Tri Tip Marinade

5 from 13 ratings

This tri tip marinade adds loads of flavor and tenderizes the beef for the best tri tip on the grill, in the oven or on the smoker!

Prep Time10

Cook Time35

Marinating8

Total Time8 45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: beef roast, grilled tri tip, marinated tri tip, oven tri tip, sazon, steak, tri tip, tri tip marinade

Servings:

Calories: 329kcal

Author: Mike Hultquist

Ingredients

1/2 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar or use honey
Juice from 1 large orange about 1/2 cup
Juice from 1 large lime about 1/4 cup
2 tablespoons Sazon seasoning see recipe notes for alternatives
1.5 teaspoons salt or more to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper
1-2 teaspoons hot sauce or to taste, use your favorite
2-3 spicy chili peppers chopped - I used a serrano and a couple spicy aji peppers from my garden. Use milder peppers for less heat.
6 cloves garlic minced
2 pound tri tip roast silver skin and excess fat trimmed

Instructions

FOR THE TRI TIP MARINADE

Whisk all of the tri tip marinade ingredients together in a large bowl.
Place the tri tip roast into a large baggie and pour in the marinade. Alternatively, you can use a large bowl. Massage the marinade into the meat and seal (or cover). Refrigerate and marinate the tri tip for at least 8 hours, or overnight. (You can marinate for 1 hour and still get good flavor penetration. Don't go past 24 hours.).

COOKING TRI TIP IN THE OVEN

Remove the tri tip from the fridge and bring to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast iron pan or skillet to medium-high heat. Remove the tri tip from the marinade. Keep the marinade for a sauce later, or discard it.
Sear the tri tip roast 4-5 minutes per side to achieve a nice crust. Transfer the tri tip to a rack covered baking sheet, or use a roasting pan with a rack.
Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes (10-15 minutes per pound) to your preferred doneness. You'll want 125-130 degrees F internal temperature when measured with a meat thermometer for rare, or 130-140 degrees F for medium-rare.
Rest for 10-15 minutes to redistribute the juices, covered, then slice against the grain and serve.

Notes

Other Cooking Methods:

Grill. Set up a two-zone fire. Sear over direct high heat 4-5 minutes per side, then move to indirect heat, close the lid and cook 10-20 minutes more to your preferred doneness.
Smoker. Smoke at 225 degrees F until 120-125 degrees F internal for medium-rare, 1 to 2 hours. Sear in a hot cast iron pan 1-2 minutes per side.
Reverse Sear. Bake on a rack at 250 degrees F until about 10 degrees below your target temperature, 45-60 minutes. Sear in a very hot cast iron skillet 1-2 minutes per side.

Cooking times can vary for tri tip roast, so it is best to use a meat thermometer and cook to temp. Tri tip in the oven should roast for 10-15 minutes per pound at 425 degrees F for best results.

Sazon Seasoning. I love sazon seasoning for my tri tip, but use the following seasonings as an alternative - 1 teaspoon cayenne, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, plus salt and pepper.

Pan Sauce. Add the reserved marinade to a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes to reduce slightly. Use as-is to pour over the meat, or swirl in a slurry of 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon water and heat through another 5 minutes for a thicker sauce.

Nutrition