Grilled or Oven-Roasted Santa Maria Tri-Tip Recipe (2024)

Ratings

4

out of 5

2,650

user ratings

Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.

Cooking Notes

vsproctor

The best most under-used cut of meat. This is a wonderful recipe but even if your missing any of the rub ingredients, It will still be delicious. Alternative is raise heat to 425F, skip searing (really it will be OK) and over-roast for 25 minutes; cover loosely and after 10 minutes dig in.

Joyce W

I cook this different than everyone else...I get a large tri tip, put some Texas bbq dry roast rub on it, wrap,it in foil and put it in the oven at 250 for about 3 hrs...low and slow....absolutely the best. My three grandsons cannot believe that’s all I do to it, nothing is better!

CrumbBum

I usually do the tri tip on the grill - browning the fat side and then moving it to indirect for 10-15 minutes at highest temp. Rainy weather necessitated oven work. Let sit on counter 1 hour. Browned in cast iron then tried roasting at 350 but the temp was too low and after 20 mins it was at 40 degrees F. Upped oven temp to 400 and roasted another ten minutes to 130F. Highly recommend roasting at 400F or above for 15 mins then check temp. 130F was perfect medium rare and juicy!

Mandy

I am born and raised in santa maria 5th generation. Along with tri tip goes pinquita beans, green salad, garlic butter french bread, and salsa. Coffee in the rub is a new one to me, but i will try it out. It is always served medium rare at best and the bread is excellent dipped in the drippings from the meat.

From Santa Maria

I would recommend that nytimes send a journalist out to Santa Maria. Maybe they can still find some of the people involved in the original, for real, Santa Maria style barbecue. Santa Maria style barbecue is not just a recipe, but an entire process. If you want to experience what we from Santa Maria have experienced, you need the entire package. A good starting point would be to contact Valley Christian high school in Santa Maria. They had one of the best stands in town.

Furch

Also, you need to grill french bread (garlic salt & butter), cook some chili beans and you need salsa. Salsa: tomatoes, onions (red), cilantro, lemon juice, garlic salt, pepper, jalapeno-diced small, mix well, taste. make a salad; use ranch dressing (must use buttermilk hidden valley ranch mix). This is known as Santa maria Style BBQ. Red oak or other wood instead of coals. Let it rest 20 minutes before cutting (don't lose the juices):make a sandwich with chili beans,salsa & bread

Eloise

I wish the additional information about oven-roasting options would show up on the iPad app version of this recipe.

Gary

This is not Santa Maria style bar b que. SorryI have cooked Santa Maria Style for hundreds of people.The following is required to get it right:1. Red Oak logs for the fire, Do't let the fire go to coals, there should be some flames to lick at the bottom of the tri tip.2. the dry rub is Garlic Salt, Lawry's seasoned salt, salt, and pepper with a pinch of sugar.I would try to get choice or better for the tri tip because it is a little toughHave fun good grillin.

LeeZ

Suggested oven version.
Use kitchen twine to tie trimmed roast in compact loaf shape. Folding over thin edge. Coat with Kitchen Bouquet, garlic power, salt and pepper. Let marinate for 1 day or at least a couple of hours in plastic bag or glass bowl. Bring to room temp before roasting.
Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place on foil covered grill pan.
Put in oven for 7 mins per pound. Then turn off oven... DO NOT OPEN OVEN for 2 1/2 hrs. Residual heat will result in a perfectly cooked med-rare roast.

Jeff from Pennsylvania

Several important suggestions:1. Use the dry rub of your choice and wrap in plastic wrap over night.2. Remove to room temp for about an hour.3. Pre-heat grill to medium high and DON'T over cook as many recipes suggest - you will greatly toughen and ruin a nice cut.4. For a two pounder about 10 mins a slde rotating once for those grill marks.5. Remove and rest for about 10 minutes, inspecting it so you cut across the grain.

Margaret

Made tri tip for the first time following the oven instructions and it came out perfectly! I omitted coffee from the rub and poked holes in the roast for a few slivers of garlic it tasted amazing! Make sure you brown it in a pan before putting it in the oven as this is integral for a delicious BBQ-like outer crust. Inside it was moist and not overcooked. My other half loved it!

Melissa

This was great except I'd recommend removing it before it reaches 130 (for medium rare) because it cooks more as it sits. It was closer to medium/medium well after sitting. Delicious anyway!

Mike Michaud

This was outstanding and I made it exactly "as is." I was concerned because it was a thick piece of meat and so I was thinking with something this thick, braising might be better. But I followed the recipe to a "t" and it came out at 140 degrees. Let it sit and then ate. Also, the rub is very, VERY tasty. Not too spicy. I will definitely make this again and it's the sort of thing I'll probably save to make for friends, especially on a summer weekend.

