What are you grilling for Labor Day? My favorite is this cut of beef, a triangle-shaped “tri-tip”, from the bottom sirloin. It’s also called a “Santa Maria steak” because Santa Maria, California is where it first became popular. Typically it is rubbed first with a mixture of salt, black pepper, and garlic salt, and then whatever other seasonings you want, and then barbecued over red oak wood. I love the cut because it’s just a fat, juicy steak that cooks up beautifully on the grill. You can marinate it, or use a classic Santa Maria rub. In this recipe we are starting with the basic rub and adding some herbs and a little cayenne. Some recipes will have you cut the layer of fat off the roast, I prefer to keep it on, and bathe the steak in the juiciness of fat as it cooks. Now, the only problem with tri-tip is that it can be hard to find outside of California, though I understand Costco does carry it. If you can’t find it, you can still use this approach and the Santa Maria rub with a thick (look for a two inch thick or greater) well marbled sirloin steak, or london broil.

Santa Maria Style Tri Tip Recipe
Tri-tip roasts range from 2 1/2 pounds to 4 pounds. Figure on 1/2 pound of meat (before cooking) per person. A Santa Maria rub has salt, pepper, and either garlic salt or garlic powder. That's the base of the rub, anything beyond that is optional. If you don't have access to the tri-tip cut where you are, try using a thick london broil or sirloin steak.
Ingredients
- 1 tri-tip roast, also known as triangle steak, a bottom sirloin cut (anywhere from 2 1/2 pounds to 4 pounds), look for one well-marbled with fat
Santa Maria Rub (enough for a 4 pound roast)
- 1 Tbsp Kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp finely ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dry rosemary (or fresh, finely minced)
- 1/2 teaspoon dry sage
Method


1 Mix the rub ingredients together in a bowl. Place the roast in a roasting pan or a baking pan with edges (this will help keep the rub from getting all over the floor). Sprinkle the rub on the meat on all sides, and massage the rub into the meat. Cover and let sit at room temp for an hour.
2 Prepare your grill for hot direct heat on one side, and indirect heat on the other. (By the way, if you are working with a wood-fired grill, Santa Maria BBQ traditionally uses red oak wood.) Sear the roast on all sides, 3-4 minutes per side. Carefully watch the roast during this process as one side of the roast is typically quite fatty and as the fat heats up it can drip down and cause flare-ups. Keep moving the tri-tip away from the flame if flare-ups occur.
3 Once the tri-tip is seared on all sides, move it away from direct heat and place it fat-side up on the grill rack. If you are using a gas grill with a top rack, I recommend placing the roast on that rack, with an aluminum tray on the bottom rack underneath to catch the fat drippings. If you are grilling on charcoal or wood, you may want to turn the roast over every few minutes, for more even heating. Try to maintain a grill temperature of 250°F to 300°F.
4 Cover the grill and cook until the temperature of the interior of the tri-tip reaches 120°F for a rare roast, 130°F for medium-rare and 140°F for medium. At this point the meat will take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes to cook, depending on how hot your grill is, how well done you want it, and the size of the cut. Note that the interior temperature will continue to rise at least 5°F after you take the roast off the heat.
5 Once the roast reaches temperature, remove it from the grill and let it rest, loosely tented with foil, for 10 minutes. Slice against the grain and serve.
Yield: Serves 5 to 8.







