Sous Vide Steaks Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the ideal sous vide time for steak? ›

For even cooking, do not place more than two steaks in a single bag. Add butter, garlic cloves and your choice of fresh herbs, if desired. Chef Tip: Our vacuum-sealed packaging is SAFE for sous vide.

Option to leave the steak in the sous vide for up to 4 hours for ultra-tender steak, but 2 hours is just perfect, as well! Both will come out medium-rare. Grilling directions: You can also sear steak on the grill by heating the grill to 450ºF and searing the steak on each side for 1 minute.

Sous vide allows for long, slow cooking at a low temperature, which breaks down these tissues and results in tender, juicy meat. Prepare the meat with generous salt and any other desired seasonings, then cook for a long time at a low temperature.

Rare sous vide steak (120°F/49°C): Your meat is still nearly raw. Muscle proteins have not started to contract much and will have a slippery, wet texture. Chewier cuts, like hanger or flap meat, will be particularly tough at this stage. Fat has not yet started to render, so fattier cuts will have a waxy texture.

Longer is not always better You don't always get better results by keeping food in the sous vide machine for longer. For example, many chefs recommend that sous vide steak should not be cooked for longer than four hours because the connective tissue begins to break down and the steak can become mushy.

Sure, with a little technique, it's not difficult to produce excellent steaks through pan-searing alone. But for flawlessly even edge-to-edge cooking and consistently foolproof results, sous vide is absolutely the better way.

Our preference is to place butter into the bag itself, rather than on top of the product. Butter added to the bag will help with air displacement, prevent things from sticking together and help to retain shape, and can also be used afterwards for a pan sauce. Butter also works really well for vegetable dishes.

Seasonings – coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper is all that was used for this reverse-seared steak. Herbs – I used fresh thyme sprigs to enhance the flavor of the steak during the sous vide and searing process. Other herbs you could use are rosemary, sage, or oregano.

So, while it's certainly very difficult to overcook your food using sous vide, to say that it's impossible is a little bit of an overstatement. Just remember that while you technically can't 'overcook' your food, the quality could start to decline if it's left to cook for a lot longer than is recommended.

How do I know when my sous vide steak is done? ›

Ziplock and Glad brand bags are made from polyethylene plastic, and are free of BPAs and dioxins. A good rule of thumb is that when a bag is rated as microwave safe (which requires FDA approval) you can use it for sous vide. Even Dr. Schaffner agrees.

Most beef cuts can be cooked sous vide, including larger, tougher cuts such as Short Ribs or Chuck Roast, but rich, well-marbled cuts such as Strip Steak also really benefit from this preparation.

I take it out of the sous vide machine, dry it off really well, and let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes before I go onto the searing process. This allows me to increase those 2 to 3 minutes sear time up to 4 to 5 minutes.

The simplest and safest method of sous vide cooking is cook-hold: the raw (or partially cooked) ingredients are vacuum sealed, pasteurized, and then held at 130°F (54.4°C) or above until served.

This is an important distinction when it comes to sous vide safety. The generic danger zone for bacterial growth in food is longer than four hours between 40°F (4°C) – 135°F (57°C). The critical danger zone is 70°F (21°C)- 125°F (52°C).