Sous vide assistance (1 Viewer)

krafticus

krafticus

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So, we got a Sous vide, and i used it to cook sirloin (2 inch thick). I set the temp for 140 (medium), and let it go. I did put the steaks in vacuum sealed bags. It took an hour or so, which seemed fast. It turned off, to I turned it back on (at 140) until dinner. I pulled them out, seared them in a cast iron for 2 min per side. Let them rest, and cut into them. They are well done, and so tough they are hard to cut. What did I do wrong???

8B21069B-64F8-4B61-86F5-151501DCB447.jpeg
 
I've done sous vide once and had the same experience Mark. The suggestion above about undercooking for the sear was going to be my next attempt.

Following
 
All the above. Plus 2" thick tender beef should be in the sous vide for a minimum of 2 hours (max. 5).

And your sear should take no more than 1 minute per side -- red hot cast iron is your friend. 8;)

But also, sous vide will not improve the quality of the meat -- was yours choice or better?

I'm about to take a six pound USDA Choice boneless prime rib out, and give it an oven sear at 475 for about five minutes. Sous vide at 129, and it will be between med-rare and medium for my guests' preference

I also dry-aged it, coated with spices, etc., for ten days in the refrigerator....
 
Last edited:
pltrgyst said:
All the above. Plus 2" thick tender beef should be in the sous vide for a minimum of 2 hours (max. 5).

And your sear should take no more than 1 minute per side -- red hot cast iron is your friend. 8;)

But also, sous vide will not improve the quality of the meat -- was your choice or better?

I'm about to take a six pound USDA Choice boneless prime rib out, and give it an oven sear at 475 for about five minutes. Sous vide at 129, and it will be between med-rare and medium for my guests' preference

I also dry-aged it, coated with spices, etc., for ten days in the refrigerator....
Click to expand...
We always do sirloin or Filet, as 4/5 people in the house don’t eat fatty meats (like Ribeye). Yeah, I know they have more “flavor”, but my gag reflex is strong. REAL strong. My kids are picky too.

I did cast iron with butter. Maybe I did 3-4 min. (So much going on).

I’ll turn down the temp next time, and go for the quick seer. Thanks all
 
I’ve never cooked this way but regardless of method I’d consider 140 well done
 
pltrgyst said:
All the above. Plus 2" thick tender beef should be in the sous vide for a minimum of 2 hours (max. 5).

And your sear should take no more than 1 minute per side -- red hot cast iron is your friend. 8;)

But also, sous vide will not improve the quality of the meat -- was your choice or better?

I'm about to take a six pound USDA Choice boneless prime rib out, and give it an oven sear at 475 for about five minutes. Sous vide at 129, and it will be between med-rare and medium for my guests' preference

I also dry-aged it, coated with spices, etc., for ten days in the refrigerator....
Click to expand...
On my way, be there in about 2.5 hours.
 
This is what I do, and I consider it fool proof:

I always sous vide at the temp I'm aiming for, not lower. Then I let the meat dry off for a while using either a towel or paper tissues. The meat will cool off a bit, allowing you to sear without going above the desired temp. To be safe, I usually hold the sealed bags under running cold water before opening the bags.

The drying of the surface is very important! You cannot get a good sear with a wet surface!

My steps:
1. Souv vide at target temp
2. Cool down the bags with cold water (within reason)
3. Open the bags and dry off the meat as much as you can
4. Sear for 30 to 60 seconds per side depending on the thickness. I've even gone to 90 secs for thick cuts that cooled down for longer (due to prep work taking longer than expected).
5. Profit!

