Guest Blogger: Smoked Tri Tip and Brisket

Once again, I'm truly honored to introduce today's guest blogger.  There are definitely blogs out there that make me go....wow, I wish I would be daring enough to do stuff like that!  And Larry's blog, Big Dude's Electric Ramblings, is one of those for sure.  He just recently posted instructional recipes on how to make (I'm talking stuffing people!!) your own sausage.  See, it's things like that, that make me go, dang, I need to be more adventurous in my kitchen!!  But alas, my fears hold me back, but I do get to live vicariously through others, thanks to the internet...and I'm ok with that!  AND, he has one of the most beautiful yards/grounds I've seen!

So, let's let Larry take us on a wonderful instructional journey on how to smoke tri tip and brisket... YUM!!!   And of course, since I have a guest, you know where I am... so make sure you come check out my Fire Day Friday post.  Today's recipe:  Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri Mayo

Let me begin by saying how flattered I am that Jenn would invite me to do a guest post on her terrific blog.  She is a serious grill-meister and great all around cook.  Right after she asked me, it was my normal BBQ day and I thought a post about smoking would work well - I BBQ at least once a month and cook for friends and family as well as myself.

I really enjoyed reading about Kingsford's Barbecue University on the blogs of Chris at Nibble me This and Robyn at Grill Grrrl.  One that really stuck out on Robyn's blog was Chris Lily's brisket recipe.

My normal method is to brush on a coat of Worcestershire sauce then rub with Billy Bones Beefmaster, but I was out of it and wanted to give Lily's a try.  I tripled everything and used it on two whole briskets.

This is as posted by Robyn

Ingredients:

1 beef brisket FLAT (5-6 pounds)
1 Tablespoon beef bullion base (look in your soup stock aisle at the grocery store)
1 cup bee broth

Dry Rub Recipe:
1/2 tblsp salt
1/2 tblsp paprika
1/2 tblsp black pepper
1/2 tblsp sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/8 teaspoon ground coriander

Directions:
I mixed the beef base with a little hot water to make it easier to run on the meat and I did it the night before the cook.  On cooking day, I removed the briskets from the fridge an hour before cooking while the smoker was coming up to temp.  About 30 minutes prior to cooking I added the dry rub then put them into the cooker at 225 degrees (forgot to take  a photo - it was 5:30AM after all).

I cooked them to an internal temp of 170 degrees, then put them in a foil pan, poured over a cup of homemade beef broth, covered it with foil, and returned to the smoker.

When they got to 190 degrees, I removed them from the foil pan, wrapped tightly with foil and rested for about 30 minutes.  One cooked in 10 hours and the other took a little over 11 hours.

For the Tri Tip, I once again used the basic process from John over at Patio Daddio.

Ingredients:
1 Tri-tip roast (2-3 pounds)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbsp Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 Tbsp Plain yellow mustard
2 tsp Chili powder
2 tsp Beef base
1/2 tsp Garlic salt

Method:
I combined all of the ingredients, except the Montreal Steak Seasoning, in a small mixing bowl, mixed it well, rubbed it all over the pre-trimmed roast, and put in a plastic bag to get happy for 8 hours.

I removed it from the fridge an hour prior to cooking and just prior to putting it in the smoker, I added a medium coating of the steak seasoning -it was a little salty so I'll go lighter next time.

I cooked it to an internal temp of 125 degrees, removed it from the smoker and since it was done too early, I stuck it in a preheated cooler - I gave it 2 1/2 hours to cook, but it only took 1 1/2 hours.

When ready to eat, I took it to the grill and cooked it over high heat for about 5 minutes per side to add a crust - since it had been resting for an hour, no need to rest again.

Here's both pieces of meat before and after carving.

And my plate which included a salad, mostly from our garden, and some sauteed cremini mushrooms that need to be used.

The brisket was moist, tender, and tasty and I definitely prefer this cooking method, but without a side by side taste test, I couldn't say I preferred it to my normal.  I cooked the tri tip 5 degrees more than normal and it came out closer to medium than medium rare - perfect for Bev, but a little too done for me.  It was also moist, tender and the flavor was excellent - I think using the grill for crust addition worked out very well.  This was only the third time I'd cooked tri tip and the first time to smoke then grill, but it's just the reverse sear I used for other beef cuts.

I'd say a pretty darn good meal and I would have gladly served it to special company with perhaps the addition of a carb.  Have a great day and please stop by my blog at http://bigdudesramblings.blospot.com/ sometime.  Larry.

One Year Ago:  Penne with Beef & Bell Pepper