Tri-Tip With Fred's Super Secret Marinade

1voyager

Who was Fred? Short version: Fred Schaub developed his tri-tip marinade while he owned a butcher shop in Los Gatos, CA. The legend continues as his son sells the marinaded "black lung" at his butcher shop, Schaub's Meat Fish and Poultry, in Palo Alto, CA. Marinade recipe follow the pictures.

Marinate the tri-tip in Fred's for five days. Yes, five days. Skip this step and the depth and flavor will be lost. 

Reverse sear @ 225 degrees. This three pound tri-tip reached 105 degrees in about 45 minutes.

Note how dark brown the meat is. A "real" marinated Fred's would be black, thus "black lung".

Next step is to sear on BGE @ 550 - 600 degrees. 2 minutes per side flipping 3 times. I don't flip to get the crossed sear marks also that's a nice result. I do it because it sears more evenly. Internal temperature should reach 125 degrees.




Remove and rest for 10 minutes, covered.

Here is the result:



Marinade recipe:

* 1.5 cup brewed dark roast coffee
* 1 cup Red Wine
* 1/2 cup Olive oil
* 1/3 cup Balsamic vinegar
* 1/3 cup Tamari sauce
* 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
* 2 Tbsp Molasses
* 2 Tbsp Chili powder
* 2 Tbsp Onion powder
* 2 Tbsp Paprika powder
* 2 Tbsp Garlic powder
* 5 cloves of crushed Garlic

(Some versions call for squid ink and Vegemite but this is close enough for me.)

WeberWho

That crust looks perfect. Thanks for the recipe!

dstearn

Could you just inject it vs the 5 day marinade?

1voyager

I don't know if injection would give the same result. This recipe gives a result that is very close to a real Fred's tri-tip.

bgebrent

Very nice. 

1voyager

I forgot to mention that I reduce the marinade 50% and use it the next day for sauce on tri-tip sandwiches.

Carolina Q

Wonder what other cut would be good. Tri-Tip is harder to find than brisket around here.

1voyager

@Carolina Q - It works great with flank steak also.

marysvilleksegghead

Thanks for the clone recipe!

Thatgrimguy

Can’t wait to try it! Very different from my standard steak cook. I’m probably going to have to use a ribeye because tri tip is rarely seen at my local butchers and grocery stores.

vb4677

Think a 5 Day marinade, then a 6 hr Sous Vide with a hot Egg sear would work?

dmourati

Hey, I live next door to Palo Alto and didn't know about this butcher shop. Thanks for the heads up.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Marinating in that much vinegar for 5 days (or 5 hours for that matter) will “precook” the meat. That is what that gray ring around your perfectly cooked steak is. I ran into this with an APL steak recipe earlier this year. 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

And vegemite on steak is a very interesting  idea. I’ll be trying that soon. 

1voyager

vb4677 said:

Think a 5 Day marinade, then a 6 hr Sous Vide with a hot Egg sear would work?

I think it would be great. Please let us know. 

1voyager

dmourati said:

Hey, I live next door to Palo Alto and didn't know about this butcher shop. Thanks for the heads up.

@dmourati  What??? Wazzamattayou????

Schaub's is at Stanford Shopping Center. FYI - They sell out early on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

dmourati

1voyager said:

show previous quotes

dmourati said:

Hey, I live next door to Palo Alto and didn't know about this butcher shop. Thanks for the heads up.

What??? Wazzamattayou????

Schaub's is at Stanford Shopping Center. They sell out early on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

I had a really good butcher nearby Stanford called Belcampo. They run their own farm but they recently changed their business model and closed their retail shop near my house. I also have a spot called Los Gatos Meats I like, but that's pretty far. There's another butcher near me called Dittmer's which is awesome. It's good to have options.

Stanford shopping center is not exactly my scene but it looks like Schaub's there faces the outside so that makes it less hectic.

wepinsf

Only going to be able to do a 3 day soak. Hope that's enough to get some flavor. One question, do you rinse before cooking? Seems like the coffee would be a little gritty but perhaps that's what gives it the bark? Thanks for passing this recipe along. 

1voyager

You're welcome..

Nothing wrong with trying a 3 day soak. It might fit your taste just fine. Lots of experimentation left me thinking 5 days is best.

No-o-o-o. Don't rinse before cooking. To clarify, the coffee is freshly brewed, not coffee grounds. 

wepinsf

Ooops. Guess I better get to rinsing and start all over 😂

1voyager

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Marinating in that much vinegar for 5 days (or 5 hours for that matter) will “precook” the meat. That is what that gray ring around your perfectly cooked steak is. I ran into this with an APL steak recipe earlier this year. 

@The Cen-Tex Smoker But, but, but...can I call it a faux smoke ring? 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

1voyager said:

show previous quotes

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Marinating in that much vinegar for 5 days (or 5 hours for that matter) will “precook” the meat. That is what that gray ring around your perfectly cooked steak is. I ran into this with an APL steak recipe earlier this year. 

@The Cen-Tex Smoker But, but, but...can I call it a faux smoke ring? 

You can call it whatever you like . The flank I did with the APL marinade was pretty good. I only did 2 hours and it cooked  almost as deep as yours did in 5 days! 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Legume

@1voyager when you get these at Schaub’s, are they soaking or are they sitting in the case, dry?  The reason I’m asking is I’ve seen different markets in the Bay Area with coal black tri tips that have been marinaded and are sitting in the meat case, air dried. Often a bunch of them stacked up.

1voyager

Yes, they are stacked in the meat case. 

booksw

Wow that looks crazy good- you west coasters with your tri tip give me tri tip envy.  It makes no sense to me that we can’t get it in the south east but there it is- maybe the butchers here call it something else it cut it up into something else?

1voyager

Former west coaster. I'm in Colorado now. I couldn't get tri-tip when I lived in Atlanta. Flank steak is a good substitute.

dmourati

I went to Schaub's this morning and picked up a kobe beef sirloin version of the Fred's steak. They have a general cooking instruction on the package but I'd like to hear from this group how to best cook it on a Large BGE. It's about 2 pounds.

Thanks.

1voyager

I have a Large Big Green Egg. Just check out my original post. 

Best of luck and enjoy!

dmourati

Thanks @1voyager for the idea for tonight's dinner. I am pretty happy with the result. I think my 3yo may have eaten his weight in Fred's Steak. Have a look.

Legume

Yep, that looks excellent