Mother's Day Tri Tips. BTW, lesson learned; sharing a pitcher of scratch margaritas with the wife will induce temporary amnesia when it comes to picture taking. My photo journal isn't as complete as it could have been. The last picture was actually this morning's tri tip fajitas breakfast.
1. Marinade ingredients for two tri tip roasts, small ones, about 2 lbs each. Marinade ingredients: 3/4 cup EVOO, 1/2 cup soy sauce (or Jugo Magi if you have it), two tsp minced garlic (fresh or canned), 1/3 cup lime juice, 1 yellow onion, 1 tsp ground cumin, and 6 Tbs dark brown sugar).
2. Marinade ingredients go into the blender.
3. The brown result.
4. Meat double bagged in Ziplocks.
5. Add the marinade to the beef, squeeze out the air, and toss in the fridge for 24-48 hours. Once I take the meat out of the marinade I lightly boil and reduce the marinade on the stove for about 20 minutes. It makes a fantastic onion gravy addition to the fajitas.
6. I build my fire on one side of the grill, then brown the roasts directly over the hot charcoal and a strong wood (hickory or mesquite) for five minutes per side (no picture. margarita amnesia). Then I transfer the meat to a pan with four yellow onions I want to caramelize (two per roast). I like using a pan because the meat and onions still pick up the smoke flavor but all the juices from the meat stay in the pan and mix with the onions. The roasts reach 125F IT in about 20 minutes after browning, 135-145F (my wife's preference) in a total of 30-35 minutes after the browning. I generally remove the roasts when they hit the IT and let them rest for 10-15 minutes. I stir the pan drippings into the onions and let them finish caramelizing while the meat rests.
7. Meat, caramelized onions, marinade gravy, and a little sour cream. My wife likes to add salsa or pico de gallo, plus fresh guacamole too (made it, margarita amnesia). I think her additions hide the flavor of the caramelized onions and the marinade gravy. Regardless, these fajitas are packed with flavor and oh so satisfying.
