<p>It’s been a while since I’ve cooked tri tip in the oven and I can’t remember how I did it. I have 2-3 lb cuts that I’ll cook in the oven. Anyone know at what temp and how long? All of the recipes online are different! I have a dry rub on them right now. Thanks!</p>
<p>I have never eaten or cooked this! But since I have read about tri tip here on CC a couple of times the last couple of weeks, I bought a premarinaded one at Costco last week - haven’t cooked it yet, but I’m guessing its about 2-3 pounds. I planned on grilling mine. But will see what advice you are given…</p>
<p>I should have known this has already been discussed on cc! 
it’s a favorite around here but everyone cooks it differently and I always overcook meat. This is one cut that I heard you shouldn’t overcook!</p>
<p>Just like any other roast - use a meat thermometer. I cut tri-tip in chunks, marinate it with white wine/vinegar/onions/spices, make kabobs and grill them (I lightly sprinkle them with fresh wine/vinegar mix on the grill to keep them moist) . Yummy.</p>
<p>We grill them, well mostly DH does. A couple of hours generally works, leave the fat cap on, low heat, slow cooking is the way he does it. He uses a meat thermometer. Oh, and we cut off a piece and overcook it for D, she likes it that way.</p>
<p>Costco has them? I’ve been looking for them all summer. If they’re marinated, where are they located? Not with the regular meats?</p>
<p>Our Costco sells:</p>
<p>(i) tri-tip roasts
(ii) tri-tip strips
(iii) marinated tri-tip (in the deli section with other ready-to-cook foods) </p>
<p>Now I have something to add to my shopping list tonight… :)</p>
<p>I’d never had tri-tip (or heard of it) til the mid 70’s when I met my husband at Cal Poly, SLO. He is from Santa Maria, just north of Santa Barbara, and trip -tip is the local specialty. At that time you couldn’t buy it outside of the Santa Maria/San Luis Obispo area. It was an extremely inexpensive cut at the time and we used to cook it 3 times a week at least (can’t believe I ever ate that much red meat, along with chorizo a couple of times a week-yikes!) H’s brother actually ran a barbecue business in the 70’s in Santa Maria- you know the ones where they pull a huge grill on a trailer? It should be trimmed with little fat- maybe 1/8" layer. We have always cooked it over indirect heat on a med-high grill to about 130 degrees, then over direct for a couple of minutes on each side. Pull it off the grill and cover it loosely with foil for about 10 minutes and it comes up to temp. at around 135-140 degrees. Slice it thin and serve with salsa and tortillas and Santa Maria style beans. We dry rub it first with Santa Maria seasoning- if you can’t buy it where you live, it can be roughly duplicated (2T each chili powder and seasoned salt, 1 T brown sugar, 1t. pepper, 1-2t garlic powder, some dried parsley and marjoram) for at least an hour. In this area it is best cooked over red oak if you can find it. I have done it in the oven and it takes 35-45 minutes. In the oven, I usually marinate it first to keep it moist, and cook it to around 135 degrees then let it sit to reach temp. Our Costco carries them fresh trimmed perfectly, or pre-marinated, and our Trader Joe’s also has a great pre-marinated cut. Unfortunately the price has gone up considerably since this cut became more well known! Have fun. Now I’m hungry…</p>
<p>If you are ever in the area, there are tri-tip barbecues going in parking lots all around the Santa Maria area- you can find them by the smell!</p>
<p>I buy the Costco tri-tip, it’s the best. Vons used to sell very good marinated tri-tips at the butcher counter, but haven’t been there in awhile.</p>
<p>Works every time:
Marinate overnight in 1.5 cup soy sauce + cloves of 1 garlic. Sometimes add 1/4 cup tequila.</p>
<p>Grill about 10 minutes each side on gas bbq, transfer to oven set at 325F convection roast.
