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Spring & Summer Grilling
By John
I've always felt the real first day of spring was easter Sunday, not the vernal equinox or (DC locals) when the cherry blossoms bloom.
So, in that vein, I'm sharing with ya'll an incredible, specialized grilling recipe that I picked up while stationed in the Santa Maria Valley in California: grilled tri-tip.
There's a great history here, that traces back to the era of the first Santa Maria cattle ranchers.
In the early days of the great California ranchos the rancheros gathered to help each other brand their calves each spring. The host would prepare a Spanish style barbecue as a thank you for his vaqueros, family and friends. Under the oaks of this serene little coastal valley, they would enjoy a traditional feast that included beef barbecued over a red oak fire, and served with Pinquito beans bread, salsa and homemade desserts. Still today, this practice continues as a ceremony of spring on the area's cattle ranches.
Celebrating grilling your cows by.....um, grilling your cows. I like it!
Recipe below the fold:
So, like I said....it's specialized. Anyone can order a tri-tip cut from the butcher and grill it, but to really unlock the flavor you need two key ingredients: red oak and Santa Maria seasoning. And unless you live in or around the valley, you'll need to special order both.
First, the tri-tip. Tri-tip is a select cut of meat....kind of a hybrid between a steak and a roast, the triangular end-piece of a sirloin (hence the name). Not a whole lot of folks outside the valley are familiar with the cut, but your butcher will be......so the first step is to ask him to find it for you. If he doesn't know what you're talking about, show him this handy little graph:
Red oak: key, absolutely key. Once I moved to the Rockies, the wood was impossible to find locally. Just doesn't grow around here. But I did find that JN Firewood ships specialized grilling wood nationwide, so you can order the oak here. Comes in 10lb-30lb boxes, I've had a good experience with the company, recommend the 30lb box.
Santa Maria Seasoning: also key. Easily the best steak/chicken seasoning that I've ever tasted. It was how I got hooked on grilling tri-tip in the first place. Impossible to purchase outside the Santa Maria area, but you can order online here. (click through to products, then seasoning...it'll be the first item at the top of the page).
Directions
1) Rub down the tri-tip with a generous amount of Santa Maria Seasoning the night before grilling.
2) In a charcoal grill or fire pit, burn your red oak down to red embers.
3) Lower the actual grill until it is a scant inch or so away from the embers, and sear the tri-tip on both sides. Do this for the same reason that you sear a roast before throwing it in the slow cooker, it locks the flavor inside. Very important step.
4) Bring the grill back to the normal level, and cook uncovered. Turn every 5 minutes or so, for about 40 minutes. I use the 20 minutes per inch of meat rule of thumb.
5) If you cook tri-tip past medium rare, cutting the meat can be like sawing through leather. I use a meat thermometer to test....once it is about 145 degrees, it's medium rare. If you're an experienced griller, you can use the old "flexed muscle" method....when the tri-tip feels like a half-flexed bicep, it's ready. Too imprecise for me, I use the thermometer.
6) Pull the cut off the grill and let sit for 20 minutes. The wait allows for the residual heat to continue to cook the insides, and it lets the core juices marinate the inside.
7) Slice as thinly as you can, into 5-6 inch long strips, about as wide as a ruler.
Serve with pinquito beans, salad, and warm bread. The local custom is to cover the meat strips in salsa, which I like...but prefer the taste of the special seasoning. I usually rub down a couple of chicken legs with the Santa Maria seasoning and grill those up too....one, it's delicious, and two...not everyone likes red meat (if it's a guy, demand his man-card before serving him the chicken). Didn't realize it until I got up here, but Easy Street beer -a Colorado local brew- is excellent with the tri-tip.
I can't say that it'll be the best meat you've ever had, but it will definitely be close. Wouldn't recommend going through the motions of buying the seasoning and oak if it wasn't 100% worth it. This bbq, like my chili (that recipe in the fall!), is one of those things that your friends start to demand if you go a month or two without grilling it up. It's one of those "makes you popular" recipes, ha.
If you decide to try out this little bbq experiment, don't hesitate to email me if you've got any questions. And let me know how it turns out!
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Comments
Nicholas, I hear you Aussies have a strong grilling tradition...kind of like the Americans.
Would be interested to hear more.
And I'd totally try that recipe out tonight....if it wasn't 18 degrees and snowing out.
