Competition tri tip

I suggest reverse sear.

Are you in Freeport, FL?

Best when cooked over an open pit with Oak, medium rare, rested, sliced across the grain.

Rub with Santa Maria seasoning, and add a bit of tang by squeezing a lemon over it (optional of course). I don't like it when folks get too fancy with tri-tip, it really doesn't need much. Get a good cut, cook it properly, and you're golden.

1) Post this in the competition forum. A few teams there that have done tri-tip in competition might point you in the right direction.

2) My team has won a few tri-tip trophies and got our best results (like 2nd out of 25 teams) doing a riff off of the Dueling Bubbas recipe (who won many trophies doing this) which is basically smoking the tri-tip like a brisket (a trisket) as this guy did in this link:
http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?42140-Tri-Tip-cooked-like-a-brisket-Dueling-Bubba-s-style
Note that some judges can get confused with some thinking we turned in brisket while others marked us down on appearance because it was "overcooked" (not medium rare). We tried to get around this by grilling 1 tri-tip so the top slice or 2 hid the smoked ones underneath during presentation, but that had mixed results too and still confused the judges. We did always get mostly 9s with a few 8s for tenderness though. YMMMV depending on your region and how the judges are instructed. Definitely get ahold of the judges' criteria as outlined by the promoter as that will make a HUGE difference in your scores (especially if you smoke it).
One last tip: get the best grade of beef you can with the most marbling. We are fortunate up here in Northern Cali that Costco has Prime tri-tip which we can get for about $9/lb in a package of 2. Well worth it.
Good luck and have fun!

I did one in a backyard comp and I smoked it at 325 tell a it of 125, then pulled it and put in a foil pan of butter garlic and herbs that was about 160 and let it rest for 15 mins and finish getting it to 130-135. Turned in pencil slices from the widest part and it was by far the best tri-tip I have done... at home I grill over oak, or smoke, or even gas grill just don't over cook it

tonyjohnson619 said:

I did one in a backyard comp and I smoked it at 325 tell a it of 125, then pulled it and put in a foil pan of butter garlic and herbs that was about 160 and let it rest for 15 mins and finish getting it to 130-135. Turned in pencil slices from the widest part and it was by far the best tri-tip I have done... at home I grill over oak, or smoke, or even gas grill just don't over cook it

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And how did you do?

We have a local unsanctioned contest where I have turned in tri tip cooked almost just like this. The rest is important. The most important thing, though, is what happens in the box. Best of luck. My advice is to keep it out of the sun after slicing and keep it wet.

Salt and pepper rub, smoke it until 120°f, then reverse sear until 135°f for medium, or whatever internal temp you prefer for steaks. Slice across the grain for best eating results.

A generous coating of the Montreal Steak seasoning of your choice (I use Smoky Mountain Smokers), let it sit while your charcoal gets going. Depending on your cooker, either reverse sear (if your grill can do 500 degrees) or hot smoke around 275 until medium rare. Make sure you rest a good 15 minutes, then slice thin cross grain. As we tell our Georgia customers who are unfamiliar with TriTip, "It's where BBQ meets steak"!