The Official Tri-Tip thread

[Art Vandelay]

Has anyone ever Tragered a the Morton's tri-tip they sell at Costco? I'm going to try one, to feed the sister missionaries tomorrow. They don't eat much, and compliment whatever you give them, so its a pretty easy crowd to please. I assume it will cook the same as a regular tri, but don't want to screw it up- Mrs. V is a little harsher critic, especially when feeding company.

[PaloAltoCougar]

Has anyone ever Tragered a the Morton's tri-tip they sell at Costco? I'm going to try one, to feed the sister missionaries tomorrow. They don't eat much, and compliment whatever you give them, so its a pretty easy crowd to please. I assume it will cook the same as a regular tri, but don't want to screw it up- Mrs. V is a little harsher critic, especially when feeding company.

Tomorrow is apparently Sister Missionary Guinea Pig Day. My Traeger arrived yesterday, I've done the initial burn-in, and tomorrow I'm doing my first cook. We're hosting the sisters and I'm going to cook up a couple of 'Tips and hope for the best. As one of the missionaries is from mainland China, I fear a misstep on my part could ignite an international incident.

BTW, a failure this tomorrow wouldn't be our first gastronomical gaffe with the mishies. As part of a meal, my wife laid out a platter of prawns which the sisters (this was before the current pair) found inedible, having never seen prawns before (they were from the hinterlands) and which they obviously thought were gross.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

I was debating the tri-tip at Costco this morning, instead went prime rib and a leg of lamb.

[PaloAltoCougar]

Maiden voyage a huge success!

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[PaloAltoCougar]

So the previous post pics may invite more negative comments than this new Traeger convert can withstand, so be gentle. I followed a blended approach espoused by DDD and others. Put the Tips on at 225 and took the IT up to 135 using my new Maverick (a Thermapen is in transit). I was surprised how much the smoker temperature fluctuated. Although I kept it set at 225, the reported temp ranged from just below that to sometimes 275 or more. It took a little over an hour to hit 135, at which point I seared them for 90 seconds on each side on the gas grill. My three female dining companions swooned at the juicy tastiness of both tips--I used our usual Montreal rub on one, and Traeger's Beef Shake on the other.

Several here have mentioned letting the beef come to room temp before grilling. But over the past couple of days I've read multiple reports about why that shouldn't be done (bacterial invasion, among other reasons), and that the best steakhouses NEVER let their meat lounge around, taking it straight from the fridge to the grill. To me, it is a mass of confusion! I went with the fridge-to-grill approach and it worked fine, but I still hunger after the truth, if not more beef, as I just ingested about 16 oz. of savory Tip. Is truly necessary, or at least advisable, to allow your beef to hit room temps before hitting the grill?

Thanks, all, for the suggestions. I look forward to a lot more cooking in the days ahead. And Mrs. PAC is happy that after 40 years I'm starting to pull my weight around the kitchen.

[SCcoug]

Looks good PAC. What were the sides? There should be a thread about them somewhere in the dinner you should check out. I'm a fan of fridge to grill myself. It may be the bbq equivalent of "bro science" but I've heard that fridge to grill gets a more smokey flavor.

[PaloAltoCougar]

Looks good PAC. What were the sides? There should be a thread about them somewhere in the dinner you should check out. I'm a fan of fridge to grill myself. It may be the bbq equivalent of "bro science" but I've heard that fridge to grill gets a more smokey flavor.

The wife was in charge of the sides (I'm a long way from ready to do everything); she steamed some fresh green beans, mashed potatoes with a nice gravy, and a really good salad involving the usual leafy stuff along with a variety of peppers, tomatoes crumbled blue cheese, a few nuts and who knows what else. I'm going to try grilling asparagus along with the main course on my next outing.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Way to go, PAC. Looks tasty.

[YOhio]

Looks awesome, PAC. Your salad description made me laugh.

[TripletDaddy]

Nice job PAC. Hopefully you found the whole process incredibly simple. How long did you let the tips rest before carving?

as for cold vs bringing to temp, go cold. Bring to temp for searing a steak but for smoke go cold. That's just my opinion and I'm sure others have different advice. Plus, the advice changes all the time anyway, experiment and have fun.

[TripletDaddy]

Also time to invest in rubs, either make your own or start tracking down specialized rubs for each cut of meat. You are a smoker now so Montreal isn't going to cut it as a go to rub, KC introduced the entire board to the Spade L family of rubs. Those are very consistent, well received, and delicious. There are loads if other great rubs but you can't go wrong with a spade L beef on tip. If they don't have it locally let me know. I would be happy to send you and M-PAC a care package of couples tip rub.

[ERCougar]

I'm curious where you read about the bacterial invasion issue. This would be a surface "invasion" if anything and the temps in the smoker would easily kill these bacteria off.

[ERCougar]

Also time to invest in rubs, either make your own or start tracking down specialized rubs for each cut of meat. You are a smoker now so Montreal isn't going to cut it as a go to rub, KC introduced the entire board to the Spade L family of rubs. Those are very consistent, well received, and delicious. There are loads if other great rubs but you can't go wrong with a spade L beef on tip. If they don't have it locally let me know. I would be happy to send you and M-PAC a care package of couples tip rub.

Have you tried Spade L for pork shoulder? I have one that I make from scratch but I'm getting lazy. I'm with you on the chicken and beef rubs.

[TripletDaddy]

Have you tried Spade L for pork shoulder? I have one that I make from scratch but I'm getting lazy. I'm with you on the chicken and beef rubs.

Yes. It is good. I'm impressed with spade L overall.

That being said I don't use it much anymore. I use a combo of plowboys and Obie Q. Very nice sweet and heat mix.

[PaloAltoCougar]

Also time to invest in rubs, either make your own or start tracking down specialized rubs for each cut of meat. You are a smoker now so Montreal isn't going to cut it as a go to rub, KC introduced the entire board to the Spade L family of rubs. Those are very consistent, well received, and delicious. There are loads if other great rubs but you can't go wrong with a spade L beef on tip. If they don't have it locally let me know. I would be happy to send you and M-PAC a care package of couples tip rub.

The process really is simple, but this first attempt was very time-consuming and labor intensive as I read the threads here, lots of online stuff, and was checking the Maverick and the grill temp about every 30 seconds, pacing like a first-time father in the waiting room. Following the instructions provided here, I let the Tips rest for 15 minutes, despite feeling like a kid hovering over his first Christmas gift.

And thanks to many here and three (yes, I watched three!) videos on cutting tri-tip, I was tossing around terms like grain and bias while I cut away, much to the annoyance of M-PAC. Speaking of whom, I broached the couples rub thing with her, to which she responded, "Does this mean you're going to go out and buy gold chains, a silk robe and some lotions? I said leave me out of this. I'm very happy to eat the work product, but nothing more." Still, I've read (and have been deeply moved by) the many testimonies here of Spade L and I'll track some down this week.

I'm curious where you read about the bacterial invasion issue. This would be a surface "invasion" if anything and the temps in the smoker would easily kill these bacteria off.

I'll go back and look for this tonight. They were talking about the "cracks" in certain cuts of beef and how bacteria in those crannies may not be eliminated. Probably hokum but I'll double-check.