Edit:
This one didn't get a good enough sear IMO. Meat surface not dry enough? Perhaps. But either way, you can see that the crust is thin, I could safely have seared it harder.
IMG-20220212-WA0003.jpg



This one was seared harder. The crust is better, but without the gray band of meat between the crust and the medium rare getting too thick. Without some cooling, I believe the gray area would have been thicker.
IMG-20220206-WA0016.jpg
 
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The one thing I don’t understand. I set the temp, and once it hit the temp, It started a timer. (57 minutes). Once that went off, it turned off. I thought these would just run until you stopped them, as once it gets to temp, the meat will not go over that temp.
 
krafticus said:
The one thing I don’t understand. I set the temp, and once it hit the temp, I started a timer. (57 minutes). Once that went off, it turned off. I thought these would just run until you stopped them, as once it gets to temp, the meat will not go over that temp.
Click to expand...
They run until the time is up. I usually set an hour more, e.g. 3h instead of 2h for a 2 inch steak. That way, if the guests are late I don't have to prolong it, I'll just let it cook longer. And in the unlikely event that I would forget it, it would shut down before turning the meet to mush.
 
Mr Winberg said:
They run until the time is up. I usually set an hour more, e.g. 3h instead of 2h for a 2 inch steak. That way, if the guests are late I don't have to prolong it, I'll just let it cook longer. And in the unlikely event that I would forget it, it would shut down before turning the meet to mush.
Click to expand...
So, you set a Temperature and a timer?
 
I don’t use a guide/timer on my actual machine. I just set the temp where I want it, and once the food goes in, I set my own timer. But like you said… you don’t need a timer at all, that’s the beauty of this method. Steaks generally require at least an hour of cook time (maybe a bit longer if it’s a thick cut), but they can sit in there quite a while longer. Mine were in the bath for about 3.5 hours tonight. I just made sure I put them in early enough and then took them out when it was convenient for me. I do find that an extra hour or two helps with final tenderness as well. There shouldn’t be a scenario where your machine shuts off on its own right after the minimum cooking time has elapsed.

I personally sous vide steaks anywhere from 113-118 depending on the crowd. I find that low 110’s produces a “rarer side of medium rare” final result (after searing), while high 110’s produces a more true medium rare (after searing). If I wanted a true medium result, I’d probably sous vide in the high 120’s and then sear to finish.

I personally use the cold grate technique on charcoal to sear, but if you want to keep it indoors, 30-60 seconds per side in a hot cast iron does the trick as well.

Only got one photo of the finished product tonight, after slicing. These were cooked at 117 and then seared over hot charcoal with the cold grate technique. I’d prefer it a bit rarer myself, but this done-ness is generally a universal people pleaser.

DBDB1949-C538-4286-9022-1C0C14B35104.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Your target temp of 140 was the culprit. That's Well done after the sear for sure.

I target 115 or 118 and hold a steak for at least 2 hours. Frozen steaks 4 hours.

I agree with the above that you must dry the steaks before searing them as they come out of the vacuum bag wet in thier juices.
 
Agreed with trying lower temp (like 130) and quicker sear. Sear only to get the crust you want and not a minute more.

Also just based on results, measure the temp of your water next time. Make sure nothing wrong with your sous vide.

Lastly, sous vide time is quite forgiving. You can do an extra hour if you have the right temp set, and it doesn’t do that much. It’s quite nice in that regard.
 
My preferred is 129° for 90 minutes. Pretty much every time. But I’m a rare - medium rare guy.

Try like 133°

Also. If you really want something that will show you the strength of that machine:

Pork tenderloin at 138° for 90 minutes. Salt, pepper, garlic.

Quick sear for a crust. A tenth the price of steak and 10 times more tender. And its hard to get right without sous vide, but sooooo easy to get right with it.
 
Wait it can cool? Or it can heat the ice?

Googled…looks like circulating water can chill your drinks much quicker. But you need ice as the cooker can only heat (and circulate)
 
Frogzilla said:
Wait it can cool? Or it can heat the ice?

Googled…looks like circulating water can chill your drinks much quicker. But you need ice as the cooker can only heat (and circulate)
Click to expand...
Pretty sure it's just used for circulation of the water. The cooling comes from the ice but still a great idea I havent thought of.
 

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