Cooking tri tip in the oven for the first time? I have some secrets to share with you! Learn the best way, exactly how to cook tri tip in oven (no grill needed!) for a tasty steak dinner.
Beginner home cooks – scroll down for a detailed and printable step by step recipe (with video!).
What is tri tip beef?
Tri tip is a cut of beef that has a really nice marbling, meaning it has streaks of fat running through the meat and is sometimes sold with a fat cap on either or both sides.
Other names for tri tip include “triangle roast” because of its triangle shape and the “Newport steak”.
What part of the cow is trip tip from?
Tri tip is found at the bottom point of the sirloin.
How is tri tip prepared?
In addition to oven-roasting tri tips, which you’ll learn to do on this page, this cut of meat can be cooked deliciously on the grill or as a sous vide recipe.
In addition to charcoal and gas grilling it, if you’re into outdoor cooking, you make a Traeger smoked tri tip, too.
But this recipe will teach you how to get perfect tri tip baked in the oven and exactly how to cut tri tip the right way.
How much tri tip do I need per person?
A rule of thumb is to figure ½ pound of meat per person. A tri-tip roast is typically 2 ½ to 4 pounds, and can feed five to eight people.
How do you slice tri tip?
Cutting into juicy steak roast is the best part of preparing this steak. If you’re wondering how to cut tri tip steak, don’t worry, it’s pretty easy and you don’t need to use a meat slicer. But you do need to find the center point, where the two grains meat (they run in different directions) and you’ll want to slice your tri tip into thin slices, perpendicular to the grain of the meat. This will bring out the tenderness of the meat. Keep your knife angled slightly as you slice. Learn more about how to cut tri tip.
How do I season tri-tip?
Tri-tip is one of the most versatile cuts of meat. You can marinate it with a mixture of wet ingredients like oil, soy sauce, and lime juice for acidity. Or you can use simple dry ingredients like garlic salt, BBQ seasoning or just salt and black pepper if you are in a pinch.
How do I temperature check tri-tip?
Use an internal read thermometer and insert it into the thickest part of the tri-tip. Use my internal temperature chart below to find your desired doneness. Please note to rest your tri-tip at room temperature once done. The internal temperature will rise a few degrees, so pull the tri-tip out of the oven a few degrees early.
What can I serve with my tri-tip roast?
Tri-tip is delicious with sous vide fingerling potatoes, crock pot sweet potatoes, or sous vide sweet corn. See what to serve for tri tip sides…
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make a tri tip steak in ovens.
- Tri tip steak (about 2 LBs, but you can use this recipe to cook bigger tri tip steaks, too)
- BBQ rub (store bought with salt, or add 1 tsp salt)
- Olive oil
Note: in the video recipe demo, I use pre-seasoned tri tip from Costco that already came with BBQ rub on it.
(The fat side was still in tact, which I’ll teach you how to work with in this tri tip recipe.)
If you’re making your own from scratch, you need to use a store bought bbq rub. Look for a dry rub with salt, or add 1 tsp of salt to it to make this recipe.
My garlic and herb compound butter is perfect to serve on top of this steak.
It’s also delicious on my new recipe for t bone steak in oven.
How To Cook Tri Tip In Oven (Step by step)
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Season tri tip steak for oven baking by rubbing the BBQ dry rub all over the steak. If required, trim any silver skin if not already done by your butcher.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet (or other oven safe pan as desired) to medium-high heat on the stove. Add olive oil, and once olive oil gets hot and begins to smoke, add the tri tip to the pan (fat side down, if the fat cap is still on the steak). Sear for 3 minutes, without moving. Take a peek to make sure the bottom is completely browned and seared, then use tongs to sear the edges for about 20 seconds each, until lightly browned (against the pan for 20 seconds each side. Place the uncooked flat side of the tri tip down on the pan. Turn off the burner.
- Transfer skillet seared beef to the oven to bake at 425°F for about 12 minutes per pound. This helps warm the roast throughout with indirect heat. Exact time of how long to cook tri tip in the oven will vary based on your desired steak temperature. For best results, use a thermometer that has a probe that reads the temperature of the steak while it cooks in the oven so you know exactly when the inside temperature reaches your desired level of doneness. See the steak cooking chart below for the temperature the tri tip steak is done at. The steak in this recipe tutorial was cooked to 140°F which is more of a medium temp VS. medium rare.
- Once done roasting tri tip in the oven, transfer it to a cutting board to rest for 10 minutes. Add a compound butter (see recipe on Sip Bite Go) if desired. You can cover it with foil if you want to keep it warm, but I don’t personally find that necessary.
- Slice thin and serve with your favorite steak sauce or in this yummy tri tip sandwich. (see the bottom of this post for tips on slicing it against the grain).
Tri tip temperature chart
How to know when tri-tip is done?
If you have a meat thermometer, you can check easily if the meat is cooked to your preferred level of done-ness.
Here’s a tri tip temp chart to help you out…
- Rare tri tip (125-130°F) is still red inside.
- Medium rare tri tip (130-140°F) is red to pink inside.
- Medium tri tip (140-150°F) is mostly pink.
- Medium well (150-160°F) has just a slight bit of pink inside.
