Haven't cooked one before, like a brisket? Expert advice, don't want to [bleep] it up, guess I could call Dan Adair. I know he does them pretty often.

Artesian cut off the bottom sirloin, I believe. We were talking about that a couple of days ago.

Roger, I love the tri tip roast.


Going from notes for the BGE.

3-4lb roast?

Indirect at 250F for 45-60 minutes pull at 115F internal temp.


Kick up the heat to 500F and grill each side for a minute or two to get a little char crust action.
(I use the Weber for this)


Pull and rest for 5-10 minutes.


Should finish at 135-140F.




I may be wrong, not a true grill guru.


Curious to hear how the masters do it.

No. Cook it very, very, very hot on a wood smoke grill as agressive a wood as wanted, I use mesquite. Almost char to char on outside. Santa Maria rub. Get to about 120-125 at most with that heat. Rest for 10-15 or to 135-140. Scrape char off if needed.

You can do low and slow but I always prefer it over open flame.

Fat cap on or off? If no fat cap don't char too crazy, just a bit....

Artisan maybe?

Yes.

Maybe. New name...same cow.

Favorite cut of beef. Greg's approach is the way I go about it.

Salt, pepper, garlic. Cook over some coals that are putting out some good heat. Watch temp and pull when in the mid 120s. Rest and cut against the grain. Definitely a cut you don't want to overcook.

It's big in CA and I used to hate it till I figured out how to cook it. Mr Sam's method is what I do. It's now one of my favorites. I put a rub on it before putting it on the grill.

I thought autospell may have butted in.

This is what Dan Adair just told me, pretty much like a big steak.

Yep. You can reverse sear low & slow if you want a little of the best of both worlds.

Ditto. GregW nailed it. I like Pecanha even better.

It did. "Tri-tip" is just sirloin. Not the tenderest piece of beef, but probably the tastiest IMHO.

Please school me about picanha.

He stopped flinging arrows down the hallway of the single wide to answer?

Pecanha is the sirloin cap, triangular cut of meat that sits on top of the rump of the cow. It comes with a fat layer above it that helps create a beautiful tender and juicy flavor when cooked. I cook it like tri tip.

It sure looks good.

Looks like it would be good for making fajitas.

That looks pretty flippin’ good.

Both GW and Sammo's techniques work well.

GW's being closer to Original Santa Maria Style.

Tri Tip can go from damn good to shoe leather really quick so watch it. Its lean inside even with that think fat layer outside.

Good charcoal. Hate mesquite for Tritip but thats just my Kommiefornia snobbery talkin.

I do mine fat cap on and cut off any undesirable after.

Montreal seasoning rub the day before lets the garlic and cracked pepper rehydrate a little.

Honestly corse salt, cracked pepper and granulated garlic is all you need.

Got Red Oak? LOL Where's 805 when you need him.

In case you want the long version back story.

http://www.lospadrescounty.net/et/smbbq.html#beef

Enjoy

Lol, he's moved up in the world some.

those are the only spices I use for meat on the pit/smoker, I got mesquite lump coal.

Fats gave good info…. I have smoked them a bunch and they turn out good but you still don’t go past an internal temp of about 125-130. My latest is to put a good course salt and black pepper rub on it and throw it in the traeger at 200 deg for maybe an hour and then over to the Weber gas grill at about 600 deg to finish it off.

Sometimes I’ll smoke them to about 115 internal temp and then I’ll refrigerate and use it throughout the week for fajitas, sandwiches, mix with eggs, etc….. the 115 leaves a bit rare so you can throw it in a cast iron pan with the veggies to finish it off. Now I’m hungry.

I always pull mine when they hit 115-120 right in the thickest part. Rest for at least 30min under foil so ends don't get to well done.

Not charred enough and no mesquite? Blasphemy....lol

Love you man!

Salt and pepper is all you need for any meat IMHO but the Santa Maria, as herbaceous as possible with a char seems to be the magic button with some char and smoke with the tritip...

135 to 140??

We ate the hell out of them in college, central coast Cali, and just loaded a Weber with briquets on one side. Cooked on the cool side until a finger push felt right then seared on the hot side. Back then, 1980 - 1985, trimmed ran $1.99/lb, untrimmed $.99, on sale. Cheaper than burger... My Mother always had me haul some north when I headed home.

They also made killer chili and pot roast.

I'm relatively new to the tri-tip, and it seems that the name has inflated prices in my locale along with the flat iron. I'd rather buy ribeyes for similar price, but when tri-tip is on sale it seems like a great deal. Each time that I've cooked it has been really good.

I recently tried the Santa Maria recipe for the first time. It was awesome, but I used mesquite lump and not the traditional oak.

Yes again. But do trim the fat. there are "fish eyes" under the fat that taste rancid. Think boils or pimples. 125 IT if cutting with a sharp knife, 140 if using a slicer. Let rest at least twenty minutes.

Give a man his props that likes his meat black and blue.

I agree but I also add a little (or lot) of garlic. JMHO

Is tri trip a name for ménage à trois.

Red oak chunks, not charcoal if you can find it. I lived in Santa Maria when I was a little kid. The chunks were sold in 10# mesh bags everywhere.
Pinquito beans too. Garlic bread and you are all set. For a beer I'm usually a light beer guy but 805 is my beer of choice for a beef meal, steaks, tri tip burgers etc.
https://susieqbrand.com/santa-maria-beans/bulk-pinquito-beans/

How come so well done....if its basically a "steak"?

Ours were/are cooked medium rare though it varied given the shape of the cut.