Wow, I’m not the only one that didn’t realize that Labor Day was coming up. That tri tip looks delectable! I am drooling. Maybe we will grill ourselves a tri tip on Monday. For tomorrow, I’m trying out a recipe for Korean galbi.
This is a cut of meat that is best smoked. Utilizing the rub you describe – a slow-cooked roast would be just the thing…
Tri-tip is our favorite to grill quickly too—tender but with good texture and lots of flavor—and it’s thankfully becoming more readily available. I’ve never seen it with very much of a fat layer, but I’m sure that’d make it even better. Will have to try your rub next time!
If you have trouble finding this steak in your usual market, try a Mexican or other latino grocer. ‘Punta de Anca’ is the name of the steak, and is very popular in Mexican and Colombian grilling.
I love grilling tri-tip, and my rub is similar to yours, but I reverse the cooking order; I cook it slow over indirect heat, then crank the heat and sear it over direct heat when it hits about 115/120 (my husband likes his meat medium well, sad to say). My success rate went WAY up when I started doing it that way – before that I often had too much trouble with flare ups, or had trouble searing it evenly, especially if I forgot to take it out of the fridge early enough. Still juicy and delicious!
Is this steak the same as the Brazilian “picanha” or the Argentinian “punta de cuadril”?
I just did a Tri-Tip last night…..same basic rub, same cooking technique…..and it was fantastic. Then this morning I come to Simply Recipes….and look at what I see….small world!
I buy mine at Wegman’s. It’s pricey but well worth it! I’ll look at Costco this weekend, I always keep one or two in the freezer!
Tri-tip roasts and steaks are available at Trader Joe’s here on the East coast, for those who can’t find it!
So-Cal native here, tri tip is the number one thing my family grills. Key is to slice AS THIN AS POSSIBLE, against the grain!
I love it! I grew up in Santa Maria, CA. This is the best for BBQ ever. Once you have had tri-tip on the grill, nothing else is the same. We can only get in Roswell, nm by ordering it from albertsons. We have to take the whole case or they wont order it, because nobody here has heard of it! They are really missing out! Try Susie Q’s seasoning on the tri-tip. It is a rub with all the extras. It is also from Santa Maria, Ca. Enjoy!
Yum, I love a good tri-tip. This is the specialty of my brother-in-law in California and he knows it is a required meal to make whenever I visit!
Around the Pismo Beach area, I found road-side stands that featured tri-tip sandwiches. Is the tri-tip cut the same one that appears as the point cut for corned beef around St. Patrick’s day? As I recall, the tri-tip sandwiches held meat that seemed to be awfully tough, when merely grilled.
Corned beef is typically made with a brisket, which comes from the chest of the steer, below the shoulder. Tri-tip is a lower sirloin cut between the flank and the round towards the back of the steer. Tri-tip shouldn’t be tough if you are slicing it properly against the grain, and if you start with a well-marbled roast. ~Elise
I am in Canada and we get ours at Safeway. We usually have to ask the butcher for the cut but they will happily do it. They also coat it in their house spice rub for us. Yum!
We grill it. 8 mins per side, flipped twice. So 8,8,8,8. Perfection.
I don’t think I’ve ever tried tri-tip before, but I think I’m going to have to. This looks great and that rub sounds delicious.
As a Californian I approve this recipe. I do it high heat all the way with much flipping and baste with what is essentially a vinaigrette, but let’s not split hairs here. Following the recipe posted will result in a perfectly fine Cali style Tri-Tip. Serve with Pinquito Beans and some Pico and you’ve got yourself a little slice of Cali grillin’ heaven.
elizabeth got it exactly right: those little pink beans and salsa are absolutely necessary to complete santa maria heaven; sour dough bread is also part of my menu. costco’s tri-tip are usually very well trimmed if bought individually; i think the bags o’ tips are usually untrimmed, but lots of meat to freeze or share.
I figured this would be a great idea for labor day tomorrow and I decided to try making this last night. Make sure you have at least 2 hours before dinner time if you haven’t made this before! It took me right around 2 hours total time, but it came out awesome!
I’ve been fortunate enough to find a store in the DC area that sells tri-tip for a reasonable price. I generally stock up, pre-season all the meat (probably sacrilege, but it works for me) and then seal them individually in food saver bags. Thaw and grill and dinner is on the table in no time.
Make sure to rest the meat properly (~20 min) and slice against the grain – so juicy and tender! Leftovers are wonderful too!
You’re right. I’ve bought tri-tips at Costco for years. I’ve never seen them anywhere else in Denver. You’ve just cleared up the confusion of what’s for Labor Day dinner. Thanks Elise.
I was able to find a tri-tip roast at Trader Joe’s. The also had tri-tips that were already spiced up and labeled “Santa Maria” but meat that’s already prepared like that is almost always full of things I don’t want to eat (not to mention too salty) so I choose to spice them up myself. I used all the ingredients as written and the only thing I would change is the amount of salt. It was a tad too salty for our taste, but that didn’t stop us from gobbling it up. My husband was surprised by how spicy it was due to all that cayenne but we both liked it a lot. And we’re looking forward to leftovers (in sandwiches) tonight. I also would’ve preferred the roast we got at TJ’s had a bit more fat but I’ll make sure to get that next time….and there most definitely will be a next time! (only with half the amount of salt!).
I know all about Tri Tip as I am from Pismo Beach, but now I live in Texas and they don’t sell Tri Tip here. So if you’re a Tri Tip lover, I recommend not moving to Texas. As I remember, if you do the tip right, it should be tender and succulent and full of flavor. I’d love to sink my teeth into a piece right now.
This tri-tip is cooked beautifully and looks so tasty! I love the outside char with the perfectly pink center… I’m featuring this post in today’s Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution as always). Thank you so much for keeping me inspired with such delicious creations…
Love Tri-Tip, but in the South its hard to find it just shy of East Texas. I will try the costco but I don’t remember seeing it before.
My friends in California (and me, I used to live there) would cook it in a drum, hanging it over the coals and wood with a clothes hanger, dry rubbed…yep, real high tech! LOL
Thanks for the post, brought back memories!
(did not know about the Santa Maria part, learn something new every day!)
I’m a huge fan of Santa Maria Style Barbecue- that and a good glass of Zinfandel! Like Javelin, I used to live in the area and I miss this tri-tip. Thanks for the memories ;)
I used your rub tonight on a tri tip from a local butcher who buys local cattle. It was amazing. I was cautious with cayenne as i made something earlier this week that was way over my limit. aSince it February in WI I had to be creative on how to cook it. I seared it on all sides and finished it the oven at 350. Thank you once again for sharing an amazing recipe. I can’t wait to make it again this summer when my grill isn’t buried under a foot of snow.