How to Cook Tri-Tip: Smoked and Seared
Smoking and searing this inexpensive cut transforms it into an amazing main dish you'll love to share with friends.
Ingredients
- 1 tri-tip roast about 2 lbs
- 2 tsp olive oil
For the Rub
- 2½ tbsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp finely ground espresso
- 3 tsp white sugar
- 3 tsp granulated garlic
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp fine ground black pepper
- 1 tsp chipotle chili pepper
Instructions
- Light your grill and set up for two zone cooking. Using a reliable leave-in thermometer, establish grill temperature at 225 °F.
- While the grill is preheating, combine all ingredients for the rub into a shaker bottle. Evenly coat the entire tri-tip with olive oil, and then liberally season all sides of the roast with the rub.
- Add one hickory wood chunk to the hot coals of your grill, and place the tri-tip over indirect heat. Insert a reliable leave-in thermometer into the thickest portion of the meat and close the grill’s lid. Allow the meat to smoke until the internal temperature reaches 115 °F, about one hour.
- Remove the meat from the grill and stoke the coals for high direct heat. Get coals as close to the grill grate as possible. Meat should have the beginnings of a nice bark starting to set by this point.
- Place the meat directly over high heat and flip every 20 seconds. Continue this for about five minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 127 °F.
- Remove meat from grill, tent with foil, and allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving with chimichurri sauce or herb butter.
Notes
Tri-tip, dollar for dollar and from a value perspective, is my favorite cut of beef. I was first introduced to tri-tip while stationed in Southern California circa 1993. It was one of the few cuts of meat I could afford at the time and smoked tri-tip is probably the first cut I “mastered” if there is such a thing (it’s still really cheap in California, by the way).
This inexpensive cut is packed with flavor and can be cooked countless different ways. Today, I’m going to talk about my preferred method of cooking a tri-tip: smoked and seared. You don’t have to have a smoker for this—almost any grill will work.