My Christmas Dinner Story

[cg13]

HAHA, a play on the ol favorite TV SHOW.

So narrowed down the menu and began prepping stuff today. Menu is as follows, and ill update as i go throughout the week.

Shrimp Cocktail

Slow Smoked Prime Rib with Au Jus
YorkShire Pudding

Brussel Sprouts with Carmelized Onions and Prosciutto

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Roasted Rutabaga

Chocolate Bread Pudding and Whiskey Sauce

 

[the boss]

what time do we eat?

 

[RatFink]

How big of a prime rib?
I'm trying to convince my parents that I am not going to buy anyone presents... just a big a$$ prime rib roast. Preferably the entire rack - 10 bones!

 

[cg13]

Prime Rib arrived today - i rubbed it with some olive oil and made a quick rub.

Into the spice grinder: Hungarian Sweet Paprika, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Thyme, Oregano, Chile de Arbol, Cayenne, Brown Sugar, mustard seed, allspice.

Rubbed it into the prime rib- threw it on a roasting rack and covered with foil - letting it soak till friday.

Going to start the smoker around midnight - and get the prime rib on by 1 am - let it go around 200*F for 12 hours. Using Hickory Wood for the smoke. Aiming for 100*F internal temp - then off to parents to finish it in the oven. I like to pull Prime Rib at 120* and let it rest for an hour while it climbs to 130F. Usually a perfect Med Rare.

I started a beef stock today on my day off. By roasting about 5 lbs of beef marrow bones in the oven for 2 hours to caramlize them - i add carrots, onion, celery, garlic, and some sherry to the pan - deglaze and throw into a stockpot with some SAlt and pepper, bay leaf, and parsley. This simmers for 8-10 hours until the bones crumble easily with a pair of tongs.
Strain and jar and its good to go for the au jus.

I love alton browns recipe for shrimp cocktail. Instead of boiling the shrimp - i brine them and toss with some oiil and old bay - then throw them under the broiler for 3 mins per side. Remove from broiler and throw into refrigerator to chill. Then i deshell and plate. His cocktail sauce is good: puree some diced toms with chili sauce, worcesetershire sauce, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and some fresh horseradish.

This is as far as ive got:

Spoiler

[/IMG]
Here is the prime rib, 13.8 lbs - not rubbed yet, just chillin!

Spoiler

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This is the roasted marrow bones, nice and caramelized

Spoiler

[/IMG]then we have the stock at a strong simmer

 

[cg13]

How big of a prime rib?
I'm trying to convince my parents that I am not going to buy anyone presents... just a big a$$ prime rib roast. Preferably the entire rack - 10 bones!

Mine is 6 bones and almost 14 lbs. I have never seen a 10 bone roast . usually after bones 1-7 you start to enter the TBONE (NY STRIP/FILET) area and those are cut up for steaks = they are so monstrous in size compared to the smaller ribs 1-6. that to cook evenly - well it would be hard. So most standing rib roasts- that are turned into prime rib (to be called prime has to be certified PRIme, most are choice, unless you order from a specialty shop)

So you want bones 1-6 that is closest to the shoulder - where the best marbling is - towards bones 7-12 you are into filet tenderloin territory where there is little to no marbling and although this is very tender - it has no meaty flavor as meat from the shoulder area does.

Also a 10 bone roast would be like 25 lbs? which is one of the primal cuts if i remember right! thats huge - i dont even think itd fit in an oven! I love it though - last year i roasted int he oven, this time im going to smoke on the grill. More margin for error this year - but i love smoking meats!

 

[RatFink]

Hahah welcome to cowtown!
At Costco, my mom witnessed the butcher sell some guy a 10 ribber because the price was about 40% less than a cut one. Even if we don't roast the whole thing, we'd cut our own steaks out of it for appetizers to the main attraction or something :hungry:

What kind of a smoker do you have? Out R2D2 shaped one runs out of wood in 2 hours, so if we were to put one on at 1 am, we'd be constantly feeding it!
Can you post pictures of your kitchen? I have a feeling it's a pretty awesome place!

I have a feeling you and I might get a long just fine if we ever meet.

 

[cg13]

I use a big green egg. ill look for a pic of it. Its my 3rd smoker. First was a hand-me-down water smoker that looks like a black bulllet. It was not good. My 2nd was a texas style offset barrell smoker - its huge - so i took it to our family's summer home in the catskills. Where i have enough surface area to grill up to 20 burgers at once - or smoke a dozen racks of ribs.

I have a condo in suburbia columbus ohio. Its tiny. But i havent had a mortgage for 10 years - so im here. Working on a degree - golfing - and working nights... i almost bought a home last year... but decided i should finish school first. So sadly my kitchen is VERY tiny. And i absolutely hate it lol.

If you are going to the demo day ill def be in! I have no idea where calgary is but i have no qualms with driving to or flying to a locale for a golf weekend. I love the game, love meeting new people (bartenders like people lol), and love fellow THP'ers so if its feasible im sure we will!

