Herb Crusted Boneless Rib Eye Roast

This evening I made an Herb Crusted Boneless Rib Eye Roast for dinner. I served it with sauteed mushroom slices cooked in butter, steamed fresh broccolini (a milder tasting kind of broccoli) and super simple "hash brown cauliflower" which is essentially coarsely chopped fresh cauliflower steamed in a few tablespoons of water in a covered glass casserole in the microwave for about 4 to 5 minutes just until tender but not mushy or falling apart. I melted a couple tablespoons of butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and then placed the well drained steamed cauliflower in the skillet in a single layer and let it brown in the butter until golden brown (you can add some finely diced onion if you like) and then used a spatula to flip it over in sections the same way you would do when making hash brown potatoes and brown the other side. I season it liberally on both sides with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper as it cooks. It turned out absolutely delicious and it was so simple to make.

I bought a small boneless rib eye roast -- it was 3 pounds which makes 4 to 5 nice servings. I picked up a fresh herb packet that came with rosemary, thyme and sage (I didn't use the sage for the rub) and made a very simple herb, salt and pepper mixture to rub on the outside of the roast before cooking it. I prefer my meat medium-well...I do not like any red on my plate when the red comes from meat...LOL. On the other hand, hubby likes his medium-rare. That works out pretty well -- I simply choose the end cut and he prefers the less cooked center cut. It turned out absolutely delicious and tasted like a "fine restaurant meal". I picked the roast up at Costco (it was $8.99/lb) and not a bad deal considering the roast served 4 or 5 and cost only a little more than what 1 person's meal would be if we had eaten this meal out. I snapped a couple photos below as well as the recipe for the roast. Enjoy!

Herb Crusted Boneless Rib Eye Roast

Ingredients:

1 boneless rib eye roast (about 3 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 large cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 to 1-1/2 tablespoons coarse Kosher salt, or to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In a small bowl, add rosemary, thyme, garlic, pepper and salt; combine until evenly mixed. Place roast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Using your hands, rub roast all over with olive oil. Sprinkle herb mixture evenly over the roast, rubbing it around until evenly coated on top and sides.

Place roast uncovered in a 450 degree F oven and cook for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and roast an additional 15 to 20 minutes per pound, or until desired doneness (use a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the thickest part of meat to determine doneness).

Beef is rare at 125-130 degrees F; medium rare at 135-140 degrees F; medium at 145-150 degrees F; medium well at 155-160 degrees F and well done beyond that. For this type of roast, any temperature above medium (145-150) is probably overcooked. When roast is almost at the desired temperature, remove from oven and cover loosely with foil and let stand for about 15 minutes to complete cooking (temperature rises about 5 to 10 degrees while standing and should be factored into the cooking time). Standing allows juices to set so they don't run out while slicing. Slice and serve.

*Note: If browning the roast before cooking is desired, prior to coating with herb mixture, roast can be browned in oil in a medium hot pan.