Foodbuzz 24X24 - Sirloin Tri-Tip with a Cherry Salsa

 

And finally, we come to the end of our recipes... I return to my roots with a grilled sirloin Tri-tip.

Part 8/recipe 8 of our "Day at the Farmer's market".  A full day's worth of fun, from early morning shopping to a full morning's worth of slicing, dicing, sauteing, braising, marinating, grilling and prepping for a meal.

We started the day with snacks.  The Tomato Poppers were a simple yet tasty way to start the day.  The chips took just a bit more work, as they got fried and combined with just an incredible Sheep's Cheese dip.  The Peach Compote took just a little longer to make, as the peaches are blanched to make peeling easy, then the fruit is gently simmered as the compote needs to break the fruit down before it can be pureed.

And so, we started cooking the "real" meal... with side dishes.  The Pasta Salad (nearly a meal in itself), .  Certainly all you would need for lunch, and a beautiful side dish.  Another meal in itself, assigned to duty as a side dish were the grilled pizza peppers.  Our only true side dish were the "faux" Caprice Salads on a toothpick".


I loved the Vegetarian main course of Swish Chard and Potato Leek Hash!

And of course, I topped the meal off with this gem...

Most interesting of all for this recipe is the inspirational blogger that provided the recipe probably has no idea that I lifted her recipe.


You see, Velva of TOMATOES ON THE VINE blog recently did a lovely post of... Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Salsa.  I just loved the idea for this, and will certainly be trying the salsa with the pork she recommended, but I just could not get the idea of a beautiful tri-tip sirloin out of my head when i looked over the recipe.  The marinade, the salsa is all Velva's.  I actually did not change a thing... except the pork became beef.


Oh, and her beautiful salsa of deep red cherries became yellow Rainier cherries with soft red accents.  Again, love Farmer's Markets where some wonderful unusual items show up.  Here's the 411 on these wonderful cherries...

Rainier

A very attractive, exceptionally large, yellow cherry with a bright red blush. Rainier has a distinctive and superior appearance among sweet cherry varieties. Delicately flavored with extraordinary sugar levels, the flesh is pure yellow, very firm and finely textured. A premium niche variety that ripens after Bing. 

OK... First up, let's make the Cherry Salsa...

1/2 lb. fresh cherries, stemmed, pitted, halved.
1/2 cup Cilantro
1/2 cup Shallots, minced
juice of fresh Lime
1 fresh  jalapeno thinly sliced crosswise
thinly sliced.
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine cilantro, 1/4 cup cup shallots, 2 tablespoons lime juice, cherries, chile, and olive oil in a medium bowl. Season salsa lightly with salt and pepper and set aside to let flavors to meld. 

The recipe made enough to accent the steak, but also to serve as an additional side dish.  IT WAS DELICIOUS!


We let this sit for about 2 hours before we served.


Now to the meat...


A Tri Tip Sirloin is a wonderful piece of meat to serve to a crowd.  Usually almost three pounds, it is the muscle at the bottom of the sirloin portion of a cow.  It is triangular shape, thicker at one end than the thinner other.  Meaning, if you carefully monitor the temperature, the thick end is a nice beautiful PERFECT rare to medium rare.  The further down towards the tip you go, is cooked more, ending with a generous amount of meat that is cooked medium well.


Please, if you are at all uncertain, cook with a remote probe instant read meat thermometer.  I insert mone in the thick end and cooked this guy to just 140 degrees.


Slice against the grain to get the most tender slices.

Back to my roots, the title of my blog is a Year on the Grill after all, so let's grill it.


But first the marinade.  Here's what we did...


1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro, divided
1/2 cup minced shallots, divided
6 tablespoons fresh lime juice, divided
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 Tri Tip Sirloins, about 2-1/2 lb. total


Prepare a grill to medium-high heat. Combine 1/2 cup cilantro, 1/4 cup minced shallots, 4 tablespoons lime juice, and vegetable oil in resealable plastic bag. Add beef; seal bag and turn to coat. Marinate at room temperature for 1-2 hours, turning occasionally.

Remove steak from marinade and season generously with salt and pepper.

Grill beef, turning just once, until a thermometer inserted into thickest part of the meat registers 140 degrees, about 20-25 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes.

Cut into thin slices and serve with salsa.

With the unique bright yellow and red cherries, the green of the cilantro and pepper and the amazing look of a medium rare steak this is about the prettiest item I have ever made!

The meat was "all naturally beef, pasture raised", Grown locally, served locally, bought fresh from the PISCIOTTA FARMS.

"At Pisciotta Farms our passion for great tasting wholesome foods and our love of the land and wildlife come together.  Our family of foods are produced locally using sustainable agriculture methods that mimic nature.  Over half of our diverse farm is dedicated exclusively to wildlife. "

They are regulars at the market.  Bringing a truck full of Chickens, pork, eggs and their signature beef!  No antibiotics, growth stimulants or animal bi-products, free range grown and proudly use sustainable agricultural techniques!

You need to come to the market early for these guys.  their sale board is hand written with whatever is fresh and ready that week.  No huge numbers of items, once they are sold out, they are gone.

While I can appreciate the marinade, enjoy the unique salsa topping and brag about the grilling techniques ...

I have never had anything but top quality from Pisciotta Farms.  Certainly worth hunting down, especially when serving for a party!

And you will find all these recipes on eRecipecards.com!