Okay, so, today I wanna talk about cooking tri-tip. I tried it out, and it was a whole process, let me tell you. First off, I grabbed a nice piece of tri-tip from the store. It was about 2 pounds, I think.
Getting Started
I started by preheating my oven. The internet says around 225F to 250F is good, so I set it to 235F. While that was heating up, I got to work on the meat. I patted it dry with some paper towels, which is always the first thing to do. Then, I rubbed it all over with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and a bit of garlic powder. Nothing fancy, just wanted to keep it simple this time.
Cooking Process
Once the oven was ready, I placed the tri-tip on a baking sheet lined with foil. Then into the oven it went. Now, the internet had all sorts of numbers for the internal temperature. Some said 130F, others said 135F for medium-rare, and then some even mentioned 145F, which was for the FDA. I was aiming for medium-rare, so I decided to play it safe and go for 135F.
I used a meat thermometer to keep an eye on it. Sticking that thing in every now and then to check. It took about an hour, maybe a bit more, to reach that temperature. Oh, and I did wrap it with some foil during cooking. The whole time, I was just hoping I wouldn’t mess it up.
Resting and Serving
After it hit 135F, I took it out of the oven. Wrapped it up tight in the foil it was already in, and then wrapped that whole bundle in some towels. I left it to rest like that for about an hour. The internet said it could rest for an hour or so like this. I just wanted it to be juicy and tender.
After resting, I unwrapped the tri-tip and saved all the juices that came out. I placed it on a cutting board and sliced it up. It looked pretty good, if I do say so myself. Served it with those juices drizzled over the top.
Final Thoughts
It tasted really good! Tender, juicy, just what I was hoping for. I guess 135F was the right call for medium-rare, at least for my taste. The FDA recommends 145F and a 3 minute rest time but it seemed overcooked to me. I might try it again and aim for a slightly lower temperature next time, maybe 130F, just to see the difference. But yeah, that’s how I cooked my tri-tip. It was a bit of a learning curve, but I’m happy with how it turned out.
- Preheat oven to 235F.
- Prepare tri-tip with oil and seasonings.
- Cook to an internal temperature of 135F.
- Wrap in foil and towels, rest for an hour.
- Slice and serve with reserved juices.
Hope this helps anyone looking to cook tri-tip. It’s not as hard as it might seem. Just gotta keep an eye on that temperature and give it a good rest. Happy cooking!
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