- Well cooked (160°F) has no red or pink inside.
For another impressive main dish, see how to smoke a turkey…
Try an easy steak recipe from Sip Bite Go…
Pro tip: One of my go-to tricks for perfectly cooked food every time is using the right BBQ meat thermometers.
Have leftovers? Try this recipe for the ultimate smoked tri tip pizza…
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How To Cook Tri Tip In Oven Perfectly | Sip Bite Go
Video
Ingredients
- 2 lb tri tip steak
- 2 tbsp bbq rub store bought with salt, or add 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Season tri tip steak for oven baking by rubbing the BBQ dry rub all over the steak.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet (or other oven safe pan as desired) to medium-high heat on the stove. Add olive oil, and once olive oil gets hot and begins to smoke, add the tri tip to the pan (fat side down, if the fat cap is still on the tri tip steak). Sear for 3 minutes, without moving. Take a peek to make sure the bottom is completely browned and seared, then use tongs to sear the edges of the tri tip for about 20 seconds each, until lightly browned (against the pan for 20 seconds each side. Place the uncooked flat side of the tri tip down on the pan. Turn off the burner.
- Transfer skillet seared tri tip to the oven to bake at 425°F for about 12 minutes per pound. Exact time of how long to cook tri tip in the oven will vary based on your desired steak temperature. For best results, use a thermometer that has a probe that reads the temperature of the steak while it cooks in the oven so you know exactly when the inside temperature reaches your desired level of doneness. See the steak cooking chart below for the temperature the tri tip steak is done at. The steak in this recipe tutorial was cooked to 140°F.
- Once done roasting tri tip in the oven, transfer it to a cutting board to rest for 10 minutes. Add a compound butter (see recipe on Sip Bite Go) if desired. You can cover it with foil if you want to keep it warm, but I don’t personally find that necessary.
- Slice thin and serve with your favorite steak sauce or in tri tip steak sandwiches. Note on slicing tri tip: it has two grains, so you have to first find the center point, where the two directions of grains meet in the middle of the meat (they run in different directions). Slice the tri tip in half. Then slice each half against the grain into thin slices.
Notes
Tri tip temperature chart
- Rare tri tip (125-130°F) is still red inside.
- Medium rare tri tip (130-140°F) is red to pink inside.
- Medium tri tip (140-150°F) is mostly pink.
- Medium well tri tip (150-160°F) has just a slight bit of pink inside.
- Well cooked tri tip (160°F) has no red or pink inside.
Celine M says
Your latest blog post was truly inspiring and had some great insights. I can’t wait to see what else you have in store.
Mary P says
made this tonight for dinner, along with the compound butter. my tri tip is almost 3 lbs and i prefer more cooked than red, it was wonderful!
Corey V says
Wow, this blogger is seriously impressive!
paul says
I’ve been struggling with cooking this myself, and your article provided me with some much-needed guidance and support. Thank you for being a valuable resource.
Yaritza says
Don’t miss out on this
J Berber says
Family loved it
Crystal says
The entire house smelled good
isototo says
Your writing style is engaging and your ideas are well-articulated. This is a great piece of content that is both informative and enjoyable to read.
mila says
hello, I was greatly helped by the video to this article.
F R says
Great recipe!
Lukas Lane says
Kudos to the author for producing such fantastic content.
Claudia Almanza says
Literally this recipe was as simple as it reads! Thank you so much for sharing this quick, easy and super hassle free way of cooking my tri-tip.
Tim says
Tip: use the drippings to make a fantastic sauce.
Cut up about half an onion.
Put half a stick of butter in the pan after the tritip is done, you pull it out of the oven and move it to the cutting board. Heat the butter on medium heat until it melts and add in the onion. Add a whole sprig of fresh rosemary and stir around the pan to incorporate the flavor. Caramelize the onions until they’re translucent and slightly browed. Add in a cup of red wine and cook for about 2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of beef broth and let that simmer down until the alcohol is gone from the sauce. Strain it into a separate bowl to get all the chunks out.
Drizzle over the meat after you plate!
Heidi says
so easy and soooooo yummy! thank you!!
Nancy J Green says
This was my first time cooking a tri-tip. Found a 4lb on clearance at Walmart…wasn’t sure what to do but came across this recipe on a search. Oh My Goodness!! I will definitely purchase a tr-tip again and will follow this recipe again. I’m cooked the meat to medium rare and then let it rest. My 60 year old husband says it is the best beef he has ever eaten! Serving it in steak salads today with lots more meat to go. Thank you for this great recipe and lesson!
karen covington says
$64 dollars worth of Tri-tip so I was a little apprehensive about trying a new cooking method for our typical Cardiff-Crack-On-The-BBQ!! Let me tell you I had 6 adults who KNOW their Cardiff Crack (it’s a San Diego thing ;)) … RAVE reviews for this cooking method!! I followed exactly, 12 min per pound, I did cover with foil for 5 minutes whilst plating the caesar salad, twice baked potatoes, and rustic bread…..PERFECTION!!
Jenny M says
Thank you sooo much!! I didn’t wanna freeze outside while grilling (even though we bought a grill heating wrap for our tank) so this was the perfect alternative!! It turned out perfect!!