Beef. The Tri-tip
 

I cooked my first tri tip last night. It was to be sliced thin and eaten over a salad.

Staring at the cut, it looks like a disaster waiting to happen. It is so oddly shaped. The thin corners would be well done when the middle was rare. I mitigated the best I could by always putting the fat side towards the heat. Damn! I may never buy beef sandwich meat ever again! It’s perfect. Sliced paper thin and layer on bread. It’s so good. Cold as a leftover.

I mistakenly bought a “prime” tritip. $15/lb. worth it.

I also tried Japanese Kew-pie mayo for the first time. Interesting.

Am I understanding correctly that the tri-tip is not available in other parts of the country?

We have it here.

Seasoning used, and more detail please.

I salted pretty heavily. And used enough black pepper I needed my mortar/pestle. I did add some garlic powder. Next time I’m adding paprika.

I let the seasoning sit on the meat for 4 hours. Pulled it from the fridge 1 hour prior to the grill time. I used a probe thermometer after the initial sear on the hot side of the grill.

Thoughts of my sous vide thing in my kitchen cabinet never came up. I’m just not a fan.

I love the tri tip for lunch sandwiches. I will season them, then vac seal and freeze until need. I throw them straight into the sous vide at 141 for 8-9 hours. Can’t beat it!


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Tri Tip might be my favorite beef these days. Instead of BBQing whole, we slice it into 1.5" slices and marinade overnight in my wife's secret sauce. Throw 2 on the Q and they cook quickly to 130F. Super tender and tasty!

Tritip has been available in CA since I was in college. Most parts of the country used to grind it into their hamburger.

I had a friend in Baton Rouge that I would send some to on occasion, but about 15 years ago he mentioned they started carrying it locally.

I think today it is freely available most any place. The price has gone up from about what you pay for ground beef to what you pay for a premium steak.

You can't go wrong with tri tip and there's no need to spend extra $$$ on Prime or waste time sous vide-ing. Garlic salt and pepper are all you need to season. You can also try making slits and placing garlic cloves in there.

As far as prepared rubs, I've used John Henry's and Pappy's https://www.pappysfinefoods.com/ but I prefer just the garlic salt and pepper.

Tri tips are available here, always have been. Another cut I like is the flat iron steak.

It is very hard to find here in Tennessee.

I miss it from California.

Dave

have it here, cooked between medium and med rare on the BGE. I think its the best cut for sandwiches, sliced thin over rice, or over salads.......sorta replaced flank for me here (though I still like fank).


$7ish a lb at the local Supermatked.

I like to sear the fatty side of the tri-tip for a few minutes in my cast iron pan on the stove, then put it in the oven in my turkey pan with the rack. I cook it for roughly 45 minutes and slice it thin quickly after taking it out.

I never get leftovers as my kids turn into extreme carnivores and eat the whole thing minus the few thin pieces I get :) It is one of their favorite things I cook.

For seasoning try Susie Q's. Some background:

https://susieqbrand.com/susie-q/santa-maria-style-bbq/

I hear a lot about Montreal’s steak seasoning. Any good?

Montreal is a great store bought season for steaks. It provides the large, you can still see it after its cooked seasoning which I can appreciate on occasion.

We have to ask for it to get it here. Flat iron is one of the cheapest cuts of meat here too. We use it for steaks (great flavor) carne asada (cheaper than flank) and all sorts of stuff.

Tri-tip is a great cut over coals or a smoker. Can be 1/4" cut for serving like a roast, cubed for salad, thin sliced for sammiches. We had it often when I lived in CA. Not so much here in WI.

I grew up using salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. Paprika is a nice thought. I might go with smoked paprika.

I know my family went through a period where tri-tip was used a lot.

I've done and seen that before too (I think I did it on some sort of roast). I remember some cooking show when they said that you really need to crush the garlic to really get the best/right flavor. Apparently, there are two chemicals in garlic that combine to provide the best/right flavor, and if you don't crush/mash/grind/press the garlic, that doesn't happen and you don't get all of the flavor that you should get. Just a side tidbit of info that I heard.

I guess i'm the odd one out here... never really been a fan of Tri tip. I'd rather eat a Flat iron, or even better a Teres Major (if I can find it).

I almost never see it anywhere in the Northeast....back when I used to travel, it was always a discussion with guys I work with in California, and I'd at least see it on the menu in the western half of the country....but almost never on the east coast.

