Juicy Oven Tri-Tip Roast with Santa Maria Rub

Name: Juicy Oven Tri-Tip Roast with Santa Maria Rub
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 285 min
Ingredients: 4-5 lb. tri-tip; Santa Maria dry Rub ((recipe)); 2 T. avocado oil ((or olive oil)); 2 T. red wine vinegar; 2 to 3 cloves garlic

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Perfectly seasoned Oven Tri-Tip Roast that's fully cooked in around 30 to 45 minutes. My Santa Maria Dry Rub seasoning goes perfectly with this delicious cut of meat and will ensure perfect tri-tip, Every Single Time!

Perfectly cooked tri-tip roast in a cast iron pan

Why This Recipe Works

After years of preparing tri-tip on the grill, last Father's Day, I learned that oven-tri-tip may just be even better!

There I was, trying to prepare a delicious Father's Day dinner, only to realize we were out of propane! When you live out in the middle of nowhere, you always have to have a plan B. In this case, it meant cooking the tri-tip in the oven.

Using my own Santa Maria Rub and a simple baste consisting of avocado oil, red wine vinegar, and freshly crushed garlic, yielded the tastiest, most tender oven tri-tip we'd both ever tasted.

The short cooking time (because we're using high heat) insures the tri-tip is never dried out, but always juicy and delicious.

What Goes Into This Recipe

raw tri-tip, spice rub, and fresh rosemary sprig on white marble counter

Ingredient Notes

Tri-Tip — A 4 to 5-pound tri-tip steak is used in this recipe. Although you may leave the fat on, I find it's not necessary. Trim approximately half of the fat off, leaving the rest for added flavor and to keep the tri-tip from drying out.
Santa Maria Dry Rub — Santa Maria Steak is usually seasoned with a tasty rub, which includes salt, pepper, garlic. In this recipe, we use my Santa Maria Dry Rub recipe.
Baste — A simple baste, prepared with oil, vinegar, and garlic is used to generously baste the tri-tip, before applying the rub and right before it goes into the oven.

How to Make This Recipe

Prepare Santa Maria rub and set aside.

a mixture of spices in a small black bowl

Santa Maria dry rub in a small black bowl, with a fork in the middle

Wash the tri-tip roast and pat it dry. Trim some of the excess fat, leaving some fat behind for enhanced flavor.

removing fat from tri-tip roast with a sharp knife on a cutting board

raw roast with the fat trimmed off and piled next to it on a cutting board

Mix baste ingredients and use to generously baste the tri-tip. Set aside the remaining baste.

oil, vinegar, and garlic dressing being mixed in a small glass bowl

raw tri-tip stead being drizzled with oil and vinegar dressing

Rub the tri-tip with all of the prepared Santa Maria Dry Rub, making sure to coat all the sides. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for four or more hours.

raw, seasoned, tri-tip roast on a foil-lined pan

raw, seasoned, tri-tip roast covered with plastic wrap

Cooking Instructions

Tip: Bring the tri-tip to room-temperature by removing it from the refrigerator at least one hour prior to cooking it.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Baste the tri-tip roast with the remaining oil and vinegar. Heat a large, seasoned cast-iron skillet, then sear the meat on all sides.

brushing oil and vinegar on a seasoned roast with a purple rubber brush

Transfer the pan to the heated oven and insert the probe. Set the probe to the desired internal temperature (see frequently asked questions below for suggested temperatures).

Tip: If you don't have a probe, roast the tri-tip, fat-side up, for 10 to 15 minutes per pound.

tri-tip being cooked in a cast iron pan in the oven

Remove the oven tri-tip from the oven and tent it with foil. Allow the meat to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

sliced tri tip oozing juices on a cutting board

Recipe FAQ's and Expert Tips

How do you keep oven tri-tip moist?

• Sear the roast before placing it in the oven. This locks in the flavor and the juices.
• Do not overcook the meat. Although I'm guilty of preferring meat cooked to medium-well, cooking it to medium or medium-rare keeps the roast a lot juicier. If someone in your family prefers it cooked more, they can always be served the ends which will be well-done.
• Finally, tenting the meat and leaving it to rest for ten minutes before slicing it allows the juices to redistribute throughout the meat. Will some of the juices still seep out? Absolutely! But there will still be plenty of juices left throughout the roast.

How long do you cook oven tri-tip in the oven?

Cooking tri-tip for 10-15 minutes per pound gives you a roast that is well-done on the ends, and gradually gets rarer towards the center.

When using an oven probe, or a meat thermometer, cook the tri-tip until the internal temperature in the thickest part reads:
125°F for rare
135°F for medium-rare
145° for medium
150° for medium-well
160° for well-done

Tip: If you need a visual reference to what rare through well-done really means, check out this informative link: certifiedangusbeef.com

What goes good with this recipe?

My favorite way to serve tri-tip is drizzled with chimichurri. This spicy Argentinian sauce is loaded with flavor and the perfect complement to the Santa Maria Dry Rub seasoning.

chimichurri sauce being spooned out of jar

My Santa Maria dry rub recipe is portioned for an average-sized 4 to 5 lb. roast. If your roast is smaller, you can save some of the rub for another purpose. Although it may seem like we're overly seasoning the roast, a lot of the seasoning will remain in the pan once it's cooked.
If you cook the roast while still cold, it will require additional cooking time.
Remember that the temperature of the roast will continue to rise after it's removed from the oven. Keep this in mind when deciding how long to cook and rest the tri-tip.
When eating tri-tip, it's a good idea to slice it across the grain. This shortens the muscle fibers and makes the steak easier to chew. However, if you did this with a large tri-tip, you'd end up with very long slices. I recommend slicing it with the grain to portion it out and slicing it against the grain as you eat it.

tri tip, mac and cheese, and salad on a white plate with a glass of wine in the background

sliced tri tip on a cutting board with juices pouring out of it

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