# tri tip temp question



## sd-josh (Aug 1, 2013)

New here, hope you all don't mind me popping in to ask a question...

I've mostly smoked babybacks, which get more fall-apart-tender the longer you cook them.

I've tried one tri tip, which had great flavor but wasn't tender...it was actually kind of chewy.

Now, googling around, most places say tri tip should be 130 or so.  However, I found a few places that claimed 130 is for a grill, but in a smoker you want to get it to 160, which although well-done will make the tri tip much more tender.  However most of these sites I'm googling to are just articles, written to sell ad space.  I wanted to ask a forum full of people who actually smoke the stuff regularly.

So, how do I get tri-tip tender when it comes out of the smoker?  Get it off at 130, or leave it in a long time to tenderize it?  I know to let it rest for 20 and cut against the grain, but as I said my one attempt at this came out chewy, which I want to avoid this time.

By the way, I've got three tips, each about 3.5 lbs.  I'm gonna do one with bare bones salt/pepper/garlic rub, one with some chili powder added to make it spicier, and one with a beef rub ordered from Oklahoma Joe's in KC for nostalgia - I live in San Diego and I sure do miss the KC bbq joints.

Thanks


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## pineywoods (Aug 1, 2013)

130 -135 and welcome to SMF and get ready for some fine dining


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## webowabo (Aug 1, 2013)

I just did one on the smoker fkr my first time.. 130*It.. I then pulled it and seared on hot grill for 1 min per side. Final IT was 148*.. perfect mrare... and also.. Welcome and good luck


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## themule69 (Aug 1, 2013)

Glad you joined the group. The search bar at the top of any page is your best friend.
About anything you wanna know about smoking/grilling/curing/brining/cutting or slicing
and the list goes on has probably been posted. Remember to post a QVIEW of your smokes.
We are all smoke junkies here and we have to get our fix. If you have questions Post it
and you will probably get 10 replies with 11 different answers. That is because their
are so many different ways to make great Q We all have our own taste.

When you get a chance will you drop by roll call so we can all give you a proper

SMF welcome.

130°-135° then let it rest.

Happy smoken.

David


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## dirtsailor2003 (Aug 1, 2013)

130*-135*. Then foil and let it rest for at least 30 mins-45mins. Make sure when you slice it you slice against the grain. 

The search feature here works great, type in tri tip and you'll be set!


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## badmoont2 (Aug 2, 2013)

I favor the reverse sear technique. I pull at about 130 135 and then sear, the final result should be pink or it will be tough. Like dirtsailor says you need to slice across the grain to maximize tenderness. This is a little tricky because a tri tip has grain running in 3 different directions at various points, so your slicing direction needs to change. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I would suggest going to YouTube and searching for slice tri tip. The video from the Virtual Weber Bullet is a good one.


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## smokinhusker (Aug 2, 2013)

Hello and welcome to SMF!

They've given you the best answers.

How about stopping by Roll Call and introducing yourself.


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## thatcho (Oct 4, 2013)

I can not say enough good about this SMF forum! A lot of helpful threads and members. I just picked up a tri tip and a pork butt gonna give it hell this weekend. Thanks for the tips on TRI TIP will be putting up Pics.


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