This is a recipe for Top Sirloin Steak on the Traeger Trailhead and part of my initial review of this new grill that I got from Costco. I was excited to cook up a steak but what I really wanted to know was whether or not the Trailhead could sear a piece of meat without resorting to extra gadgets and hacks.
The quick answer is, the steak was delicious but the Trailhead cannot sear without extra assistance.
Season and Prep the Top Sirloin for Grilling on the Traeger
We were working with a one pound Top Sirloin Steak that was USDA Grade Choice. Even though this was a Choice steak it was still pretty lean…that’s just the nature of Top Sirloin.
The Top Sirloin was seasoned on both sides with Traeger’s Anything Rub which is a nice blend of salt, pepper, garlic with a bit of jalapeno and other spices thrown in.
After the steak was seasoned we let it sit on the cutting board for about 45 minutes. The wait time helps the seasoning work into the meat and gives the steak time to warm up a little.
We also sliced up some zucchini and seasoned them as well. The veggies made for a nice visual contrast and made us feel like we were being at least a little bit healthy!
Preheat the Traeger Trailhead for 30 Minutes
We were interested to see how the Trailhead did with High Heat Grilling so we filled the hopper with Traeger Hickory wood pellets, set the temperature to as high as it would go (450F) and closed the lid.
We had the Trailhead mounted on our BBQ Wagon out in the woods and were using our Jackery 300 for power.
It took the grill ten minutes to get to temperature and once it reached 450F we waited for another 30 minutes. We were surprised that after 30 minutes the temperature of the grill was reading 504F!
Grill the Top Sirloin on the Traeger
After the Trailhead had heated for 30 minutes we opened the lid and placed the top sirloin on the cooking grate.
When the steak first went on the grill we could hear a lovely sizzle. I went ahead and used my tongs to press the steak against the grate in order to help some grill marks develop.
The lid was closed and the steak grilled undisturbed for seven minutes. After seven minutes I flipped the steak and discovered that there were absolutely no sear marks and no crust formation of any kind.
Sigh.
At this point we added the veggies and closed the lid again.
After grilling another seven minutes the top sirloin had reached an internal temperature of 137F and we took it off the Traeger.
The top sirloin smelled wonderful and had a nice reddish color from the smoke but again, no hints of a sear.
Slice and Serve the Grilled Top Sirloin
We sliced up the Top Sirloin and served it along with the grilled zucchini. There was a lot of grey around the edges of the slices which is the result of cooking at high heat for 7 minutes per side.
The steak was flavorful, tender and enjoyable. Lots of great beefy flavor and the Traeger rub brought a touch of spiciness.
Overall this was a fine cook. I believe that the next time we try this we will smoke the steak at low temperatures and then sear if off on a gas grill.
Traeger Grilled Top Sirloin Steak
Equipment
- Traeger Trailhead
Ingredients
- 1 lb Top Sirloin Steak
- 1 tbsp Traeger Anything Rub
- 1 Zucchini, Sliced Lengthwise
Instructions
- Season the Top Sirloin on both sides with the Traeger Anything Rub
- Preheat the Traeger to 450F and let it heat for 30 minutes.
- Place the steak on the grill, close the lid and wait seven minutes.
- Open the lid, flip the steak and add the zucchini slices.
- Close the lid and grill for seven more minutes until the steak reaches an internal temperature of 135F or to your preferred doneness.
- Remove the steak and veggies from the grill, slice the steak thinly and serve.
More Steak Recipes You Will Enjoy!
For more steak action please check out these recipes!
We made a Smoked Top Round Roast on a Traeger from a massive four pound cut. We did this one Low and Slow for a little over two hours it it came out just about perfect. This is a great way to easily make a huge amount of steak for not much money.
We gave our Traeger a break and did some Grilled Arrachera on a Weber Traveler. The arrachera, which is a marinated skirt steak, came from Costco and was already seasoned. It was nice to break out a gas grill and be able to do some serious high heat searing.
If you can’t find any arrachera then a flap steak is a nice substitute. Here is our recipe for Grilled Flap Steak on a Weber that came out perfect. Be sure to toss some avocados on the grill along with the flap steak.
Last up is a trio of recipes for cooking flank steak.
If you want the steak to be a perfect medium rare and incredibly tender then you will want to check out our recipe for Sous Vide Flank Steak. This recipe takes the longest but the sous vide process makes it simple.
And last up is something a little fancy. We made a Stuffed and Smoked Flank Steak that looks fancy as heck! We give you some suggestions on different stuffing ingredients you can use in case ours doesn’t have the flavor profile you are looking for.