Tri Tip Smoked like a Brisket

Smoked tri tip like brisket sliced on a cutting board with a smoky bark and pink smoke ring.

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This smoked tri tip like brisket is cooked low and slow on a pellet grill until tender and juicy with a rich bark and deep smoky flavor. Wrapped with beef broth and beef tallow (or butter), it develops a texture similar to brisket while cooking in much less time than a full packer brisket.

Prep Time15

Cook Time6

Resting Time1

Total Time7 15

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 262kcal

Author: Jeri Walker

Ingredients

For the Tri Tip:

1 Tri-Tip Roast (about 2½ pounds)
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
4 tablespoons homemade brisket rub *recipe below

For the Homemade Brisket Rub:

1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ tablespoon onion powder
½ tablespoon garlic powder
½ tablespoon smoked paprika
¼ tablespoon black pepper
¼ tablespoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon dry mustard powder

For Wrapping:

¼ cup beef broth
2 tablespoons beef tallow or unsalted butter

Instructions

Pat the tri-tip roast dry with paper towels. Trim away any thick or hard fat, leaving about ¼ inch of fat on the surface - don't trim the roast completely lean, since the remaining fat helps keep it moist. Remove any silverskin and loose pieces of fat.
Brush all sides lightly with mustard. Mix the brisket rub ingredients together in a small bowl, then season all sides of the meat generously, pressing it in to help it adhere. Let the seasoned tri-tip rest at room temperature for 30 minutes while the smoker preheats.
Preheat your pellet grill to 225°F. Place the tri-tip roast directly on the grill grates and smoke for 3-4 hours, until the internal temperature reaches approximately 165°F and a dark bark has formed.
Place the tri-tip on a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Add beef broth and beef tallow (or butter), wrap tightly, and return to the smoker. Use a double layer of foil to prevent the liquid from leaking.
Increase the smoker temperature to 250°F. Continue cooking for 2-3 more hours, until the internal temperature reaches 200-205°F and a probe slides in with very little resistance.
Remove the wrapped tri-tip from the smoker. Place it in a dry cooler or a warm, turned-off oven and let it rest for at least 1 hour.
Carefully unwrap the tri-tip and reserve any juices. Slice thinly against the grain, rotating the roast partway through if needed since tri-tip has two different grain directions. Drizzle the reserved juices over the sliced meat before serving.

Notes

Fat cap. Leave about ¼ inch of fat on the roast for the best results - it bastes the meat as it cooks.
Doneness. Start checking for tenderness around 195°F, and cook until the probe slides in easily rather than stopping at one exact temperature.
Resting. Rest at least 1 hour, wrapped - don't skip it. See the "One Mistake" section above for why it matters.
Sizing. Times above are for a 2½-pound roast. See the cook-time-by-size chart above if yours is bigger or smaller.
Leftovers. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Nutrition