What's The Actual Difference Between A Brisket And Prime Rib?

Sometimes, two very different cuts of beef can still be good at the same job, and when you are looking for a showstopper for a big dinner, prime rib and brisket are both bound to be considered. Brisket is the current king of barbecue, with chefs loving to show off with social media pictures of tender slices and perfect pink smoke rings. Prime rib is a little more old school: It's the thing you think of with dark, wood-paneled steakhouses and old paintings of a family sitting around a dinner table, sharpening their knives to slice up a standing rib roast. Both are incredibly enticing options for your dinner, but they also have a long list of differences that are going to affect the kinds of occasions that you buy them for, and how you cook them. In fact, they are about as far apart as cuts of beef can get.

Brisket may be popular now, but it was once one of the few cuts that was unwanted enough to be within reach of an average family, while prime rib has long been considered the most coveted of holiday meals. That's because brisket can be tough and dry unless cooked just right, and cooking it just right can take a lot of work. Prime rib, on the other hand, is basically the platonic ideal of a juicy slice of beef. How do two cuts from the same animal end up so different? It all starts with where they come from.

The brisket is a large cut of meat that comes from the lower part of the chest of the cow, between the front legs. It's a very large cut (usually more than 10 pounds) and there are actually two different types of brisket that the whole section is separated into. The first is the flat, or front cut, which is a very lean slab. The second is the point, which is a rounder, triangular shaped cut that is a little more well marbled with fat. While the point is going to be juicier than the flat, both are tough enough that different forms of slow cooking are the primary way they are used.

The fattier point is the cut that is used for barbecue brisket. The marbling helps keep the meat moist during the long, slow brisket smoking process that can take eight hours or more to make the brisket tender. The fat also helps make this cut good for shredding in a slow cooker. The leaner slab is less suited to smoking and is most well known for being used in braised dishes, like sliced Jewish briskets, and other roasts. There are also some specialty uses that brisket is famous for. It's the cut that is normally used to make corned beef or pastrami, and some Asian cuisines, like Korean barbecue, get around the toughness by slicing it very thin when still raw, and then grilling or stir frying it.

Prime rib is a type of beef cut from the rib section of the cow. It usually refers to a single large slice of meat from the larger rib roast cut, although sometimes, the entire roast is just called prime rib or prime rib roast. The prime rib does not refer to every rib, just the central ribs on each side of the cow. These are called prime simply because they are considered the best of the rib cuts, and the name is not related to the USDA beef grading system, which also uses the label prime. While prime rib is normally cut bone-in, rib roasts and prime rib can also be sold boneless.

Compared to the many different ways brisket is used, prime rib is mostly cooked in one classic style: as a roast. Prime rib roasts can be cooked in the oven or grilled, but it is cooked as one whole piece before being sliced to serve, not cooked as an individual steak. This is what gives prime rib its enticing pink color with very little browning. Because prime rib is considered such a desirable cut, it is also usually prepared with very little embellishment, with the emphasis on the pure flavor of the rich beef. The outside may be rubbed with some herbs and spices, but the standard accompaniment is usually just some simple au jus. Even the classic steakhouse sauces, like au poivre, might be considered too much.

There are plenty of differences between brisket and prime rib, but the biggest is probably how tender they are. The main factor in how tough beef is centers on how much work each area of the cow gets. The more labor an area does, the more sinewy muscle that section develops, which makes for tough meat. Because brisket comes from around the cow's front legs, it is carrying a lot of weight and also experiences a lot of movement, which makes it one of the toughest cuts of beef that you can buy. Brisket can be cooked to become more tender, but it requires long exposure to heat to break down the muscle fibers, which is why brisket must be slow cooked unless it is sliced very thin.

The rib is the opposite. It's not carrying much weight, and since it's at the center of the cow, and protected by the steady ribs, prime rib meat gets very little stress. This puts prime rib up there with beef tenderloin as an extremely tender option. And as noted, prime rib doesn't just come from any ribs, but the center ribs specifically, making it even more tender. This also means its ideal temperature is quite different from brisket, which is cooked to well done to melt the muscle, as you want prime rib to be rare or medium rare to maintain its supple texture.

Fat on steak and beef is very important in determining its flavor and juiciness, and few cuts of beef boast the impressive fat of prime rib. Part of what makes it so great is that there are multiple sources of fat in each slice. Prime rib is well marbled, which means there are nice flecks and streaks of fat spread throughout the meat to keep it moist. But prime rib also has a generous fat cap as well, which won't melt into the meat but will still render as it cooks and add even more rich flavor.

Brisket's two cuts vary quite a bit in fat marbling, but none of them are as rich as prime rib is. The brisket point has a good amount of fat to give it flavor, having some marbled through it and usually a fat cap depending on how it was cut. But because of brisket's tough muscles, it still needs time to tenderize, and that leaves it vulnerable to drying out by overcooking over that long period if the temperature gets too high. That's why cooks usually aim for a final brisket temperature between 195 -205 degrees Fahrenheit. That's enough to break down the collagen and render some of the fat but not dry it out. Brisket flat is very lean, with just small streaks of fat, making it even more difficult to cut and less naturally flavorful than the point.

Given their quite different reputations, prime rib has always been much more expensive than brisket, both from butchers and in restaurants, but cooking trends have seen a change that has pushed up brisket's price as well. Because of brisket's size and toughness, it wasn't something that a lot of people were making at home, being mostly a Jewish holiday specialty before the '60s, and it was left in the hands of professionals and pitmasters. But as barbecue and home smoking became a more accessible hobby, and as the reputation of Texas BBQ and its brisket grew, briskets became a lot more in demand. And because there are only two briskets on each cow, the price has started to rise. So brisket is still a more affordable cut of meat, but it's not the real budget option it used to be.

Prime rib's reputation precedes it, and the price reflects that. While brisket is still usually under $8 per pound, prime rib roasts can get as expensive as $30 per pound, and even at budget grocers like Costco it may be $14 a pound. And boneless roasts can go for even more. Prime rib is definitely more of a special occasion treat than brisket, which is priced to be accessible as a nice slow-cooked weekend dinner.

There is one undeniable similarity between brisket and prime rib: They both make fantastic centerpieces for feeding a large group on any occasion. Prime rib has its flavor and decadence to recommend it. This option will make any occasion feel special for those reasons alone, but a standing slow-roasted prime rib roast also has a fantastic "wow" factor. The sight of a whole perfectly browned rib roast in the middle of a table ready to be carved is the thing food dreams are made of. Use the rendered fat and dripping from the roast to make a rich au jus, and if you want to be a little wild, serve it with some horseradish sauce on the side as well.

Brisket is, of course, going to delight everyone at a barbecue if you do it right, but it's also an underrated option for a big dinner. The fattier point is an especially great choice for braising and shredding, which is perfect for a homestyle comfort dinner like pot roast, which can also be gussied up with rich sauces and served over polenta or mashed potatoes for an impressive main course. The best part is that leftover brisket is even better the next day, and can be made into other dishes, like brisket mac and cheese. So no matter whether you choose prime rib or brisket, nobody is going to be walking away from your table hungry.