Tri-tip Steak

[jryoung]

This is an interesting point. I haven't followed the Sous Vide trend but how would we maximize that Temp range in a grilling situation? Sear then indirect? Or indirect and reverse sear more likely... How long in that temp range?

You can go both ways, in traditional smoking, a slow rise in heat is critical.....in addition to pulling the meat out of the refrigerator and letting it come up to ambient temperature. Both of those components are important here. If sear first, it's important to make sure the indirect heat is low/diffused enough to slow the process so it's providing a radiating heat. It will be a faster process as the initial sear will accelerate everything, but bringing the meat through that 80-105 temp range over a 15-30 minute period (depending on cut size and thickness) seems to do wonders.

If going reverse, it's way easier to control the process. There are many cool gadgets out there now that can help, the Meater thermometer is the best I've seen, some serious meat geek calculations on the back end of the app. But really a basic thermometer with a long cord or bluetooth display is all you need.

 

[RobG]

Let me throw in a couple pics that might help. The tri tip is the piece of meat in the upper left. It is attached to the top front of the sirloin tip (upper right). It's so small and odd shaped I've never bothered keeping it whole. Hank Shaw says tri-tip is more of a method of cooking.



I stole the following picture from a wonderful private site that doesn't appear to exist anymore or I'd credit it. It doesn't have the tri-tip, but it shows another view of the sirloin tip.

 

[lastlight]

I disagree, most cuts are unique and deserve separate attention. Sure a backstrap, tenderloin, hanger or flat-iron are great of high direct heat, they're a naturally more tender cut they don't have the higher collagen content and typical muscle shortening that creates tougher meat. Other cuts of meat benefit greatly from a slower rise to temperature, this is why the reverse sear is so popular. It's dependent the calpain system, the enzymes are critical to muscle degradation in the aging process as well as the cooking process. They become most active when cooking between 80-105, a slow rise, even a hold in this temperature range and accelerate the aging process and tenderness of a cut of meat.

I agree and misspoke in my OP. What I should have said was the cuts in the hind quarter, Sirloin, rump, top and bottom round, etc is what Ive had luck with. Surely I am not cooking the shanks, neck, rib, etc the same way.

 

[cahunter805]

I agree with Hank on beef tri tip cooking but I have cooked elk on the Oak pit a lot. You have to cook it fast and hot. Seat both sides maybe 6 minutes a side then pull it and let it rest wrapped in foil is best.

Try this tri tip seasonings. You won’t be let down. Yes I do live In Santa Maria also. The town that tri tip originated.

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[Okbow87]

I have found myself cooking a fair bit of it lately because the grocery store I buy my produce from sells prime beef tri-tip for $7.99 a pound and I pretty much can't walk past it. I came across a pretty good recipe for instructions and use my own tastes in seasonings.

Start with a 30 minute salt brine with heavy Kosher salt all over. It sets out on a cutting board during this time so its coming up towards room temp as well. After 30 minutes, quick rinse with cold water, pat dry, and put on seasonings.

I smoke it at 275° until I get an internal temp of 110°, then pull it and sear it on my grill at about 550° for 4 rotations, 2 minutes a side. Sear, flip, sear, flip and rotate 90°, sear, flip and sear.

Let it rest for 10-15 and slice it up.

 

[kwyeewyk]

Damn, now I'm hungry.....

 

[WyoDoug]

I had a butcher friend call that hanger steak "skirt steak". All these names for them and tri-tip get kind of confusing. I plan on doing many of these exotic cuts just because of tasting that tri-tip that my friend fixed that was really good. It used to be all I knew about wild game steaks was chops and steaks cut from the round and past that everything else got turned into ground meat. That was just the way my family did it for years.