Be sure to fold the pointiest tip under, or it will become overdone. Roasting time depends on thickness, but about 30-40 minutes is usually enough to get it to 160 inside. Absolutely can’t overcook it, or it loses all the flavor. Slow grilling is the best, but I never have the time.</p>
<p>I used to season them myself but have taken to buying them preseasoned at Costco or Trader Joe’s. I think you don’t get the same crisp crust on the preseasoned ones but it sure makes it easy. Our TJ and Costco both carry several different season styles. They all share the same criteria of being extremely salty. I have never cooked one in the oven. Lately I have been cooking them on the gas grill. First I sear both sides on high heat after which I move the tri-tip to indirect heat and cook another 35-45 minutes.
Tri-tip also lends itself perfectly to cooking a day ahead and dicing up and using in burritos. My H actually prefers it the 2nd day after it has had a chance to firm up.
Takeitallin- A couple of months ago at our local Costco they had a traveling event featuring tri tip from The Hitching Post in Casmelia. They were sampling them and it was delicious. They were frozen and already cooked. You just reheated in the oven in foil. I had it in my freezer saving it for a day when I had nothing to cook for dinner. We went out of town and my S and his friend decided to cook this tri-tip. They did not read the instructions and did not realize it was precooked. They grilled it to a crisp. I was so mad. When I went out of town I told my S there was food in the freezer for him. I meant frozen pizza not the expensive tri-tip.</p>
<p>^^^^We have been there and their tri-tip is great, but I have never seen it frozen. I would buy that in a minute! I have to laugh at the fate of your tri-tip because it sounds like something my son would do. I would be fuming!</p>
<p>This is fascinating. I have never heard of this cut of meat before! According to Wikipedia, it would appear to be something found most often in California.</p>
<p>^^^^I think it is hard to find elsewhere. My D goes to school in Pennsylvania and we could not find it there although it may be available in some locations. Up until 10 or 15 years ago, it was sometimes hard to find outside of a small region in Central Coastal California. Now I think it is available pretty much everywhere here. When we first moved down to Los Angeles, we would stock up on it when we were in Santa Maria because we couldn’t find it in LA.</p>
<p>Toledo, I found it a week or two ago at the most - on the end cap, across and a bit down from the roasted chickens (heading slightly towards the baked goods end of the store).</p>
<p>Consolation, tritip has been very popular here in WA (especially in Eastern WA). It is the perfect cut for kabobs.</p>
<p>Thanks, abasket.</p>
<p>I am also near Santa Maria CA (tri tip country). We would never cut it up for kabobs. Only cook it with seasonings over the grill or in the oven. Generally in the oven about 30 minutes per pound but check with a thermometer. You can buy the seasonings [Susie</a> Q’s Brand »](<a href=“http://www.susieqbrand.com/]Susie”>http://www.susieqbrand.com/) on line. Susie is a part of an old Santa Maria family. This is the way tri tip was meant to be. (I am not related to anyone in that business or family)…,mom60 I can’t believe your son did that. Yikes.</p>
<p>I was thinking back to the first time I had tri-tip. We had just moved to Santa barbara and went to my sister and BIL and they made it. Served with salsa and beans and garlic bread. Back in those days tri-tip was a treat. There was no such thing as pre-seasoned. Each cook had their special seasoning mix and their own way of cooking. The best was the tri-tip cooked all day over real wood. Also you couldn’t just go to the market and by it. People had their “favorite” butcher shop. The tri-tip of today just doesn’t compare. I think a old school tri-tip cook would not dream of cooking a pre-seasoned piece of meat.</p>
<p>My D was soooo mad about the tri-tip. She had been waiting to try it. Adding insult was S cooked it with his friend who drives me crazy. His friend is the kid who I am always feeding and have been feeding for the past 16 yrs. Plus since it was a roadshow I just can’t go back into Costco and buy another one.</p>
<p>It always amazes me that people would use inferior cuts of meat for kabobs. Tri tip is the perfect kabob cut because it is not very expensive yet has just the right amount of marbling, and the kabobs come out nice and juicy. Give it a try!</p>
<p>Lately I’ve been seeing tri tips cut and sold as “Coulotte Steaks”, which would be perfect for kebabs, and less expensive per pound.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Articles/Cooking-Tips--Techniques-642/beef-cuts.aspx[/url]”>http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Articles/Cooking-Tips--Techniques-642/beef-cuts.aspx</a></p>