Smoked Beef Tri-Tip will soon be your new favorite BBQ steak. grilled regularly, preparing it in the backyard smoker results in an unparalleled piece of flavorful and tender smoked meat. Learn how to prepare brine dry and smoke tri-tip with our BBQ guide and recipe.
Tri-Tip is one of the most tender and flavorful cuts of smoked beef. The bottom fillet of beef has an incomparable mouthfeel and a hearty taste.
While tri-tip beef is typically grilled or reverse-cooked over high heat , it’s amazing when grilled. Because it’s a lean and low-fat cut of beef, getting the smoke right can be tricky. But pull it through and you’ve got a nice, tender tri-tip dish that’s great on its own or as part of a steak sandwich.
For our Smoked Tri Tips recipe, we cut and prep it with a simple dry brine starting with a simple BBQ spice mix. Then we smoke it over indirect heat for about 2 hours until tender and juicy.
What is TriTip?
Beef Tri-Tip is a tasty and tender cut of beef from a cow’s lower sirloin. It is typically about eight inches long and weighs between two and three pounds. It has a unique triangular shape and tapers at one end. It is lean and poor in connective tissue and fat.
Its taste is unlike any other cut of beef. It has a strong, rich and meaty taste. Thanks to its consistent fat content, tri-tip steak can be very tough and needs to be cut carefully to avoid becoming too tough. However, if you get it right, you’ll have a cut of meat as delicious and tender as any other.
The traditional Santa Maria Tri-Tip hails from a town of the same name in California’s central coastal region. The tri-tip steak is a local specialty and was originally prepared at the exclusive Santa María Grill. It has a grill controlled by its wheel-pulley system, where YOU can raise or lower it to bring the meat closer to the fire.
Purpose designed Santa Maria grills are difficult and expensive to purchase, but you can build your own Santa Maria grill at a fraction of the cost. If you’re a DIY grill fan, you’ll love the project. The Smart Grill cooks three prongs as intended and helps tenderize them.
Where to buy
Depending on where you are located, it can be difficult to buy Tri-Tip. Due to its California origins, people from the southern region of the state have it easier, but if not, YOU may find a specialist butcher to look for or book in advance.
The good news is there are some fantastic online sellers that sell fresh Tri-Tips and can ship across North America.
Meat preparation
Before you can toss Tri-Tip in the smoker, you need to prep the meat.
The first step is to remove the fat from the tri-tip. The meat has tough patches of fat that are difficult to eat, even after smoking. Take a small, thin trimming knife and run it under the pieces of tough fat and silverskin.
Once your meat is fat-free, prepare the brine, which will enhance the flavor and browning process. Rub the meat with kosher salt and then let it sit for 12-24 hours.
Finally, your meat is ready to rub dry. Rubbing dry improves the texture of the Tri-Tip better than a liquid marinade. You can make your masa seca with any condiments you like, but a good suggestion is brown sugar, garlic powder, salt, paprika, and chili powder.
Times and temperatures
Smoked Tri-Tip takes about 2 hours to cook at 107°C(225°F) to an average internal temperature of 130-135°F. This time depends on the size of the meat, the heat retention of the smoker, and the preferred degree of doneness.
Always use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature of your meat. I know some people misjudge texture or even appearance, but a thermometer is the best way to get the best results.
The best wood for grilling
The best wood for tri-tip grilling is oak, especially red oak. Oak wood burns at a constant rate for long periods of time, making it perfect for slow, slow-burning BBQ smokers. It also offers a smoky flavor without being too bitter, allowing the Tri-Tip’s naturally deep, meaty flavors to come through.
Service
After grilling, let your Tri-Tip sit for a few minutes. Then tailor and serve.
You have to cut against the grain to get the best triple point, but the grain of the meat goes in two different directions. First cut it in half diagonally from the corner to the crease.
Then turn each piece over so YOU can see the muscle fibers and slice against the fibers for delicate cuts. This is the best way to process the tricky three-pointed grain.
Stay
Don’t know what to do with leftover meat? The best way to use leftover tri-tip is to incorporate it into slow-roasting recipes as a steak ingredient. These include chili con carne, meatloaf or stroganoff. It also works well as a filling for steak sandwiches, fajitas, and quesadillas.
Overheating
If you want leftover Tri-Tip the next day, be careful how reheating the meat helps retain moisture and flavor. Heat the oven, then wrap the tri-tip in aluminum foil. You can add BBQ sauce or some beef broth to the triple-tipped foil to keep it moist.
Tri-Tip is best reheated when you cut the whole piece rather than slices, so only cut as much roast as you need. However, the foil method can even help reheat cut Tri-Tip.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have burning questions about the BBQ Smoking Beef Tri-Tip? These answers to our most frequently asked questions will help you.
What is Santa Maria Tri Tip?
Most tri-tip grilling recipes mention the Santa Maria tri-tip because it’s the most common way to prepare the tri-tip for a barbecue. The dish is named for Santa Maria, a California city that popularized the tri-tip as a barbecue cut(the city is also the center of California’s small but mighty barbecue scene). A Santa Maria Tri-Tip is rubbed with salt, black pepper and garlic salt and then smoked over red oak. The choice of wood is critical to creating an authentic Santa Maria Tri-Tip.
How much does Tri-Tip shrink when grilling?
All meat shrinks when cooked because cooking breaks down muscle fibers and drains some of the blood and juices. The profit depends on the cut of meat, the method of preparation and the cooking time. On average, the Tri-Tip loses 20-30% of its weight after cooking. Smoking shrinks meat more than wet cooking methods, so it’s best to opt for more tri-tips. Be careful not to smoke it for more than two hours, as too much time will make the meat smaller and tougher.
Writer & content creator. BBQ fanatic!
