First, I put the word "standing" in parentheses because it seems logically unnecessary, but is conventional for describing the analogous cut of beef -- "standing rib roast" (beef being the default meat).
This connection to the beef rib roast is the first clue that a pork rib roast would be good. The beef rib roast is a famously decadent and delicious cut of beef. It is usually called a standing rib roast and is sometimes called prime rib, which is technically correct when the beef is of prime grade (sufficiently high fat content). Other than the tenderloin, the rib roast is the most premium roast-size cut of steer or pig. In the case of beef, it is famous, esteemed, and pricey ($11 per pound at my grocery store, and that is for the conventional, corn-fed beef. I've never even seen the rib roast of a fancier animal.). So the pork rib roast is the pork version of this amazing roast.
The second clue is that the bone-in, pork rib chop is by far the best pork chop in the whole world! I would trade you my beef rib steak for your beef t-bone, but I would not trade you one pork rib chip for 2 pork t-bones. The pork rib chop is just so much more delicious. I think it is the flavor from the fat and the bone oozing into the rest of the meat, but lots of chops have fat and bone, so there must be something particular about the pork rib chop. Anyway, a pork rib roast is just a lot of pork rib chops still attached to each other before they have been cut into chops. so a pork rib roast is a stack of the best pork chops.
Third, the pork rib chop is priced like it is just some plain old hunk of meat. At my grocery store, it is $5 per pound when it is not on sale. If I work at it, I should be able to get it at $3 per pound. It is strange how prized the baby back ribs are (and the boneless pork loin roast) and how under-appreciated the pork rob roast is. I had to ask for the pork rib roast. They don't even display it at the butcher counter. I understand why the store does not appreciate the pork rib roast. They can cut the ribs off the rest of it and sell each part for more per pound than the original rib roast. I agree that baby back ribs are great, but I don't think they are better because the loin has been removed.
Anyway, altogether, the pork rib roast would seem to be a situation of value awesomeness. So I decided to ask about one at the butcher counter. The guy said "sure, I can cut one for you now." He pulled this enormous pig spine from the back room. I saw that it was big in the store, but it was not until a day later that it hit me that that whole thing must fit INSIDE a pig. I had been thinking of it like a ladder that you see on top of pickup truck, but that really is misleading.
Anyway, he cut me a 7 bone rib roast off the front. That weighed 5 pounds. overall, it was a beautiful roast, but the very front of it looks a little funny. I think it is because at that point, it is running into the shoulder. I think this is why "center-cut" is desirable. Regardless, I detected no problem from this in the final cooked product.
The butcher cut a lot of fat off of the roast, and I got worried about diminished juiciness, so I also got 5 strips of bacon to wrap the roast in.
I made a rub of 1 tbsp salt, and 2 tbsp sugar and then some granulated garlic, some black pepper, and I think some dried parsley and some dried basil. I let it sit a couple hours so the salt could diffuse and so the roast could come up toward room temperature. I draped the bacon over it just before going into the cooker. I removed the roast from the cooker when the internal temp had reached 140. It was delicious, but there was none of that rosey pinkness inside. by some standards, I overcooked it, but it still tasted great, maybe even better than it would have if I had cooked it correctly.
Well, I think those are the details. Here are the photos, starting with my furry assistant.
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