Santa Maria Barbecue is more than the meat, it's a complete meal of grilled beef (often tri-tip, also called a triangle cut or roast), stewed small pink pinquito beans, salsa fresca, a tossed green salad, and garlic bread. Served throughout California's Santa Maria Valley, Santa Maria Barbecue is easy to make for a crowd (just grill one tri-tip for every 4 to 6 people).
This tri-tip is simply rubbed with salt, pepper, and garlic salt before being seared over a hot grill and then finished on a cooler part of the grill. Since the tri-tip is a very lean piece of beef be careful not to overcook it.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 tri-tip beef roast (about 2 lbs.)
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Preparation:
- Trim any excess fat or silver skin from the roast.
- In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Rub spice mixture all over tri-tip. Let sit at least 30 minutes and up to overnight if you keep it covered and chilled.
- Heat a charcoal or gas grill to high heat (you can hold your hand about an inch over the grate for only 2 or 3 seconds). Place tri-tip on grill and sear, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Reduce heat to low or move roast to a cooler section of the grill and cook until cooked to desired doneness, 20 to 30 minutes for medium rare (check with an internal meat thermometer, tri-tips are notorious for "feeling" less done than they are when poked).
- Remove beef, place on a platter, tent with foil, and let sit at least 10 minutes and up to half an hour before cutting into thin slices.
Makes about 4 to 6 servings Santa Maria Barbecue Tri-Tip Beef Roast.
