Tri-tip question

[Hayden McCall]

My next tri is definitely going to be low and slow. This one had great flavor, but despite cutting against the grain, it was impossible to take a bit from a fajita without pulling the entire strip of meat out. Then again, perhaps it's just not an ideal cut to be used for this application.

 

[K Kruger]

No, it's quite good for that.

Try low/slow. Slice thinly after resting then cut each slice lengthwise - for fajitas.

 

[r benash]

Originally posted by Hayden McCall:
My next tri is definitely going to be low and slow. This one had great flavor, but despite cutting against the grain, it was impossible to take a bit from a fajita without pulling the entire strip of meat out. Then again, perhaps it's just not an ideal cut to be used for this application.

No not the ideal cut for fajita IMHO, but if you cook to rare side and are meticulous to cut across grain and thin it pull nicely on the bite. I don't use it often this way though. But when I did - more to the rare side for sure. That said and done right I actually liked it more than skirt or flank both for mouth feel and pull. Thought it had more flavor, but that's just my opinion.

I have actually used top round, often mis- labeled as london broil, which I think should be flank by tradition for fajitas. Tri is definitely better than that for sure.

 

[r benash]

Originally posted by K Kruger:
No, it's quite good for that.

Try low/slow. Slice thinly after resting then cut each slice lengthwise - for fajitas.

Yes, forgot that. When I have used tri and top round for fajitas I start with a horizontal cut then vertical. That seems to work quite well for bite/pull. You don't get the hole piece pulling out of the tortilla and it bites off well. A big part though is still not cooking past rare. Definitely not past medium rare.

 

[Mike Newhouse]

Originally posted by Scott P.:
The last time I saw tri-tip locally, it was priced at $7.99/lb. My local Sam's can't get it and I am having a heck of a time find a butcher around here.

I had never done tri-tip before so I picked up a pair at my local Costco for $5.89/lb. Seems pricey to me as that's similar to the full ribeye primal we get every month or so.

But I must say, I used the reverse sear method on my 22.5 OTS and it was fantastic. Earlier last week I reverse seared a 2" ribeye exactly the same way and I really wasn't impressed. I didn't care for the texture of the final product. But the tri-tip is an excellent cut for this method.

-mike

 

[r benash]

Yo Mike. Wait a second. Bone in ribeye is my favorite steak and roast.

There's no comparison IMHO to BI Ribeye and Tri Tip - ever. Heck they are almost exactly from extreme locations on the "4 legger".

If I'm at the meat counter and bone in primal ribeye is the same price or cheaper than tri tip I'm buying the ribeye, well maybe a tri roast or two. But the money will go to ribeye for me.

That said. I've done the sear both ways on both cuts, and to me it made no real difference. It was more about convenience.

So not quite understanding how a reverse sear turned you on the ribeye or changed texture.

After all the sear is just adding carmelization IMHO, nothing more. Really just surface treatment. So wondering what else was wrong?

 

[Hayden McCall]

Excuse my ignorance, but I'm simply not visualizing this "horizontal cut then vertical." I'm aware that the grain changes on a tri-tip at various points on the cut, as illustrated in the one section of this forum. However, the bulk of the grain appears to run the length of the roast. So typically I have the roast in front of me with that length running left to right. I cut the roast with the knifepoint facing 90 degrees away from me, then 45 degrees to the side, so I'm going against the grain twice.

Could someone please attempt to elaborate one what you're specifically referring to? I'm really struggling with this. LOL Tri-tip seems like one of those cuts where, even cooking it to perfection isn't enough. The cut seems to be as important, if not more so, to achieving the type of bite/chew you're looking for when tackling what is otherwise a fairly tough piece of meat.

 

[Bob Correll]

Hayden, I think the difference is often the butcher's trim of the tri tip.
I wasn't understanding the 2 cut deal either because mine looked like this:

And Jim's recent cook/purchase looked similar to mine.

The full tri tip roast has an end/corner piece that runs more or less at a 45 to the long piece.
Many separate the two before slicing.
But all cuts are through the meat vertically, as far as I know.
I think the reference to horizontal cut was for fajitas, etc.

 

[r benash]

For the fajita discussion. The horizontal cut is just to reduce the over all thickness of the entire roast by 1 half, more if you want.

Think of cutting a roll in half. That's what we are talking about. You can make several horizontal cuts if you like and want to shoot for more uniform thickness.

Then do the vertical cuts on each of the two (or more) large pieces across the grain as usual.

You do this when it comes of the grill and prepping the meat for fajitas. I've done the same with a bottom round.

 

[Hayden McCall]

Originally posted by r benash:
For the fajita discussion. The horizontal cut is just to reduce the over all thickness of the entire roast by 1 half, more if you want.

Think of cutting a roll in half. That's what we are talking about. You can make several horizontal cuts if you like and want to shoot for more uniform thickness.

Then do the vertical cuts on each of the two (or more) large pieces across the grain as usual.

You do this when it comes of the grill and prepping the meat for fajitas. I've done the same with a bottom round.

Ok. I got it.

Thanks for the elaboration. Sometimes I cut the meat before grilling, and just use a flat, perforated Weber grill pan. Works wonderfully, and I don't have to wait for the meat to rest before slicing it. In fact, in a gathering situation, it's awesome because it allows you to go straight from the grill into a tortilla.