Need Help on Cooking Tri-Tip

Rub it with something simple...salt and pepper is a great starting point. No injections.

Sear it on high heat to get a nice charred outside, then cook indirect until it reaches 125-130 internal. Let it rest for at least 30 mins (more is better) and slice just prior to serving.

Delicious!

Or, you could season it with equal parts black pepper and kosher salt then add some chile powder and granulated garlic to taste, my taste is about 1/2 part each. Then put into the smoke at 225F until internal reached 120F to 125F and then raise temperatures and sear to get color. Final internal being whatever you want, I like 130F medium rare.

Paul, here is a link to a tri-tip cook I did last year with a few details...

I sear at about 450-500 then cook as low as I can go (on the grill), after marinading for 24 hours with a beef drippings (garnered from earlier smokes) garlic,pepper,chili powder,worchester concoction.

wheelterrapin said:

Folks I know that Tri-tip is popular out West but here in Central Arkansas it just showed up recently at a new Grocery Store that went in called Harp's Grocery. Now that I have access to this cut of meat I want to try some of it so I need some input from you Tri-Tip cookers.

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Guess you guys got $2.99 a pound for choice also. Picked up some here (at Harps) on that deal. Watch their meat, it is better than average. They raise some nice pastured Herefords. If they have tenderloin, it is usually $5.99 a pound without grading, but it is good meat from their own herd.

Just keep the rub simple and let the meat shine through. These guys sear first or last to get it crispy. Personally, I don't think it matters when you sear.

Some cuts of meat require "low n slow." I would never dream of throwing a brisket on a Santa Maria Style grill and cooking it for one hour. The brisket would be a "little" tough. Tri Tip cut of beef is tender--some meat markets actually cut tri-tips across the grain to make "Coulotte Steaks." The Tri Tip is tender enough to cook like a steak---simple spices--cooked fairly fast. Many people have tried to reinvent the "wheel" with Tri-Tip---marinades, injections etc. Every post about Tri-Tip talks about how great it turned out---that is because Tri-Tip is dificult to screw up. If you want to experiment with Tri-Tip I would suggest cooking the first one as simple as possible---then see if added labor makes the Tri-Tip any better. Look up Santa Maria style spices---the traditional spices are salt--garlic--and pepper. Seems too simple?
It works--the local Cattleman's Assoc here uses one part Lawry's Seasoned salt to 2 parts Lawry's Garlic salt mixed together with course ground black pepper. It is simple but it works. I have cooked Tri-Tip in large amounts for over 30 years and I also have tried to reinvent the wheel. I always go back to what I learned in Santa Maria, CA in the late 70's and early 80's---keep it simple---cook it like you would a steak--people will love it.

The "BIGGEST MISTAKE" in cooking Tri-Tip has nothing to do with the cooking. The most "IMPORTANT" thing to remember is to slice the Tri-Tip exactly perpendicular to the grain. A high percentage of pr0n posted of Tri-Tip has been sliced parallel to the grain. The parallel slices have long stringy striations that are easy to see. Test this theory yourself--do not beleive me--I am just soom internet poster. Slice part of the Tri-Tip against the grain and part of it with the grain---pull on the pieces--bite them--check for tenderness and form your own opinion.

Have fun with your Tri Tip is the only rule. Those of us out west that remember buying Tri-Tip for 69 cents a pound because it hadn't been discovered can sit here and suffer---because our word of mouth has made Tri-Tip turn into a semi-expensive piece of meat. Have fun and post pictures

Wheel, we are lucky to have the tri-tip cut available up here. And we are neighbors. The tri-tip really doesn't need much help as it is really best kept simple. We use Montreal Steak Seasoning, which isn't much more than salt, pepper, onion, and garlic. Sear direct and then cook indirect until about 135-140. The small ends will be more done and the center will be much more rare. Really nice when guests prefer different doneness ( is that a word). It is really cool when one steak is medium, medium rare, and rare all in one steak.
Oh, look close at the grain. Very important to cut across the grain like cutting brisket.

I've been doing tri tips for a long time. I'm no expert, or even close. Here are my two favorite ways to do them. Simple salt & pepper seasoning on a rotissiere at about 300 -350 for about an hour for medium rare. Next, try marinating one in a plastic bag overnight with 1 cup of Grey Poupon Mustard, 1/2 cup red wine vinegar, 2tblsp thyme. Then grill direct turning several times till internal temp of 130. Let stand 10 mins, slice & serve. Hmbrewr

Leonard, I know your expertise and respect your time on the cooker, but, what you are talking about is a method, age old and simple, but, one that is handed down over the years and it does take a lot of skill. I learned from folks down that way as well, and value that experience. But, unless you have a Santa Maria smoker, or exceptional fire keeping skills and a cooker that allows you to use them, smoking them at lower temperatures and then searing is an easier way to go and one that works on all manner of cookers.