Mark

Outstanding. Used the accompanying rub recipe overnight. Oven method after cast iron stovetop sear worked great, but happy to have pulled the meat out at 127-128 degrees. 130 would have been a bit overdone. Good carving directions. The hints of cinnamon and clove in the coffee rub really gave the meat a mysterious and delicious flavor. I expect the same method would work just fine with flank steak when tri tip is hard to score.

tuner won

I'm sure this is a good recipe, but Santa Maria style tri-tip is always done over an oak fire that has burned down to coals. That's what Santa Maria style barbeque is all about.

Willow

High heat on grill for 6minutes per side

Dr Slow Cook

Dear NYT A tritip needs to be dry rubbed, seared on grill, and then slow cooked at 250 with onions covered for moist delicious tender flavor…out west…we do it bestI do love a good Bronx pizza, but stay in your lane.Dr. Slow Cook, San Diego

Joye

I followed this recipe but omitted the cloves (just didn’t have any on hand); but it came out great!! Would recommend!

rosenc

Use the NYT California All-purpose Beef Rub in the link. This recipe is fire.

AC

I was really looking forward to making this. Ordered a tri-tip. In NYC. When I picked it up it wasn't even 1 1/2 lbs. Turns out it's dry aged. CA style tri-tip is fresh according to the butcher. Also, I'm thinking (with my little piece of meat) that even 2 lbs would not be nearly enough for 8-10 people. I'll keep looking for a NOT dry aged tri-tip and look forward to trying this recipe when I find one. In the meantime, I'm punting. Would've been good to know beforehand.

ML

Attempt 1: Overnight dry rub and it was way too salty, ended up using lots of leftovers for fried riceAttempt 2: Good!Dry rubbed for 3 hours only with suggested dry rub. Kept fat layerUsed cast iron for searing. Oven-roasted as per instructions to 137, which was a good medium (pink in the middle, juicy. After resting, thought it might be underspiced, but then cut thin against the grain, and dipped in the plate of juices that accumulated from the cooling time, and was perfectly spiced..

Sue

This was my first time trying tri tip. I chose this recipe because it looked very simple. It IS !I followed it to the letter and came out with the most delicious roast ever. It was tender, flavorful and very easy. I highly recommend this one.The rub recipe made more than 1/3 cup so I've saved the leftover in a tin for next time. . . which will be soon.

Wrench Gordy

Don't overcook it or slow cook it

Michael Roberts

Indirect grilling over real lump charcoal (not brickets...they are an abomination) is the best way for a perfect tri-tip that I've ever found. Try making and varying the ingredients in your rubs, too.

Nancy

Best dry rub ever.

PRC

I don’t know what I did wrong, but this was so tough it was like chewing gum … flavor was great though. I cut across grain and thin sliced. Maybe some are tougher than others.

Jill

When cutting red meat, you should always slice against the grain. This will give you tender slices to enjoy.

Kate

We marinate our tri-tip overnight in equal parts beer and soy sauce. Quick sear; the average tri-tip cooks in 20 minutes on the grill. Should be medium rare. Serve with salsa, pinquitos, slaw, and beer.

Brenda

Made in the oven exactly as described except followed others' advice and took meat out at 127. It was perfect! Will make again

krogers

I set my oven to “roast” which has an initial high heat searing function. I roasted the meat at 400 until the thermometer read 145. The center was nice and pink for my husband and the ends well done for the kids. The best part is that the meat was incredibly juicy.

Melanie

I am not a great cook, hence this app. Thank you for suggesting the soy sauce as a marinade before the rub. Things turned out well! I appreciate everyone’s knowledge

Private notes are only visible to you.

Grilled or Oven-Roasted Santa Maria Tri-Tip Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Grilled or Oven-Roasted Santa Maria Tri-Tip Recipe? ›

On stovetop, heat on high until pan is very hot, then add tri-tip, fat side down. Turn heat to medium-high and sear roast for about 4 minutes. Turn the roast and put it in the oven. Cook it for about 10 minutes a pound, checking with an instant-read thermometer until it reaches 130 degrees for medium-rare.

Is it better to grill or bake tri-tip? ›

Tri tip is MADE for grilling, and it just tastes better than oven roasting. You are going to get an amazingly tender tri tip either way,, but you are only going to get that ultra-crispy black exterior from the grill. The smoke also adds flavor.

How long does tri-tip take on Santa Maria grill? ›

Cover the grill and cook until the temperature of the interior of the tri-tip reaches 120°F for a rare roast, 130°F for medium-rare and 140°F for medium. At this point the meat will take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes to cook, depending on how hot your grill is, how well done you want it, and the size of the cut.

