If You Like Steak then Sous-Vide Should Be Your Friend

Sous-Vide-and-then-seared has become my favorite was to cook steak.

Why? Because it comes out perfectly cooked every time.  It doesn’t matter how thick or thin the steak is.  It doesn’t matter if I am cooking several steaks of varying thicknesses.  They are all going to get cooked to the exact degree of doneness I want.

What Is Sous-Vide?

Sous-vide is a cooking technique utilizing a temperature-controlled water bath. The water is heated and continuously circulated. You place whatever you want to cook into a sealed plastic bag and drop it into the water.  The contents of the plastic bag cannot get to a temperature higher than the water so you are assured that nothing gets over-cooked.  Setting the water temperature to 140F gets me a filet mignon cooked to a doneness of medium to medium well – exactly the way I want it.  And because everything is sealed in a plastic bag no juices can escape.  The result is a very tender steak.

When sous-vide machines were first introduced a few years ago they were very expensive. I enjoy trying new kitchen tools and gadgets but $800 was WAY too much money to spend just to try out. Since then the cost has come down significantly. I have the Anova Precision Cooking shown in the adjacent photo.  They are about $00, with the price occasionally dropping to $170 when on sale.

And it saves time.

Usually I buy USDA Price steaks when they are on sale.  I vacuum-bag them, two to a bag and throw them in the freezer.  On the morning of  ‘steak day’ I take them out of the freezer and put them in the refrigerator to thaw. About two and a half hours before serving time I fire up the Anova Precision Cooker.  When the water is up to proper temperature, I drop the vacuum bag straight into the water bath.  About 2 hours later I take the steaks out of the water, remove them from the vacuum bag, and put them in a hot fry pan for a couple minutes to brown.  Then they are ready to serve.  This routine really saves me time because I don’t have to hover over a grill so the steaks don’t overcook.

Best of all you get the desired doneness from edge to edge. Picture Perfect.