I really do want a pit with a Santa Maria rig on it someday, I love the method, but, working it on a kettle or covered grill or cooker without access to coals or a adjustable grate is just not the same.

Rub of your choice, then low and slow til it's 140* in the center. Then wrap it and into a cooler for resting. We stopped searing ours quite a while ago. We like it cooked over mesquite lump with some oak or almond wood for added flavor.

Matt

Chuckwagonbbqco said:

Some cuts of meat require "low n slow." I would never dream of throwing a brisket on a Santa Maria Style grill and cooking it for one hour. The brisket would be a "little" tough. Tri Tip cut of beef is tender--some meat markets actually cut tri-tips across the grain to make "Coulotte Steaks." The Tri Tip is tender enough to cook like a steak---simple spices--cooked fairly fast. Many people have tried to reinvent the "wheel" with Tri-Tip---marinades, injections etc. Every post about Tri-Tip talks about how great it turned out---that is because Tri-Tip is dificult to screw up. If you want to experiment with Tri-Tip I would suggest cooking the first one as simple as possible---then see if added labor makes the Tri-Tip any better. Look up Santa Maria style spices---the traditional spices are salt--garlic--and pepper. Seems too simple?
It works--the local Cattleman's Assoc here uses one part Lawry's Seasoned salt to 2 parts Lawry's Garlic salt mixed together with course ground black pepper. It is simple but it works. I have cooked Tri-Tip in large amounts for over 30 years and I also have tried to reinvent the wheel. I always go back to what I learned in Santa Maria, CA in the late 70's and early 80's---keep it simple---cook it like you would a steak--people will love it.

The "BIGGEST MISTAKE" in cooking Tri-Tip has nothing to do with the cooking. The most "IMPORTANT" thing to remember is to slice the Tri-Tip exactly perpendicular to the grain. A high percentage of pr0n posted of Tri-Tip has been sliced parallel to the grain. The parallel slices have long stringy striations that are easy to see. Test this theory yourself--do not beleive me--I am just soom internet poster. Slice part of the Tri-Tip against the grain and part of it with the grain---pull on the pieces--bite them--check for tenderness and form your own opinion.

Have fun with your Tri Tip is the only rule. Those of us out west that remember buying Tri-Tip for 69 cents a pound because it hadn't been discovered can sit here and suffer---because our word of mouth has made Tri-Tip turn into a semi-expensive piece of meat. Have fun and post pictures

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100% agree with all of this. Keep it simple with tri-tip. I usually just do salt and pepper and leave out the garlic. Although last week I did a tri-tip and added ground coffee to the salt and pepper, that came out nice. Last month for my sister's birthday, she wanted tri-tip, but she doesn't actually like meat that much, and insisted that it get marinated in teriyaki sauce and all sorts of other stuff. It honestly turned out pretty nasty and ruined the meat.

Landarc---I agree with you. The style of cooking must match the design of the equipment being used and the fuel that is being used. I guess I should not assume that everyone has a grill and wood that works well with it.

BUT WAIT thers more
Bob you have inspired me to find my camera and actually take a couple pictures of Tri-Tip being cooked in non-traditional methods---such as the dutch oven modified to set on the snowmobile exhaust--for a meal when you arrive---and the coveted "Cowboy Fondue" method with the Tri-Tip stabbed onto a pitchfork and leaned over a campfire.

kyle corn said:

she wanted tri-tip, but she doesn't actually like meat that much, and insisted that it get marinated in teriyaki sauce and all sorts of other stuff. It honestly turned out pretty nasty and ruined the meat.

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Eeeeew! Now I love teriyaki on beef, but, not tri-tip, wrong cut of meat for that flavor.

I'm not tri-tip expert either but I did some for the last Midwest Bash that were pretty good. I rubbed them with Simply Marvelous Cherry rub, then wrapped them in bacon. Next we grilled them for 15 min. on Andy's new pooper grill (high heat), then moved them over to the low heat side, the one with the burners turned off, for another 15, cut and served. They were a perfect med. rare (at least that's what I remember, alcohol was involved).

There are 1000 different ways to cook and season a tri tip but one sure way to ruin it is to cut it wrong and end up slicing with the grain. The grain in tritip actually changes direction around the middle point of the roast. Check this direction before cooking and slice accordingly. Enjoy.