How to Cook a Tri Tip on a Propane Grill

By: Kurt Schrader

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Prepared properly, tri tip offers up many the flavors and textures that grilled beef lovers crave -- a rich beefy and buttery taste, a kiss of smoke, a crusty exterior and melt in your mouth juiciness in the center -- all in an inexpensive beef cut. Traditionally, tri tips are cooked over smoldering red oak wood chunks on Santa Maria-style grills -- which are basically a large fire box or pit over which a heavy metal grate is hung. You can, however, get a nice, smoky barbecue taste and aroma for your tri tip on a propane grill by adding woodchips in a smoker box or pouch to the hot grilling grate.

Step 1

Remove the tri tip from the refrigerator, then season it to taste with flavors like minced fresh garlic and a liberal application of salt and pepper. Allow the tri tip to stand at room temperature for about 1 hour. For deeper flavor, you can also let the seasoned meat rest in the refrigerator overnight up to 24 hours, but be sure to allow it to come to room temperature again before cooking.

Step 2

Pat the tri tip dry using paper towel. Try, however, to keep as much seasoning as possible adhered to the meat.

Step 3

Soak smoking wood chips in water for at least 30 minutes.

Step 4

Place soaked wood chips into a smoker box or an aluminum foil pouch poked with holes using a fork or skewer.

Step 5

Light the grill and turn all burners to high. Preheat the grill for at least 15 minutes.

Step 6

Clean the grill grate using a wire grill brush.

Step 7

Turn off the burners on one half of the grill, leaving the other half of the grill on high.

Step 8

Place smoker box or aluminum foil pouch filled with the soaked wood chips on the cooking grate over the high heat side of the grill. Wait for the smoker box, or pouch, to begin smoking heavily before placing the tri tip on the grill.

Step 9

Place the tri tip on cool side of grill for about 15 to 30 minutes. Move the tri tip to the high heat side when it reaches around 10 degrees below your desired level of doneness -- 115 degrees Fahrenheit for rare, 120 F for medium-rare, 130 F for medium or 145 F for medium-well as measured by a meat thermometer.

Step 10

Sear the tri tip over the high heat part of the grill -- flipping frequently -- until well caramelized on both sides; this should take about 4 to 8 minutes.