Rib Steak vs Ribeye: What’s the Difference?

Ribeye is a pretty common well favored cut of steak, but a rib steak is less popular. When you’re done reading this post, you’ll know to be on the lookout for rib steak. The reason is pretty simple. There’s just not much of a difference between rib steak vs ribeye.

A rib steak is simply a ribeye with the bone-in. It’s also commonly called a bone-in ribeye, or cowboy ribeye.

Cooking Rib Steak vs Ribeye

Both of these cuts are highly versatile and cook well no matter what your preferred method of cooking steak is. Whether the bone is attached to the ribeye or not, the cuts benefit from generous marbling, which protects from overcooking.

The biggest thing to be aware of when cooking a rib steak vs a ribeye is the meat will cook meaningfully more slowly by the bone (temp difference of 5-10 degrees).

For this reason, when using a meat probe or thermometer to check for doneness, be sure to check the temp at the thickest portion by the bone in a rib steak.

If you’re like me and enjoy a medium rare steak, you could run into trouble finding a temperature where you like the doneness both by and away from the bone.

One way to solve this is to sous vide ribeye or rib steak, which will cook the steak perfectly to your preferred temperature hassle free.

Taste of Rib Steak vs Ribeye

There’s a lot of debate on the topic of bone in vs boneless ribeye taste. Bone in advocates claim yellow marrow from the bone, which is as nutritious as it is delicious, seeps into steak with the bone in. Detractors say there’s no chance that happens while cooking.

The recent studies I’ve seen seem to indicate having the bone in doesn’t affect taste. At the end, some of this just comes down to personal preference. Both are among the most tender cuts of steak.

If you’re looking for the most tender bite of a ribeye or rib steak on repeat, you need to get to know the ribeye cap steak.

Related Reading: New York Strip vs Ribeye – Which to Choose?

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