I came here to say this.

can't believe with your culinary prowess you've never done a tri-tip! IMO one of the most versatile pieces of beef going. i had never heard of tri-tip either until i worked for what is now CALFIRE a couple summers in my late teens/early 20's. the fire house was big, big really big on them. Que it whole, cut it up into smaller bits for quicker cooking, use in a crock pot for stew and just about any beef need. i know there are better steaks cut, but i love the T2. usually buy a couple when i find them at a decent price.

places like safeway have a tendency to leave a thick layer of fat on the down side of the package so you don't see it and they used to piss me off some. i did eventually figure out that the fat layer is great on the BBQ in helping keeping it moist. i will often cook on the que just enough to get some grilling marks on it so it's sealed up some, then wrap it in foil for the last 20-30 minutes so it cooks in the juices. this also helps some in the uneven cooking challenges you allude to with the shape. that can also be a good thing if you have folks that prefer rare and more done at the same sitting.

love the T2

I picked up a marinated tri-tip from Owen's Meats in Cle Ellum a while back. I had the same reaction; weird shape, how am I going to grill it?

Well, I grilled it and it was pretty much all we ate for three days. Stupendously good.

You can get it in big bags here for reduced price, usually 4-5 in a bag. There is/was a market in Fillmore (Segovia's) that had a big old tenderizer (floor model) that they would throw your tri tips on and "Needle trim" and season with what tasted like carne asada rub.

We would always start fat side down to get it dripping on the coals and flare up to sear and then flip so that the fat would self baste down into the meat.

Slicing cross grain also makes a big difference. Some people just don't know how to slice.

I'll have to check out that Suzie Q's.

thanks.

those beans look awesome. thanks for that as well!!

Santa Maria style bbq has been around here forever. Supposedly part of the secret is using red oak firewood. Lots of places to get it. Hitching post, far western tavern to name some of the local favorites.

I'm sure some of the Conejo Valley Pelicans have enjoyed some Elks Lodge BBQ....

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I had not heard of tri tip until 8-9 years ago. Corporate sent out one of the Cali boys for a sales blitz. We cooked it on the grill one night. Nice change. We took him to the Salt Lick the next night. If it weren't for the atmosphere, I'd say the tri tip was the better meal.

SUPER SUPER SALTY :eek: GAG ME SALTY

People rave about Montreal, but I don't like it. I prefer simple black pepper and garlic salt. You can also use flap meat, but I think it is more expensive than tri-tip.

Mixing Montreal Steak Spice in the grinder with other "stuff" that is in the seasoning cabinet works well for me. I don't particularly like it on its own.
I also find it too coarse so it doesn't stick very well. Grinding it helps.

Tri-tip is one of my favorite cuts of beef. I usually season it with a good rub and put it wrapped in the fridge for 1-2 days before cooking on the grill. For rub I usually use 3 Beer Bbq rub or similiar.

My wife is from Cali, so I know tri-tip. Also, you could get it at Chuy's, which is a Cali/AZ broiler joint (not the Chuy's here in Houston).
We're recently seeing it more here in Houston, but only at the good grocers. We've learned that the butchers only get a few, so tell them to put you on a list.

We've also seen "Santa Maria Cuts", which *looks* like tri-tip, and are priced like it was a few years ago, but the flavor isn't quite right. Dunno if they're just "select" grade or if there's something different in where the meat comes from, but it's not as good.


Oh...if you can't grill a tri-tip then you need to give up your tongs.
Grill like steak.
Drink beer.
Grill more.
Drink more beer.
Quickly temp-probe meat
Grill more
Drink more beer.
End up with a single piece of meat that caters to everyone (some like raw, some like medium, some like crusty, all in one slab!)

Love that mayo. It's good with avocado and sticky rice. It also makes the best Southern style tomato sandwiches on white bread.

Tri-tip is a central California thing. I do a dry rub with Pappy's low sodium seasoning (also a central Valley thing), but the fat cap goes on top, away from the heat. Low and slow for around 2-4 hours depending on the temperature outside.

Interesting you bring this up. I just got a tri tip from Snake River Farms to try. I was thinking marinade of rosemary, balsamic and olive oil and then grill.

Thoughts?

Call me old-fashioned but I like to taste my beef. That’s why I never season any cut of beef with anything other than salt and pepper.

I find rosemary to be such an overpowering flavor that I’ve almost quit using it. I can’t think of the last time I put rosemary in any dish.

Salt and sugar is an enemy of living a long life.

That said all the commercial seasonings are loaded with salt

Create your own..granulated garlic, and onion, paprika, black pepper..brown sugar for pork, cumin, chili.powder, celery seed, mustard, lemon or orange zest, chinese 5 spice for a oriental profile and yes some.salt are all some of the usual suspects

Experiment with the combinations. Create your rubs

I smoke Tri tip on the BGE. I make it instead of Brisket..it isnt a 15 lb slab of meat that takes 16 hours..

A lady that i knew would cube it and marinate it.before grilling.. she would use a Mccormick package of seasonings.

Good luck

There is a thing called being subtle and using a sparing hand..instead of the heavy hand.

Yeah? I still don’t like the flavor of rosemary. You can have my allotment.

Neither do i ..mostly for Poultry.

Thyme is better for poultry...