline to work on is to purchase one pound per person you are serving. So if you are going to be making the boneless rib roast for 5 people, a 5-pound rib roast would be suitable, and maybe with some leftovers.
To make the meal stretch over a few days, you can increase this weight a bit. Some boneless rib roast sandwiches will be a hit the next day!
Prepared Tied Up
It really does help to purchase a boneless rib roast that has been tied up already for you. This saves some preparation for you, and the roast being tied up has some great benefits.
Being tied up helps the roast retain an even, round shape that allows for even cooking so that one part does not cook quicker or slower than the rest.
It is difficult to work out cooking time for a boneless rib roast that has not been prepared into an even shape.
Preparing Boneless Rib Roast
Hopefully, the boneless rib roast comes already tied from the grocery store or the butcher, so you do not have to do this yourself.
However, if it does not, then you should buy some oven-safe twine and tie the boneless rib roast up into an even, cylindrical shape, where it is the same thickness all over.
This makes the most of the cooking time you set, and ensures that all areas cook evenly.
Once the boneless rib roast is tied and ready, you can start seasoning it. One trick is to season the boneless rib roast with salt and pepper quite generously the day before.
Use your hands to rub the salt and pepper into the roast well, and then place it on a rack in the roasting pan and leave it in the fridge overnight.
Doing this allows the outside of the boneless rib roast to dry up, which helps to give it a beautifully crisp exterior when it is seared before being cooked.
If you cannot leave the rib roast to sit overnight, a few hours before works well too. You also need to ensure that the rib roast reaches close to room temperature before cooking.
Cooking it while it is still cold from the fridge can lead to uneven roasting. Leave it out for about an hour to reach room temperature, but do not leave it out for more than two.
Salt and pepper are both great on their own to season the boneless rib roast, but adding some fresh herbs, garlic, and olive oil to the roast just before cooking gives it a kick of flavor.
You can make a paste with minced garlic, olive oil, and fresh herbs, to rub onto the outside of the boneless rib roast for an aromatic crust.
How To Tell When The Boneless Rib Roast Is Done
The best way to know when your boneless rib roast is ready is to follow the cooking guidelines. However, ovens do vary, and one oven might cook a rib roast slower than another and vice versa.
A sure way to determine when a roast is done to your preferred level of doneness is to check the internal temperature with a thermometer (we’d recommend this one).
Here is a guide on what the internal temperature of a boneless rib roast should be depending on the level of doneness:
- Rare—125°F with a cool red moist center
- Medium-Rare—135°F with a warm red center
- Medium—145°F with a warm pink center
- Medium-Well—150°F no pink center
- Well-Done—160°F fully cooked
It is important to remember that beef roast is fine to cook to medium-rare and medium, without there being too much concern with food safety.
Other meats such as pork and poultry need to be cooked properly, but beef can be cooked just under, to keep it moist and tender.
The more you cook the beef, to medium-well and beyond, the more it will dry out. Obviously, this is a popular preference for many, but if you want the meat to be flavorful and moist, then it is best to cook it to medium-rare.
It is a good idea to take the boneless rib roast out of the oven when it reaches 5 degrees below the above readings, to allow for continued cooking as it rests on the countertop.
Cooking A Bone-In Rib Roast
You can use the above time guidelines to cook a bone-in rib roast, but you will just have to take into account the extra weight that the bone adds to the rib roast and increase the time accordingly.
The bone in the roast can help to add great flavor to the meat and make it wonderfully tender as well. However, it is definitely not as easy to carve a bone-in roast as it is a boneless roast, and both have a great flavor to offer.
Does The Boneless Rib Roast Need To Be Covered While Cooking?
The boneless rib roast does not need to be covered while it cooks, as the above time guidelines allow it to cook for the right amount of time without it drying out or overcooking.
The only time you should consider covering the rib roast is when you take it out of the oven and leave it to rest on the countertop.
Related Questions
Now that we’ve gone over how long a boneless rib roast takes to cook, let’s take a look at a few related questions on the subject!
Can you cook boneless rib roast at 400°F?
You can cook boneless rib roast at 400°F, but this should only be for the first 10-20 minutes, and then the temperature should be brought down to 350°F for the remainder of the cooking time.
Is a rib roast the same as a prime rib roast?
A rib roast and a prime rib roast are effectively the same things and from the same cut, but the difference is that a rib roast has a bone, whereas a prime rib roast is boneless.
Prime rib is also cut from a specific area of the cow and generally tends to be a higher-quality cut of beef.
You can get a boneless rib roast which is the same as a prime rib roast.
If you’re looking for a great recipe for cooking a standing rib roast, here’s a great video from Joshua Weissman!
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Jaron
Hey, I'm Jaron and I'm a self-proclaimed food expert and author of this website! I'll be honest with you, I started this website because someone told me I couldn't and I needed to prove them wrong. Along my journey, I actually really fell in love with writing about food. I hope you found value from whatever article you read, and if you have any remaining questions, don't hesitate to contact me!