I havent seen cuts labeled as such or even tri-tip.

Greg and Fats have given most the info needed. I tend to cook the same. I prefer to wet age all mine for at least 3 weeks and have gone up to 6 weeks.
I cook over red oak coals and pretty hot. Flip it over once and then stand on its end to finish it.
Susie Q’s seasoning is pretty much the standard around here for tri tip.
I don’t use a thermometer just go by feel. Pull it and let it rest at least 15 minutes. I always try for medium rare.
When slicing keep in mind to cut against the grain of the meat but note that a tri tip has 2 different pieces/sections to it and you need to cut accordingly against the grain.

I hit them with a little olive oil and then a bunch of Montreal Steak and let them refrigerate over night. Set it out the next day just long enough to come up to room temperature. Then it's hot and fast on the grill turned once and cooked until I get the right feel for medium (I never use a thermometer). Rest for 15 minutes and enjoy.

I cooked one at my in laws last Sunday and everyone raved about it. By far my favorite cut.

Roger, if you have a local butcher that has Wagyu tri tips, try one of those. You've got to have a butcher you can trust, though.

This is important, cut it against the grain.

looked at wagyu brisket yesterday 100 on up, one was 185. If I was cooking for friends I'd cook one but I'm about the only one here at the house that likes to eat beef more than once a week. I've learned not to cook as much because it will sit in the fridge and I can't eat it fast enough to keep it from going to waste.

My butcher has Wagyu brisket, too. I forget what I paid for the tri-tip, but it wasn't anywhere near as expensive as the brisket.

Cooking a few tri tips right now on the central coast actually
I use a Santa Maria style grill so I can move the grate up and down to regulate temp. I use local red oak try to get 4-5 logs deep across the bottom of the grill and burn it for 1.5-2 hours trying to get the temp of the coals to be where I can only hold my hand open palm down at the highest setting the grate will go for 15 seconds before I have to pull my hand back. Then put the tri tips on and cook them one fat side up next to one fat side down try to keep them there for 50-60 minutes on each side raising or lowering the grate to keep that 15 seconds of open hand time. The fat dripping should be a constant rain on the coals kicking up smoke for flavor.
I have found it takes a deep bed of coals to keep the cooking temp adequate for a 2 hour cook and if you cook it hotter than you can keep you hand there for 12 seconds it tends to dry out fast.
I like to use Montreal, lawry’s seasoning salt and granulated garlic and leave the fat cap on until I pull them off the grill and let them rest then I fillet it off and put the big chunk into the pot of pinquito beans to season them as they finish. We always cook a few Tri tips at once and then slice them all thin once they rest and save all the juices and dripping from the cutting board and pour back over the pile of sliced meat. It’s awesome as cold cuts on sandwiches the next day too. The leftovers never last as long as you think.

How you slice tri tip is as important as how you cook it-

Cut against the grain and watch out as the grain switches in the middle.





I prefer it sliced pretty thin. 1/8”ish

Finally sheesh.😎

Spot on… down to the susie q’s.

Good representation. Funny thing bout them meat fibers they don't always play along.

But yes mostly works out like that.

👍
Exactly

My brother in law cooks his almost the opposite of how I do mine and his way tastes great too. Instead of slow cooking it he cooks them pre trimmed and cooks them hot and fast over an open flame and chars them on all sides them puts them into a warm dry ice chest and closes the lid while he gets the side dishes going and pulls them out after about an 1-2 hours and slices them down

That’s how I do a tri tip.

225 on the pellet grill until 110-115.

500+ on the grill for some char. Pull at 125-130 and let it rest for 10-15 minutes

Gentlemen, I read through the thread, interesting grill master knowledge.


It is a hot, windy afternoon here and we called it a day. I came home and rested for a bit and just now cracked open a can of sparkling rocky mountain spring water.

Quite refreshing.



That said I had planned on grilling burgers for the wife and I.


The thermometer says 114F(in the sun about 10' from the BGE). Way too hot for me to be out there.....



Just kidding, I lit the grill for the burgers and opened the fridge to find a store bought Tri-Tip in the meat drawer next to the burger.




Plan changed, roast on the grill in 5,4,3,2,1......

Came out great, Beans and ham hocks are killer as well.

Looks good Roger!!!

Tri tip is a good cut imo, pretty well marbled. Probably one of the best candidates for sous vide cooking.

If you cook it with this method, I got great results with about a 3lb tri tip roast at 130F for 7 hours. Used sea salt, black pepper and a little garlic and onion powder. Basically came out like medium rare prime rib. Pat it dry and sear it on the grill for a couple minutes on each side. Then a served it with a horseradish Gorgonzola sauce.

Looks excellent!! Great job!

I guess maybe I should try one.

What does it do that a chuck roast cant do?

To me a chuck roast is better for a pot roast or maybe on the smoker low and slow.
Tri tip is for the Open flame BBQ pit and cooked hot and fast.

Its a steak.

We can cook our chuck roasts as fast as a steak and they are great.

In my opinion, it’s apples and oranges.

A chuck is to be cooked low and slow, til fall apart tender. Like fats said, tri tip is like a steak, in that you sear it on direct heat, then move to the side and finish the cooking slowly til medium/medium rare.


It’s worth a try, what’s the worst that can happen?

We will take a rump roast and cook it as kebabs.

Fall apart tender.

We have grilled thinner chuck roasts to good results.


Might try the Santa Maria style seasoning.

With three different grain patterns - cut accordingly.

Right on! Looks great!