Name: Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 53 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper (freshly ground); 1 1/2 Tablespoons Kosher Salt; 3 Tablespoons Garlic Powder; 3 pounds Tri-Tip

Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip on the barbecue grill is a delicious sirloin, with a simple rub and cooked to perfection on the Barbecue Grill. If it’s raining outside, use your Air Fryer or Mealthy Crisplid on your Instant Pot, Mealthy MultiPot or Pressure Cooker.

Santa Maria Style Barbecue Grilled Tri-Tip

Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip

Tri-Tip is a triangular piece of beef from the bottom sirloin. Up until the early 1950’s Tri-Tip was used for ground beef.

It often times was tossed aside by butchers and wasn’t cooked whole until the early 1950’s.

It became popular in Santa Maria, California and is traditionally cooked over a wood fire with a cast iron grate that can be lifted up and down by a pulley. The locals used their native coast live oak, which is often referred to as red oak wood. The seasoning is very basic, salt, pepper, garlic.

Cast of Ingredients for Santa Maria Style Barbecue Grilled Tri-Tip

Cast of Ingredients for Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip

I’ve tried making tri-tip with so many different seasonings, spices and marinades and I always come back to this very simple recipe.

Ingredients for Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip

Tri-tip
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder

The instructions on the recipe card below are for using a Charcoal Grill, an Air Fryer and a Mealthy Crisplid!

Remove some of the fat, but leave some on one side. Mix together seasonings and rub it into both sides of meat.

(If you prefer an Argentine flair, prepare my Argentine Chimichurri Sauce and use instead of the seasonings listed here.) I like to use garlic with parsley, Kosher Salt and fresh ground pepper. If you would like a stronger smoky flavor, try the Rachael Ray Applewood Smoked Sea Salt.

It gives a great smoked taste that many people, including my husband, love. I’m not a fan of smoked meat, so it’s a bit too much for me when we cook on the grill, but I do love it on rice and on meat cooked inside.

Some people like to add extra pepper, so if you like pepper, use a bit more. It helps make a nice crust while searing.

Another recipe to try on the grill is my Baby Back Carolina Style BBQ Pork Ribs. It is my favorite recipe when cooking St. Louis and Baby Back style ribs on the grill!

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for indirect (one side of grill) heating. We mostly use our Extra Large Charcoal Grill for all of our grilling and a Weber Chimney Starter to light the coals.

A delicious paring for a side dish is my Instant Pot Pasta Cheese and Peas Salad, Pressure Cooker Basic Risotto Recipe with Peas and Carrots, or my incredible Instant Pot Colcannon recipe.

Dump the hot coals on top of the cold coals. Since we use a Weber Chimney Starter, rather than lighter fluid, the hot coals will start to spread and heat the cold coals, as opposed to all the coals turning white right away.

Place the Tri-Tip on to the Charcoal Grill, fat side up and give it a good sear, about 4 minutes. Flip over the meat and sear the other side for about 4 minutes.

Move the Tri-Tip over to the other side of the Charcoal Grill (in my case, to the left) and close the lid for ten minutes. Open the lid and flip over the Tri-Tip. Close the lid again. After ten minutes, insert a thermometer into the meat.

For rare to medium rare, the Digital Meat Thermometer should read 120-130 degrees.

Cover the meat and allow it to rest for 15 minutes, so that the juices will redistribute and not all leak out when you slice the Tri-Tip.

Slice the meat thin and against the grain.

Garnish with Argentine Chimichurri Sauce or Gremolata, if desired and serve with Mexican Corn on the Cob (Elote), Creamy Mashed Potatoes, Garlic Whipped Potatoes, or Mushroom Risotto and a green vegetable.

Finish off your meal with a cool bowl of my Creamy Grapes Salad.

Kitchen Equipment and Essentials

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Here is the handy printable recipe: