Tri Tip in an Electric Roaster Oven
This Tri Tip in an Electric Roaster Oven recipe sears and cooks two tri tip steaks in an 18-quart electric roaster oven flavored with garlic, steak seasoning, and Italian herbs.
Our family loves tri tip in the oven and tri tip on the Smoker, so I was so excited to learn how delicious, savory, and juicy tri-tip can be in my electric roaster oven.
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A Quick Look at the Recipe
- ✅ Recipe Name: Tri Tip in an Electric Roaster
- ⏲️ Ready In: 2 hours and 45 minutes, including the resting time needed before and after cooking so the tri-tip is juicy and flavorful
- 👨👨👦👦 Serves: 16
- 🍽️ Calories: 192
- 💪 Protein: 25 grams
- 🥣 Main Ingredients: Tri-tip roasts, olive oil, garlic, steak seasoning, Gourmet Gardens Italian Herb Paste, Worcestershire
- 📋 Dietary Info: Protein-forward, for a crowd or holiday,
- 💯 Why You’ll Love It: Juicy, tender, and packed with steakhouse flavor, this tri tip cooks perfectly in the electric roaster – searing and roasting all in one for an easy, crowd-pleasing main dish.
This recipe is especially thrilling to me because tri-tip can be cooked whole, two at a time, in the electric roaster, then sliced into beefy steaks to serve. It’s the perfect way to serve tri tip for a crowd.
I also found during recipe development that you can sear the tri-tip roasts right in the electric roaster oven, then turn the heat down to medium (350 degrees F) to finish cooking them just until they are medium-rare at the center.
Yep, you heard me correctly: there’s ZERO need to sear the roasts in a separate skillet. Yay, one less thing to wash, right??
Ingredients
For a complete list of ingredients, see the detailed recipe card below.
- Beef tri tip roasts: Tri-tip is the perfect size (2-3 pounds) for feeding a family or when you’re entertaining a few guests. Cooking it as a whole muscle roast and then slicing it into steaks for serving is such a bonus!
- For the marinade paste: Olive oil, crushed garlic, Gourmet Gardens Italian Herb Paste, Montreal Steak Seasoning, and Worcestershire sauce. You will find the Gourmet Gardens Italian Herbs Paste in the produce section of any large grocer. This is a very flavorful condiment to keep on hand and it will keep for quite a long time in your fridge.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: One hour before you want to cook the tri tip roasts, remove them from the refrigerator and completely unpackage them.
Step 2: In a small bowl, prepare the marinade paste by combining the oil, garlic, herb paste, steak seasoning, and Worcestershire sauce; reserve.
Step 3: Pat the roasts dry with paper towels. Using your fingertips, rub the prepared herb marinade paste all over each roast.
Step 4: Let the marinated roasts rest, uncovered, on the counter for 1 hour. When it’s time to cook the roasts, place the wire rack into the bottom of a well-oiled 18 quart (24 pound) electric roaster. Cover the roaster with the lid and preheat for 5 minutes at 450 degrees F.
Step 5: Place the prepared roasts onto the wire rack in the electric roaster. Cover the roaster once again and cook the roasts for 30 minutes. Reduce the electric roaster temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue to cook the roasts, still covered, for 25-30 minutes more , or until the internal temperature reaches 125-130 degrees F. at the center of the roasts using an instant-read meat thermometer probe.
Step 6: Remove the tri tip roasts from the electric roaster to a large cutting board. Tent each roast with foil, then rest on the cutting board for at least 30 minutes. During this period of covered rest, the roasts will continue to finish cooking from residual heat.
When the roasts have raised 10 more degrees in internal temperature to 135-140 degrees F. (for medium-rare beef), slice each roast across the grain into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Serve at once.
My Recipe Tips
- If your tri-tip roasts are only 2 pounds in size, you will be able to cook 3 of them in an 18-quart (24 pound) electric roaster. My roasts were a little over 2 1/2 pounds so I could only cook 2 of them at once in my roaster. **If your electric roaster is larger than an 18-quart, the cooking time may vary.
- Aside from using good quality beef, the most important part of this recipe is making sure the beef gets to rest before AND after cooking. This really makes a huge difference in the beef and guarantees a great eating experience!
- If you have time, apply the marinade paste to the tri-tip roasts for 24 hours before you rest and cook them in the electric roaster oven. I like to leave my marinated roasts uncovered in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This added exposure to more oxygen during refrigeration helps the exterior of the meat to brown better and get a good “crust” during the cooking process.
Tri Tip in an Electric Roaster Oven FAQs
Because there is now more space for heat circulation in the roaster oven, a single tri tip roast may cook a bit more quickly. When you reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F. in Step 7, I would begin checking the tri tip’s internal temperature around the 15-minute mark to be sure you don’t overcook it. You can always ADD more cooking time, but once meat is overcooked, there’s no going back!
Beef tri-tip is a triangular-shaped roast that comes from the bottom sirloin of the hindquarter of the cow.
You may not even be familiar with this cut of beef. Here in NE Kansas, beef tri-tip is not sold as a main-stream cut of beef in many grocery stores.
I source mine from my local butcher shop because it’s considered specialty beef in our area. This could be because there are only two tri-tip roasts per cow.
Some tri-tips are sold untrimmed with a fat cap on one side. I like a tri-tip that still has some fat on it since I think this helps keep the roast moist during the cooking process.
However, if you prefer that the exterior gets very charred on all sides, you will want to purchase a tri-tip that is well trimmed by the butcher.
Before you apply the herb marinade to the exterior of the roasts, be sure to notice how the grain of the meat runs.
You will see that the grain slightly changes direction at the thickest part of the roast. Keep this in mind for later when slicing the meat against the grain.
Slicing again the grain is important for a good tri-tip eating experience because slicing against the grain shortens the protein fibers making the meat more tender and easier to chew.
Unless you want an exterior sear on the roasts that is extremely dark, you can sear the roasts right in the roaster oven, during the first part of the high-heat cooking time. I love it that this works so well.
You’ll start with high heat at 450 degrees F. for searing the roasts, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F. for the remainder of the cooking time.
This can vary depending on the size and brand of your roaster oven and also the size of your tri-tip roasts. The total prep, resting, and cooking time for this recipe is 2 hours and 45 minutes for two 2-1/2 pound tri-tip roasts.
Slice a tri tip roast across the grain into about 1/2 inch thick slices.
The key to juicy tri-tip is two-fold: 1. Resting the beef before and after cooking. 2. Cooking it to just medium-rare doneness to ensure it tastes like steak when sliced.
If the tri-tip is cooked just to rare or medium-rare, you can safely slice it and reheat these slices in the microwave without running the risk of overcooking.
I definitely use the warm beef drippings that accumulate in the bottom of my electric roaster as au jus for the slices of tri-tip – they are delicious! You will likely need to add some beef broth to the drippings to have enough liquid to thicken into gravy.
What sides go best with tri-tip in the roaster oven?
This recipe is super beefy and rich, so we like to pair it with something comforting, fresh, or balancing. A classic side like Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes is always a win. You could also try our Carrots with Orange Marmalade, Broccoli and Cauliflower Casserole, or an Everyday Salad, too.
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Tri Tip in a Roaster Oven
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Ingredients
- 2 beef tri-tip roasts 2 1/2 pounds each
- 1/4 cup avocado or olive oil
- 8 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons Gourmet Gardens Italian Herbs Paste or 2 tablespoons combined freshly minced basil, oregano, and thyme, optional ingredient but highly recommended
- 1 tablespoon McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning may substitute your favorite steak seasoning
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- 1 hour before you want to cook the tri tip roasts, remove them refrigeration and unpackage completely.2 beef tri-tip roasts
- In a small bowl, prepare the marinade by combining the oil, garlic, herb paste, steak seasoning, and Worcestershire sauce; reserve.1/4 cup avocado or olive oil, 8 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons Gourmet Gardens Italian Herbs Paste, 1 tablespoon McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- Pat the roasts dry with paper towels. Using your fingertips, rub the prepared herb marinade all over each roast.
- Let the roasts rest, uncovered, on the counter for 1 hour.
- When it's time to cook the roasts, place the wire rack into the bottom of a well-oiled 18 quart (24 pound) electric roaster. Cover the roaster with the lid and preheat for 5 minutes at 450 degrees F.
- Place the prepared roasts onto the wire rack in the electric roaster. Cover the roaster once again and cook the roasts for 30 minutes.
- Reduce the electric roaster temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue to cook the roasts, still covered, for 25-30 minutes more , or until the internal temperature reaches 125-130 degrees F. at the center of the roasts using an instant-read meat thermometer probe. **If your roasts are larger than 2 1/2 pounds or were not well rested before you began the cooking process, they make take longer to reach the 125-130 degree F. internal temperature. Gauge doneness by internal temperature, not by cooking time for best results!
- Remove the tri tip roasts from the electric roaster to a large cutting board. Tent each roast with foil, allowing them to rest for at least 30 minutes on the cutting board. During this period of covered rest, the roasts will continue to finish cooking from residual heat.
- When the roasts have raised 10 more degrees in internal temperature to 135-140 degrees F. (for medium rare beef), slice each roast across the grain into 1/2-inch thick slices. Serve at once.