I got a nice tri-tip from the grocery store and I need to know how to make it. I've had it before and followed the instructions on the package, but I didn't care for the end result. Does anyone have more experience than I do with tri-tip?
Tri-tip
- Thread starter Puggles
- Start date
The best way is over a charcoal/wood fire with a Santa Maria style grill (see photo below). But, I doubt you have one.
The next best way is over a regular charcoal grill. That cut of beef is very lean, so you want to get a good char on the outside, but cook it medium rare inside. Then to serve, slice it relatively thin against the grain of the meat. If you have cooked London Broil, you should know the general idea. If you overcook it, it is dry and tough.
Indoors, in an oven, I would probably cook it as one would cook a prime rib, leaving it pink inside.
Tri-tip is extremely popular in Central California. I've had it out there, and it is good, although fattier cuts of beef are my favored cuts.
Santa Maria Grill (not my photo)...
CD
The next best way is over a regular charcoal grill. That cut of beef is very lean, so you want to get a good char on the outside, but cook it medium rare inside. Then to serve, slice it relatively thin against the grain of the meat. If you have cooked London Broil, you should know the general idea. If you overcook it, it is dry and tough.
Indoors, in an oven, I would probably cook it as one would cook a prime rib, leaving it pink inside.
Tri-tip is extremely popular in Central California. I've had it out there, and it is good, although fattier cuts of beef are my favored cuts.
Santa Maria Grill (not my photo)...
CD
kaneohegirlinaz
Wannabe TV Chef
- Joined
- 19 Nov 2021
- Local time
- 9:37 AM
- Messages
- 4,716
I'd never heard of it and thought it must be particular to the US. But then I found this. The comment about the grain is interesting:
Tri Tip Steak - Farmison & Co
Tri Tip Steak - Farmison & Co
detroitdad
Legendary Member
I haven't done a tri tip before. So I'll follow along. Where at in Detroit are you located? I'm in Ypsilanti.
I have to say that the description you posted is wrong in its comparison to brisket, at least how it is here. Tri-tip and brisket here are very different, and you need to cook them in entirely different ways. It is also not well marbled, if they are talking about the same cut of beef as what we call tri-tip. They are completely right about being careful to slice against the grain.
Beef cuts are called so many different names around the world, that I find it very confusing to talk about them with people from other countries.
CD
MrsDangermouse
Guru
Glad I'm not the only one who gets confused trying to work out the equivalent beef cuts....from what I can tell, pretty much every country butchers their meat slightly differently
Here, it’s not even the same regionally, as far as naming goes. I used to have a sheet of paper that had all the different names for this or that cut of beef, and it had notes on it like, “In New England, this is XYZ, but in the Midwest, it’s 123,” that sort of thing.Glad I'm not the only one who gets confused trying to work out the equivalent beef cuts....from what I can tell, pretty much every country butchers their meat slightly differently
The USDA did put out a guide in the last few years, in an effort to create universal names for beef cuts in all parts of the US. I don't think that guide is getting much traction. Cuts still have different names in different regions. I have pretty much figured those out, but when it comes to different countries, it is still very confusing.
When it comes to cooking steaks, I try to be careful about terms like, "I grilled a steak last night." That means something entirely different in the US and the UK. I will usually use 'grilled (bbq)' in a post here, just to be clear about what I did.
When it comes to tri-tip, to be on-topic (I don't want to hear that mod-copter hovering over me), I go by what I've heard from friends in Central and Southern California, because that is their signature cut for grilling/BBQ. It is like beef brisket is in Texas.
CD
Last edited: