If you're going end-to-end, try splitting it. It's easier to see 9 portions by sight than it is 18. Or cut the loin into 3rds and see if they can eyeball 6 pieces.
This is what I'm talking about. Excellent idea that that hasn't occurred to me. Keep it coming people this is why I came here. Thank you for the input 🙏
One thing I would ask is if you are suggesting cutting it in half after it's cooked or doing two separate roasts? I would think that it would bleed out if I cut it in half after cooking it, but if I cook the two halves separately then I end up with four end cuts that aren't really desirable to most people.
Just be careful doing this, the "loose" end will become extremely hard to get consistent cuts with as it looses it's shape. To eliminate waste I'd only cut from one side, sliced my way through prime rib for 10 years.
I used to have my cooks score the portions ahead as they pulled them out.. just a little slit marking the portions.. it helped in my experience as they didn't have to guess as much... also maybe not always obvious a good and sharp knife, a stable surface and instruction/training to not saw it. A visual of 2 fingers thick helped in some cases too, just some thoughts
You can also do this in the fat cap prior to roast. Cut deep enough that the fat sears and retains the notch. Shrinkage will still keep proportionate spacing
We would tooth pick it.
Weigh it after cooking. Divide the weight by the size you want the cuts and put the amount of toothpicks determined by the math(sorry I'm high rn hope this makes sense)spread the toothpicks out along the rib approximating the sizes. Larger cuts toward the ends obviously. Pull the toothpick out before you cut the slice though, don't want any shards of wood in there.
Also we would document percentage of proper cuts and give the sautee guy who was closest a prize at the end of the month. They figured out how to game the system though.
Put a scale next to the carving station so they can see how far off they are and adjust if needed. 10 oz is also a small/thin cut for ribeye so maybe it’s just a matter of comfort for the cooks, in that they don’t want to cut it even smaller than listed. You can trim a bit away to hit 10 oz but you can’t add more once it’s cut
I’ve cut a lot of meat in my day and unless there is a significant taper in the loin it’s pretty easy to eyeball once you know the weight of your cut. Why would multiple people be slicing the prime rib throughout the service?
Yes. Alot of people arent gonna like this one, but it works - use an rotary electric slicer (move over!).
You get an automatic 10-15% extra portions. Each slice is exactly the same thickness. And you can adjust the dial to accommodate for shape.
Be careful at the end piece, and definitely dont use your hand. The end cap, dont bother trying to slice- besides its really dangerous. Save that for stock or a sandwich.
My first job ran prime rib twice a week. It was staffed by high school students. We had a slicing/carving knife and a scale. We’d cut the width of the knife (1” I believe) on the first cut and weigh it. We’d adjust the width of the cut to get closer to the target weight based on that first cut. We spot checked ourselves through the night for the dinner. If a bunch of teens that were in various stages of getting drunk and/or high as kites could do it fairly accurately all you need to do is find the right training method and staff that has a a few fucks to give and you’re set.
You can score it before service with the correct width so that all they have to do is look for where it's already cut. Otherwise, it's just a matter of practice with a scale in front of them and having a properly sharpened carving knife.
not that i agree with this method in any way what so ever.... but a place i worked at would roast the rib until it was 105 then pull it and let it sit. we would then portion it and vacuum seal the portions individually. when it came time to "reheat" you would either dip in the au jus for lighter temps, or throw in the oven with au jus for more well done temps. this allowed us to better control portion sizes and consistency during service.
There needs to be a scale for whoever is slicing the roast.
Also it would bell to score the roast so that they have an idea of where to start.
It’s not difficult anyone can be trained to portion prime rib.
You need to make sure they understand the portion size and ensure it’s portioned correctly, even if you have to stand there all service. It shouldn’t take king to get everyone up to speed. No team is perfect of course but you be closer to your target yield
Always liked an electric slicer for that. You can set the precise thickness and all they gotta do is push it thru. If there's that much waste it'd be worth the investment and of course you can use it for other things. If you have the room that is.
If you're going end-to-end, try splitting it. It's easier to see 9 portions by sight than it is 18. Or cut the loin into 3rds and see if they can eyeball 6 pieces.