Yes, we certainly do like our grilled meat, but I'm afraid that my personal philosophy is to keep the BBQ simple, since I don't like to cover up the taste of the meat too much. The most important thing is getting good quality cuts and cooking it properly - which for me, means a fairly high heat, so that it's cooked and slightly charred on the outside, without making the inside tough. With a steak you get something like medium rare, but you can also get good results with chicken and pork, as long as you make sure it *just* cooks though.
I did make a nice roast once, again rubbing it with olive oil, lemon juice and black pepper, but I also cut many slits into the meat, and stuffed them with garlic clove slivers and rosemary. You can roast on an enclosed barbeque too, I believe, but I can't say I have much experience with that.
I'll keep a look out for red oak chips, I don't hold much hope of finding them, but I'd certainly like to try it :)
hey you can always order from the links above!
gives the meat an amazing flavor.
Glorious! When are we invited over? I'll bring beer
Now this is perfect timing! Some friends and I are just starting to plan for our annual "On The Grill!" themed dinner party for 4th of July. This is definitely going on the list.
I asked a couple of meat guys today (hard to find any real butchers anymore) and they had never heard of this cut of meat. Finally called a neighboring city to a meat market and the butcher said he has almost no calls for that cut in the twenty years or so he was there. Seems like they use it for hamburger meat around here.
Now brisket, he can't keep enough. It is the tough stringy cut at the front of the cow. The cut that Texans learn to b-b-q first when they are growing up. You can't grill it, it has to be slow cooked and smoked at around 200degrees and basted many times. But when finished it is fork tender and depending on your sauce and smoke, really delicious and mouth watering.
Cooking good Brisket is more of an learned art than anything except maybe baking, which I can't do except for biskets and pan breads.
I like oak for smoke, with a touch of mesquite for bite. Make my own sauce, which will forever be a family secret.
Thanks for the info and a howdy to Nicholas, my respect for you Aussies is well...Awesome.
Papa Ray
West Texas
USA
ahhhh....well I hate to say it Papa, but if you're really determined to try this out, it sounds like you'll have to order online. That's funny that you couldn't find tri-tip in Texas...I figured if there was one state OTHER than California that had it, it'd be the Lone Star State.
Anyway, you can order from Omaha Steaks here.
Now since I've found a guy who will order the stuff locally for me, I've never used Omaha Steaks for tri-tip before.
I have, however, ordered steak from the company in the past, and was happy with the service.
Heh, hey no one said good bbq was cheap!
whoops, that Omaha steaks link orders pre-marinaded tri-tip. Screw that, go with the Santa Maria Seasoning.
Papa, you sound like a seasoned (har) bbq guy...so I'm sure with a little persistence you can find the stuff. There's only two tri-tips on the cow, so usually it gets cubed or ground. Gotta get preemptive on the butcher.
Luckily there's plenty of meat guys down there in TX :P
tri-tips are quite popular here in Michigan. I use a dry rub, wrap it in suran wrap for a day. I let it warm up to room temp before cooking. I get the Weber smokin' hot and go by a simple rule. 2 minutes on one side, flip for 12 minutes, flip for 12 minutes again. Remove and let stand 5 minutes, carve per John's instructions. Good stuff!!!
Papa Ray,
I have never had brisket like I did when I lived in Texas. I've tried to do it since and just can't do it any justice, a little help for the Yankee????
I was always told by Texans that corned beef was a screwed up brisket, and while I love corned beef, I sure miss a good brisket.....
Please! The red oak and secret seasoning aren't essential to " unlocking the flavor"by any means. Tri-tip is such a great cut it's almost impossible to grill or smoke it and have it come out tasting anything less than...bonerific. Just don't buy the trimmed tri-tip. Leave all that fat on there and let the heat, smoke and fat do their thing.
I've live here all my life and in Central California [url=http://www.cyberbilly.com/meathenge/archives/001067.html]Pappy's rub[\url] is the most popular. Pinquito beens are nice, my favorites by far. But the only essential in my mind is to have some good fresh bread or rolls around to make an improvised sandwich or just mop up all that juicy tri-tip goodness.
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If you want a bit of variety, here's my very simple recipe for delicious barbeque chicken:
Buy skinless chicken thigh fillets. Lay them flat, sprinkle a little salt on top, then drizzle a little olive oil and lemon juice all over. Gently rub the liquid in to the meat. Grind fresh black pepper over the top. Turn over and repeat on the other side. Then, place them on the grill, and cook through.
Tender and delicious!