I make a California-style tri-tip. Southwestern (i.e. cumin, oregano, etc.) seasoning, leave fat on, grill on high to crisp the fat, then grill on indirect medium to about 135. Then serve it with pico de gallo. My wife likes it, so do I.
I think I want to smoke the tri-tip first, then grill it, kind of like a reverse sear. Anybody have experience with this?
I don’t reverse sear. I front sear, get the caramelization I want, then move it over indirect and bring it up to temp. I also mop mine while it’s searing. Family favorite. Never tried smoking. Love to hear how it comes out.
I am curious, would someone please explain what is so special about a tri-tip. It comes from an area that is always working. The flank and the round. It has no intra-muscular fat. Until the 1950 & 1960's it was ground up for hamburger. It was not until 1964 that the first recorded sale in a meat market took place. Even now it is confined to California and slowly making its way east. I talked to my local butcher and 80% of the time he grinds it up, there is just not the demand to separate it from the lower round where burger meat comes from.
IMHO, it has enough marbling to be fairly tender, and it tastes really meaty - which sounds like an oxymoron, but isn't. Especially important in our house, when the middle is 135, the ends are medium, which suits my wife.
Last edited by btuckertx; September 28, 2019, 04:38 PM.
Looks like a few others have been having some fun with tri-tip on here recently, so I wanted to share my favorite tri-tip recipe for you all. Meathead has a great
Tri tip can be dry and tough if overcooked. But cooked with care, it has a wonderful beefy flavor and juicy texture. Even though the meat can be on the chewy side, it's not full of stringy bits that are objectionable to swallow.
My absolute favorite way to eat tri tip is sliced thin and stacked high for roast beef sandwiches. I was not a fan of roast beef sandwiches until I started cooking tri tip.
I usually smoke and slow indirect cook my tri tips to about 110F / 45C and then sear to the desired internal temp. I normally shoot for the rare side of medium rare -- 130F is ideal, 135F is getting on the edge of too done for my preference.
I normally get tri tips in the 1.5 to 2.5 pound range. That's enough for 4 modest dinner servings with a nice choice of sides. I'd cook 2 tri tips in that size range for 4 bigger appetites with maybe some left overs to hide away for sandwiches.
Just the input I'm looking for on the smoking side. I usually grill a 2.5 to 3# tri-tip. The one I have is almost 4#, so I'm thinking I'll freeze half, and smoke the other.
It's the go to beef protein for our house. Tri tip, sometimes packaged as bottom sirloin, is excellent either reversed seared SVQ'd or QVQ'd. My choice of smoke is red oak with BBBR as the rub. Prime was sometimes difficult to find so I would pick up choice. In all honesty, I struggled to notice the difference. Highly recommended.
Totally frustrated by the search function today, so I’m tagging onto the thread with a question about tri-tips. Troutman , what is the link to your tri-tip recipe?
Next to Picanha, the tri-tip roast or steak is probably my favorite cut of non-rib beef. A California favorite since the 1950's, it traces its origins back to the
Thank you. I wrote out and tried this before and we really liked it. Wrote it up and put it in my recipe book. However I see today that several of my tri-tips, and the recipe page is missing from my book. Guessing one of the kids wanted to have it at their house while we were away.🙂
btuckertx as others have pointed out you can treat it like a roast. Smoke it indirect until it temps internally to about 115* (if you are shooting for rare, higher if not), then use the cold grate reverse sear technique to finish it off. I don't like to let mine get above 122*. Also as mentioned they tend to dry out rather quickly if over cooked, but you probably already know that.
mountainsmoker again to correct you, it is a part of the bottom sirloin (not the flank or round) and makes up what would essentially be part of the knee cap muscle group. It is often cut into chili meat or ground into burger but if grilled or smoked properly it is very tender, full of juice and has an intense beefy flavor. It's one of my personal favorite cuts on the cow.
As for no intramuscular fat, I'm sorry but this one is an example of what Costco sells here in Htown on a fairly regular basis. You need to find a better butcher.....
I would love to hear how your tri-tip came out. I just smoked one two weeks ago. Smoke on front end and grill on the back end. Yes to turned out like the one pictured. Only difference, I put mine on our slicer and went with thin slices. Unbelievably good. For rub I used Salt, Pepper and Garlic and Three Little Pigs Memphis.
Reverse sear is the best on tri-tip. I’ve done it in the smoker, but usually just use a 2-zone setup on my charcoal grill since it doesn’t take very long (couple hours max). As CaptainMike mentioned, bonus points for cooking it over an oak fire. Medium Rare.
As for seasonings, traditional Santa Maria style is salt, pepper, and garlic.
Slice thin against the grain and it’s a tender and delicious cut. Slice it with the grain and your jaw will wear out trying to chew it. Highly recommended cut!
We have a local deli that makes great TT sandwiches for lunch on Fridays and Saturdays. Every now and then they slice it with the grain and it's like eating really tasty leather.
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