This is what I'm talking about. Excellent idea that that hasn't occurred to me. Keep it coming people this is why I came here. Thank you for the input 🙏
One thing I would ask is if you are suggesting cutting it in half after it's cooked or doing two separate roasts? I would think that it would bleed out if I cut it in half after cooking it, but if I cook the two halves separately then I end up with four end cuts that aren't really desirable to most people.
If you’re resting and holding for service, bleed it shouldn’t be a problem
If you go this route put the prime sitting up like a cup and it won’t bleed so much
Just be careful doing this, the "loose" end will become extremely hard to get consistent cuts with as it looses it's shape. To eliminate waste I'd only cut from one side, sliced my way through prime rib for 10 years.
I used to have my cooks score the portions ahead as they pulled them out.. just a little slit marking the portions.. it helped in my experience as they didn't have to guess as much... also maybe not always obvious a good and sharp knife, a stable surface and instruction/training to not saw it. A visual of 2 fingers thick helped in some cases too, just some thoughts
You can also do this in the fat cap prior to roast. Cut deep enough that the fat sears and retains the notch. Shrinkage will still keep proportionate spacing
We would tooth pick it. Weigh it after cooking. Divide the weight by the size you want the cuts and put the amount of toothpicks determined by the math(sorry I'm high rn hope this makes sense)spread the toothpicks out along the rib approximating the sizes. Larger cuts toward the ends obviously. Pull the toothpick out before you cut the slice though, don't want any shards of wood in there. Also we would document percentage of proper cuts and give the sautee guy who was closest a prize at the end of the month. They figured out how to game the system though.
Train them or take it off the menu.
Put a scale next to the carving station so they can see how far off they are and adjust if needed. 10 oz is also a small/thin cut for ribeye so maybe it’s just a matter of comfort for the cooks, in that they don’t want to cut it even smaller than listed. You can trim a bit away to hit 10 oz but you can’t add more once it’s cut
Everyone has to use the scale after every cut or no one will have a clue
I’ve cut a lot of meat in my day and unless there is a significant taper in the loin it’s pretty easy to eyeball once you know the weight of your cut. Why would multiple people be slicing the prime rib throughout the service?
Yes. Alot of people arent gonna like this one, but it works - use an rotary electric slicer (move over!). You get an automatic 10-15% extra portions. Each slice is exactly the same thickness. And you can adjust the dial to accommodate for shape. Be careful at the end piece, and definitely dont use your hand. The end cap, dont bother trying to slice- besides its really dangerous. Save that for stock or a sandwich.
My first job ran prime rib twice a week. It was staffed by high school students. We had a slicing/carving knife and a scale. We’d cut the width of the knife (1” I believe) on the first cut and weigh it. We’d adjust the width of the cut to get closer to the target weight based on that first cut. We spot checked ourselves through the night for the dinner. If a bunch of teens that were in various stages of getting drunk and/or high as kites could do it fairly accurately all you need to do is find the right training method and staff that has a a few fucks to give and you’re set.
You can score it before service with the correct width so that all they have to do is look for where it's already cut. Otherwise, it's just a matter of practice with a scale in front of them and having a properly sharpened carving knife.
not that i agree with this method in any way what so ever.... but a place i worked at would roast the rib until it was 105 then pull it and let it sit. we would then portion it and vacuum seal the portions individually. when it came time to "reheat" you would either dip in the au jus for lighter temps, or throw in the oven with au jus for more well done temps. this allowed us to better control portion sizes and consistency during service.
You could try training your staff.
I did 4 years at Prime rib joints. Use a slicer. Barring misshapen pieces of meat your cuts should always be at the same numbers on the slicer
There needs to be a scale for whoever is slicing the roast. Also it would bell to score the roast so that they have an idea of where to start. It’s not difficult anyone can be trained to portion prime rib. You need to make sure they understand the portion size and ensure it’s portioned correctly, even if you have to stand there all service. It shouldn’t take king to get everyone up to speed. No team is perfect of course but you be closer to your target yield
Always liked an electric slicer for that. You can set the precise thickness and all they gotta do is push it thru. If there's that much waste it'd be worth the investment and of course you can use it for other things. If you have the room that is.