Grilled Tri-Tip Steaks

posted in: Beef 0
Tri-Tip Steak & sides
Tri-Tip Steak & sides
Grilled Tri-Tip Steaks
Grilled Tri-Tip Steaks

Grilled Tri-Tip Steaks

Grilled Tri-Tip Steaks - What per se are tri-tip steaks you ask? They are steaks cut to a thickness of 1 inch from a tri-tip roast. Unless you have access to a Costco or a Good Sam Club there's a good chance you've never seen any tri-tip steaks. Heck, if you don't live in the Western part of the Country you've probably never seen a tri-tip roast at your local grocery store or butcher shop either. Blogs, Forums, and the internet run rampid with pictures, cooks, and recipes of tri-tip roasts so most people have at least heard of tri-tip roasts but you don't often see anything about tri-tip steaks.

By now you're aware that I started with 12 USDA Prime peeled tri-tip roasts that I picked up at Costco and this will be the 5th of 12 cooks. For three of the previous cooks I smoked the tri-tip roasts at various temperatures and they were all taken to an internal temperature of 145ºF. The fourth tri-tip cook was my "TRISKET" cook where the roast was smoked for 2 hours and then cooked like a Brisket to an internal temperature of 200ºF. All the prime tri-tip roast cooks to date have been exquisite! To change things up a bit this time I decided to take a prime tri-tip roast and cut it into 1" thick steaks and grilling them at 450ºF using a direct cooking method until the internal temperature of the steaks reached a medium-rare temperature of 135ºF.

USDA Prime Tri-Tip
USDA Prime Tri-Tip
1" Thick Tri-Tip Steaks
1" Thick Tri-Tip Steaks
Seasoned Tri-Tip Steaks
Seasoned Tri-Tip Steaks
Direct Cooking Configuration
Direct Cooking Configuration

If your wood pellet smoker-grill has the capability of direct cooking configuration like the MAK 2 Star then configure your grill for direct cooking. For best results use searing grates on direct or indirect pit configuration. Whether you're carving a cooked tri-tip roast or cutting a raw roast into steaks care must be taken to ensure you're performing the task against the grain. The grain on different portions of the tri-tip run opposite of each other. For more tri-tip grain information check out this great article and video at the bottom of The Virtual Weber Bullet webpage.

Grilling Tri-Tip Steaks
Grilling Tri-Tip Steaks
Steak Grill Marks
Steak Grill Marks
Medium-Rare Steaks
Medium-Rare Steaks
  • Cut your tri-tip roast into 1 inch thick steaks paying attention to cut against the grain
  • Trim away any excess fat leaving a quarter inch
  • Lightly rub the tri-tip steaks with extra virgin olive oil on all sides
  • Season tri-tip steaks with salt and pepper or your favorite steak seasoning/rub
  • While your wood pellet smoker-grill is preheating allow your tri-tip steaks to come to room temperature
  • Configure your wood pellet smoker-grill for direct cooking if like a MAK 2 Star it has that capability
  • Use searing grates if you have them for best results in direct or indirect cooking mode
  • Preheat the pellet grill to 450ºF plus
  • Grill the steaks on one side for 2 minutes before turning the steaks 90 degrees for those beautiful cross grill marks
  • Grill an additional 2 minutes before flipping the steaks
  • Take the tri-tip steaks to an internal temperature of 135ºF for medium-rare
  • Rest the tri-tip steaks for 5 minutes and serve

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