Perfect Grilled Tri-Tip

From time to time, my butcher has tri-tips for sale.  For those of you who don't know what a tri-tip is, it is the bottom sirloin roast.  Here is an explanation from Wikipedia. I think it is a very flavorful cut of beef.  The only problem is, it is hard to grill as it swells up like a basketball while grilling.  So, I have taken to smoking them.  But, I had one in the freezer and wanted to grill it up.  So, this past Sunday I decided to try one in the Pittsburgh Rare style.

What is Pittsburgh Rare?  It is a method of cooking a steak that we like around here.   You take a screaming hot grill and put a think cut steak on the hottest part of the grill (perfect for a tri-tip).  Once the first side on is starting the char, you flip it over until the second side chars.  The result?  A crispy outside and a red, juicy interior.

So, first, I seasoned both sides of the tri-tip with the following:

Granulated Garlic
Onion Powder
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper

Then, I placed the meat over the hottest part of the grill, then flipped when it was starting the char...(I threw a piece of oak in with the charcoal as well for some flavor.  Oak and beef are excellent together!)

I cooked to an internal temperature of 140 F, then removed from the grill and let rest for five minutes...

Then I sliced...

The thing I liked about this was that you get something for everyone:  medium-rare, medium, and medium well on the same piece of meat.

This was the best tri-tip I had ever grilled, hands down.  Tender and juicy.

I may still smoke them from time to time, but since I have the grilling technique down pat, I will grill more than I smoke for sure...

Thanks for stopping by...

Bill