The Best Slow Smoked Tri Tip Recipe

Closeup of smoked Tri Tip on a black slate being sliced.

5 from 12 votes

Smoking tri tip has never been easier! Full of flavor and incredibly tender, this tri tip is smoked low and slow to perfection. And it takes less than 2 hours!

Prep Time15

Cook Time1 30

Total Time1 45

Course: dinner

Cuisine: American, BBQ

Servings: people

Calories: 303kcal

Author: Amanda Mason

Equipment

Smoker any type

Ingredients

3 lb tri tip
2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
2 Tablespoons coarse salt
2 teaspoon coarse black pepper
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon onion powder
½ Tablespoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions

Dry Rub Instructions

In a small bowl, combine the 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar, 2 Tablespoons of salt, 2 teaspoons of ground black pepper, 1 Tablespoon of garlic powder, 1 Tablespoon of onion powder, ½ Tablespoon smoked paprika, and ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
Put the steak in a large glass dish. Spread the seasoning over the entire tri tip ensuring to press the rub into the steak.
Once the steak is completely covered on all sides, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours, up to 24 hours.

Smoker Instructions

Prep the smoker and preheat it to 225°F.
Put the meat directly on the smoker rack, fat side down.
At a slight angle, insert a digital thermometer into the side of the steak ensuring the tip is all the way in the center.
Smoke low and slow until the desired temperature is met.
Using tongs, remove the steak from the smoker and place in a dish. Wrap the smoked meat tightly in aluminum foil and allow to rest for 7-10 minutes.
After the resting period, put the steak on a cutting board and slice against the grain. The thinner the slices, the more tender the steak.
Serve immediately.

Notes

Always smoke to temperature, not time. Use a digital meat thermometer to monitor the internal temperature of the meat.
It's typically sold with the fat already trimmed. If the fat is over ¼ inch thick, then either cut it at home or ask the butcher to trim the fat (remove the fat cap) and remove the silver skin, if present.
Remove it from the smoker when it is about 5 degrees of your final desired target temperature. During the resting period, the internal meat temperature will continue to slightly raise.
Wrapping the meat tightly in aluminum foil during the resting period helps trap in the moisture. The fats and juices from the stek will get reabsorbed during the resting period.
To enhance the flavor and texture of the crust even more, sear each side of the smoked steak in a very hot cast iron skillet with 1-2 tablespoons of butter after it's done smoking.

Nutrition