Pork rib roast is an ideal dinner when company’s coming—here’s everything you need to know to make it perfectly so it’s juicy and delicious.
Have you ever made a pork rib roast? If you have, you know that it scores really high on both ease and elegance. It’s a great idea for weekends or company, but it’s simple enough that you don’t have to slave in the kitchen to serve something special.
Don’t you love it when things work out like that? I definitely do.
What Is A Pork Rib Roast?
A pork rib roast is basically a pork loin with the ribs still attached. Another way of thinking about it is a pork rib roast is a pork version of a rack of lamb. Like a rack of lamb, it typically has 8 or 9 ribs. If you were to slice the roast into chops, you’d have 8 or 9 pork rib chops. Unlike a rack of lamb, one pork chop is plenty for one person, so that single pork rack will feed a crowd. (Here’s some info about pork rib roasts from the National Pork Board.)
You probably won’t find a pork rib roast at the supermarket unless you call ahead. So call your butcher and order one, and ask them to french it for you. “Frenching” means trimming the extra meat between the ribs. It’s not imperative, but it makes for a nice presentation. You can do it yourself, but why bother when the butcher will happily do it for you?
Want an even fancier version of this recipe? Try my Pork Crown Roast, which is two of these pork rib roasts in the form of a crown.
Cooking Pork Rib Roast
Since a pork rib roast is basically a pork loin roast with ribs, I use the same cooking method as for my perfect roast pork loin. Since it’s a little more of a special meal, I give it a little extra flavor by seasoning it with a dried herb blend. Use whatever kind you like—Italian herb blend, Herbes de Provence (a French herb blend), or make your own. Here’s a good article from Eating Well magazine about how to do that.
Carve the roast at the table, so your guests can see how pretty it is when it comes out of the oven. – Christine :)
Podcast Episode: Making Pork Rib Roast
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this pork roast, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
PrintPerfect Pork Rib Roast Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Rest Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Roast
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Pork rib roast is an ideal dinner when company’s coming—here’s everything you need to know to make it perfectly so it’s juicy and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp. dried herb blend (Italian herb blend, herbes de Provence, or make your own)
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 1 8-rib center cut pork loin rib roast, ideally frenched (about 5 lbs.) (see notes)
- About 5 ribs celery (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Mix together the herbs, salt, and pepper. Rub it all over pork.
- Put the pork on a rack in a roasting pan fat side up. If you don’t have a rack use about 5 stalks of celery arranged in the pan.
- Roast until the internal temperature is 145-160°F, 20 to 25 minutes per pound and then remove from oven.
(145°F is considered safe for pork according to the USDA. It will be moist and slightly pink in the center. If you prefer your pork fully white and well done, then go with the 160°F temperature.) - Cover the roasting pan with foil and let rest outside of the oven for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, increase the oven temperature to 475°F.
- After the 30 minute rest, return roast to oven and roast uncovered until the meat is nicely browned on top, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven.
- Carve the roast between the rib bones and serve immediately.
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Notes
- Notes: A roast that has been frenched is one where the ribs have been trimmed of extra meat. You can do it yourself, but since you probably have to call ahead for a pork loin rib roast anyway, ask your butcher to do it for you. Frenching isn’t imperative, but it makes for a nice presentation.
- For even more flavorful meat, brine the pork before you roast it. But if you do, cut the salt in this recipe to a little more than 1/2 teaspoon. See this post for how to brine and why it makes such a difference.