What is the best cooking method for tri tip steak? ›

When it comes to cooking tri-tip in the oven, opt for broiling the meat instead of baking to keep with the fast-cooking methods that make tri-tip recipes most delicious. As with grilling, marinating 2 to 3 hours will help to keep the steaks tender and moist, but it it's not essential.

What is the Santa Maria method of cooking? ›

Santa Maria-style barbecue is technically a fast-cooking method--that is, the meat is cooked over an open pit burning with red oak and cooked just until medium-rare. No low-and-slow smoking, no breakdown of connective tissue (which, luckily, tri-tip is very low in), no fancy barbecue sauces.

Why is grilling better than baking? ›

Grilling is actually healthier than frying or baking. The effect of cooking food with direct heat to obtain that delicious flavor allows the fat to drip off leaving leaner pieces of meat to eat. So not only will your meal taste better without the fat, it is healthier as well.

Should I cover my tri-tip in the oven? ›

Set the tied tri-tip roast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Place in the oven and roast, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes or until an insta-read thermometer registers about 125 (rare) to 135 (medium) degrees F, or according to taste. Remove from the oven and loosely cover with foil.

How do you cook a tri-tip on a Santa Maria grill? ›

Move tri-tips to side without coals (or unlit side of gas grill). Grill, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in thickest portion of meat registers 130°F, 30 to 35 minutes, flipping and basting meat with reserved basting liquid every 5 minutes. Remove tri-tips from grill and cover loosely with aluminum foil.

How do you season a Santa Maria grill? ›

Tools
  1. Buy untrimmed beef or Chicken with skin.
  2. Trim your beef and save the Fat – or – pull the skin off one piece of chicken.
  3. Light up your Santa Maria Grill or Argentine Grill.
  4. Place the fat or skin on top of the grill. ...
  5. Rub the melted fat over the grill grate. ...
  6. Place your meat on the grill and cook.

Do you flip a tri-tip on the grill? ›

Grill on medium heat (300-400°F). Grill for 20 to 40 minutes until internal temp is 135°F. Flip tri-tip every few minutes. Rotate around on grill if grill cooks unevenly.

How do I make my tri-tip not chewy? ›

While the tri tip is a steak-like cut, it has very long muscle fibers, and long muscle fibers mean stringy, chewy steak if you don't handle them correctly. You have to cut across the grain of the meat fibers to shorten the individual fiber pieces you'll be eating.

What temp is tri-tip most tender? ›

Some folks prefer it tri-tip medium rare temp, which means it's cooked to an internal temperature of about 130-135°F (54-57°C). It's tender, juicy, and full of flavor. Here's the deal for that ideal medium rare tri-tip: slow-cook it at about 200°F (104°C). This is the key temperature for the tri-tip.

What is the point of a Santa Maria grill? ›

At its heart, Santa Maria barbecue is a simple style, just meat cooked over a large, iron grill that can be moved up and down to control the temperature.

Why use a Santa Maria grill? ›

The adjustable rack controls the meat's proximity to the heat source, specifically hot coals of native red oak if you are preparing authentic Santa Maria Style Barbecue. This enables you to sear in the flavorful juices, then raise the meat to continue cooking while avoiding burning.

What is Santa Maria seasoning? ›

Santa Maria Seasoning is a flavorful spice blend originating in California, that is perfect for tri-tip steak as well as a variety of other grilled meats. You probably have the main ingredients already! Note: Below you'll find a recipe for a full 1/2 cup (4 oz.) batch of this Santa Maria Tri-Tip Seasoning.

Does tri-tip get tender the longer you cook it? ›

The longer you cook tri-tip the more tender it will become, so you can choose your time according to what you are trying to accomplish. For a more traditional texture you can cook it until it is just heated through, usually 3 to 4 hours.

Should you grill tri tip? ›

If you have a charcoal grill, we recommend cooking tri tip over indirect heat for an extended period, similar to smoking it in a meat smoker. The steak will absorb the smokey flavor well and cook through to your desired doneness level without getting overcooked on the outside.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Pres. Lawanda Wiegand

Last Updated:

Views: 6672

Rating: 4 / 5 (51 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Pres. Lawanda Wiegand

Birthday: 1993-01-10

Address: Suite 391 6963 Ullrich Shore, Bellefort, WI 01350-7893

Phone: +6806610432415

Job: Dynamic Manufacturing Assistant

Hobby: amateur radio, Taekwondo, Wood carving, Parkour, Skateboarding, Running, Rafting

Introduction: My name is Pres. Lawanda Wiegand, I am a inquisitive, helpful, glamorous, cheerful, open, clever, innocent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.