Heres the big green egg. Its ceramic - komodo style - it will hold heat for days - i never have to add charcoal (a problem with the previous smokers) and while im smoking the prime rib - ill sleep for 1-2 hour periods and wake up to check it each hour or two - just to be sure i have airflow right - and proper temp.

 

[Esox]

You'll have to post some pictures of the prime rib both whole and sliced if you can. You obviously know what you're doing, but a prime rib doesn't seem like a smoking cut to me. But I'm open minded.

We've decided to not do our usual appetizer spread this year. We have a much smaller group, so I'm going to do a dinner not dissimilar to what you're doing.

Roasted prime rib rubbed with Penzey's English Prime Rib rub.
Lobster crepes.
Grilled spicy shrimp cocktail. These I marinate in olive oil, lime, garlic, worcesetershire, a dab of tomato paste, and some cajun type seasoning. I grill them quickly on each side on my Wolf charbroiler then chill. As you said, way better than boiled shrimp.
Roasted fingerling potatoes with rosemary and thyme.

Maybe an appetizer of two. Might have my sisters bring something.

Hot fudge sundaes for a simple desert.

I went to a Winter Solstice party Saturday that was an appetizer buffet. I actually thought of you. My buddy's wife is a pastry chef, and the food she put together was astounding. She had one appetizer with goat cheese, and herb of some kind, a sweet chutney, on a pancetta "cracker". Perfection. And that was one of like 25 great appetizers. What she can do makes me feel like a fry cook.

Kevin

 

[cg13]

Esox: ill take pics! I have done a few prime ribs before - in the oven. I wanted to try it this year on the smoker. I wont be smoking it the full 12 hours. I will use a mild wood: hickory in this case, for the first 3 hours. And then im just going to let it coast up to temp. I want a little hint of smoke in it - i dont want it overly smoky, which is what i think you were referring too? The meat is already so tender - that im just looking to boost the flavor. A little hint of smoke in the background should do nicely.

The grill i think lends more flavor to the crust too - which is why i prefer it to an oven. im kinda excited!

 

[Esox]

Esox: ill take pics! I have done a few prime ribs before - in the oven. I wanted to try it this year on the smoker. I wont be smoking it the full 12 hours. I will use a mild wood: hickory in this case, for the first 3 hours. And then im just going to let it coast up to temp. I want a little hint of smoke in it - i dont want it overly smoky, which is what i think you were referring too? The meat is already so tender - that im just looking to boost the flavor. A little hint of smoke in the background should do nicely.

The grill i think lends more flavor to the crust too - which is why i prefer it to an oven. im kinda excited!

Gotcha. 12 hours of shoulder or brisket type smoke, and I would think there might not be much resembling a prime rib left. A little smoke makes everything good. I used to do them on my Weber rotisserie with a few wood chips thrown in and that was great.

I bet yours will rock. I'd like to see the final crusty chunck, as well as a slice to see if you get a smoke ring. Enjoy.

Kevin

 

[RatFink]

Hmmm you have me drooling. I love beef so much.
Calgary is in Alberta - you may have heard of teh Calgary Stampede - the "greatest outdoor show on earth". That's us!
I won't be going to the spring outing sadly... but that's in the cards for maybe next year.

My mom just came home from Costco - they had a full 10 bone rack that weighed 19.8lbs and cost $108. She said that it didn't look trimmed or as nice as the ones with 5 bones, but was also $5/kg cheaper. Either way, I will find a way to have my roast for Christmas!

 

[cg13]

phew im already exhausted! will post pics when done with the meals.

left church xmas eve at 12:30 - home in bed by 1:30 - up at 4:30 to start the green egg. Meat on at 5:00am - just pulled it off the grill at noon (temped at 95*F) - grilled the shrimp for cocktails - chilling those babies now - made the chocolate bread pudding this am - packing everything up and headed to parents for the meal. Phew - im exhausted already!

hope everyone is enjoying their holiday! bourbon and egg nog here i come!

 

[RxGus]

phew im already exhausted! will post pics when done with the meals.

left church xmas eve at 12:30 - home in bed by 1:30 - up at 4:30 to start the green egg. Meat on at 5:00am - just pulled it off the grill at noon (temped at 95*F) - grilled the shrimp for cocktails - chilling those babies now - made the chocolate bread pudding this am - packing everything up and headed to parents for the meal. Phew - im exhausted already!

hope everyone is enjoying their holiday! bourbon and egg nog here i come!

Next time you have one of these grand adventures- you should give some love to your northern THP buddy and spread the love!
Sounds fantastic! Hope your holidays are going well and the food tastes better than it sounds (and it sounds DANG good)

 

[Slammin'SAM]

You have my mouth watering !!!

I wanted to cook a roast for Christmas as well, but my wife weighed in against it - too much trouble, she says. Maybe, but worth it when ya strap on the feedbag, I says. Well, I guess you know who won that one - I just put the ham in the oven. To get my cooking jollies this morning, got up and tried a recipe I found in the church cookbook that fortunately I had all the ingredients on hand to make - so after a while I get to try my Apple Crisp bars that smell sooooo good.

