Why Bison Rib Roast Is Harder To Perfect Than Beef Rib Roast

When life gives you prime rib, you cut it into ribeye steaks. Prime rib is the popular cut of meat to use when making a rib roast, as the marbled fattiness adds flavor throughout every bite. You'll notice when requesting it at the store that it can go by several different names, like "beef rib roast," "prime rib roast," "standing rib roast," or just "rib roast." It's often called "standing rib roast" due to the meat standing on the bones while roasting (via Natasha's Kitchen). 

Either way, it's a delicious, show-stopping centerpiece to a holiday dinner, and makes for great leftovers to tuck into sandwiches the next day. But if you're searching for a way to cook a roast without dealing with the bone, and maybe on the leaner side, bison is always a great alternative. Just keep in mind that it has some stipulations. 

According to Bearded Butchers, bison is a much rarer type of meat compared to beef, making it more expensive. To get into the nitty-gritty, only 20,000 bison are processed each year, compared to 125,000 beef cattle. Bison is also more nutrient-dense, higher in protein, and much lower in fat, calories, and cholesterol, compared to beef, pork, chicken, and salmon. Because of the lower fat content, it's hard to cook it just right when preparing a large cut of it. However, there are ways to work around this. 

According to Serious Eats, while a boneless bison roast has the same fat cap as a prime rib, it doesn't have the marbling. The marbled fattiness within the main cut of meat is where all the goodness lies. And believe it or not, fat does more than just make the meat taste good — it helps insulate and lubricate. By that, Serious Eats means that the fat helps cook the meat more evenly and also lends a lot of juice, preventing the meat from drying out.

With bison having significantly less fat, it is a different technique in order to compensate for the lack of flavor coming from fat. Bison should be cooked at a lower temperature to ensure it cooks evenly and results in a tender interior. The grill is also the best bet when cooking a bison rib roast because the smoke will add a world of flavor compared to the oven. 

That being said, the cooler side of the grill until it reaches an internal temperature of 125 degrees Fahrenheit for medium-rare doneness is the ideal way to go. Because you're cooking it at a much lower temperature than a prime rib, the bison won't have that golden brown color you're looking for. Simply remove the roast from the heat, allow it to come to room temperature, crank up the grill to high, and put the meat back on just enough to brown it how you like it.