 

[ripper]

Great thread and looking forward to those pics, sounds like you did an amazing job this year. Did you learn how to do all this on your own? I would love to find out how to become more talented cooking/BBQing meat

 

[RatFink]

Come on CG13! I've been waiting all day for these pictures.

My prime rib plan didn't happen - I was vetoed so we just had the normal turkey/yam/potato/broccoli affair.
Instead, I gave my parents a $150 credit towards a Prime Rib for later.

 

[cg13]

Come on CG13! I've been waiting all day for these pictures.

My prime rib plan didn't happen - I was vetoed so we just had the normal turkey/yam/potato/broccoli affair.
Instead, I gave my parents a $150 credit towards a Prime Rib for later.

sorry! just got back into town late last night, i have them now.

 

[cg13]

Next time you have one of these grand adventures- you should give some love to your northern THP buddy and spread the love!
Sounds fantastic! Hope your holidays are going well and the food tastes better than it sounds (and it sounds DANG good)

Thanks GUS! we can def do a cookout next time we get out - be it in cleveland or columbus. We'll def need to warmup before the outing! I love to cook so talking me into grilling is pretty easy (just hand me a beer!)

 

[cg13]

Great thread and looking forward to those pics, sounds like you did an amazing job this year. Did you learn how to do all this on your own? I would love to find out how to become more talented cooking/BBQing meat

I picked up a BBQ cookbook, from memory: Steve Raichlin's ? Its pretty thick - but it teaches every part of the country BBQ tendencies and has some great recipes. The simple thing about BBQ'in is the low n slow cooking temperature. You have a lot of leeway on either side of 200*F. You can go up to 300 for ribs that cook quicker with the large bones, or cooler 200 for briskets and larger pieces of meat that require longer periods in the heat. Choosing the proper equipment would be crucial too - but you can smoke with a simple weber one-touch (iconic round charcoal grill)

I havent used any of the high end propane, infrared grills - but i do have one at my parents i use from time to time. But i much prefer to use charcoal. It burns hotter - and dryer. You can control temp much easier with it, and to BBQ you relaly must use charcoal IMO.

good luck - and ill always answer any questions you may have if you pose them. have a good new year!

 

[Esox]

Probably Thrill of the Grill. Great book.

Edit: Oops. The above is by Chris Schlesinger. He has an awesome restaurant in Cambridge, Mass. that is BBQ on one side and seafood on the other.

Kevin

 

[Hawk]

We used to smoke primes at a restaurant I worked in. They were awesome for sure. Primes love low heat and lots of time.

 

[cg13]

Ok so - a very long day of cooking. I started it at my place on the charcoal grill/smoker. It did about 7 hours - 3 hours of smoke - 4 hours of just residual heat. I pulled it around 95F. It was 110 at my parents - so i set it in the oven for about an hour - it temped at 120. Usually a big piece of meat will rise 10 degrees when pulled out of the oven. So i was aiming for 130.

The smoke from the hickory was pretty strong. And while it flavored the meat intensely. I think it overpowered it. The prime rib is so tender and flavorful to begin with. My next prime - ill either do as a normal roast on the grill (350-400) for 4 hours. or in the oven at 400F.

Here are the pics from dinner.

Spoiler

Here is the prime rib finishing up on the grill. Nice crust, and great hickory smoke.

here i am carving it. I love the end cut - this roast never rose about 125. So its def on the rare side. My fam is split half prefer rare, half med rare. Wish i would have hit 130-135. But still great roast nonetheless.

The shrimp being grilled when i cranked the grill up after pulling the meat. Seared em real quick, at 650F. 2 mins per side.

the shrimp cocktail- finished.

Yorkshire Pudding to go with the roast.

smorgasbord of apps - everyone brought something to snack on.
my fav: the pear/pecan/gorgonzola bruschetta with some honey. Sis killed it!

everyones fav course! Chocolate Bread Pudding with homemade vanilla ice cream, and a rich Makers Mark Whiskey sauce!

Me, my sis, and two brother in laws - playing cranium post meal!

and the holiday dog! Mom's Lab: Lucia. With antlers lol

so although the roast was a bit on the rare side - it was still very good. The split cooking times i think threw off my carry-over cooking. So it didnt rise well the 2nd time. Next roast ill just do in the oven or on the grill - the smoke was nice - but i think the prime rib is fine on its own. Lesson learned!

 

[RatFink]

Sweet mother of all things tasty and good!
Want to adopt me?

 

[cg13]

hahah ratfink - i can barely take care of myself, let alone my girlfriend. But i appreciate the kind words.

Another bonus to doing a rib roast for xmas.... with the leftovers: i cut two big ribeyes today for later in the week. I sliced up about 5 lbs of roast beef to make french dip sandwiches during the week. And i had the bones left which i am braising as we speak for dinner. So many meals in one!

Tonight is going to be: Braised Beef Short Ribs (technically not short bc they arent trimmed) with a savory creamy polenta - and roasted green beans.

I love short ribs - so much meaty flavor - and when done braising. i reduce the liquid to an ultra rich sauce.