Sous Vide Cooking: What You Need To Know | Techniquely

[00:00] - Sous vide got really

[00:02] One was really relevant

[00:04] but over time it got to feel

[00:06] a little bit like stunt cooking.

[00:08] But it's not.

[00:09] It can be really useful to the home cook,

[00:10] and that's what we're

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[00:19] Sous vide allowed chefs to create dishes

[00:21] that hadn't been possible before.

[00:23] One really popular one was

[00:26] These are short ribs that have been cooked

[00:28] for three whole days.

[00:30] And then before serving,

[00:32] rather than getting seared in a skillet,

[00:34] chefs preserve that

[00:37] by hitting the ribs with a blowtorch.

[00:39] These bright pink short

[00:41] of a medium-rare steak, but a

[00:44] In fact, if I've done this right,

[00:47] I should be able to just

[00:49] It was kind of miraculous,

[00:56] For a steak that's just got salt on it,

[00:58] no sauce, no spices, it's amazing.

[01:02] So, short ribs are

[01:04] because you have to

[01:06] for them to become tender.

[01:07] But sous vide allowed chefs

[01:10] and diners flocked to restaurants

[01:13] The other reason it got popular

[01:14] was it saved chefs time and money.

[01:17] Sous vide let them cook all sorts of meat

[01:18] to the perfect temp.

[01:20] Their cooks just needed

[01:22] and then get the food onto a plate.

[01:24] That is so much faster and easier

[01:27] than teaching a cook how to cook something

[01:29] so that the inside gets

[01:32] at the same time that the

[01:35] Customers got perfect food,

[01:37] and everybody's job got a lot easier.

[01:40] This second point, the

[01:43] that's what I love about it.

[01:45] Meat is really expensive right now

[01:47] and being able to prepare it without fear

[01:48] of getting the cook

[01:51] Or maybe you're cooking for a crowd.

[01:53] Knowing that all you have to do

[01:55] is get the outside seared properly

[01:56] because the meat is already

[01:59] it makes entertaining so much

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[02:06] Besides the immersion circulator itself,

[02:08] you're going to need a

[02:10] and the food, some sort

[02:13] and something to cover that container.

[02:15] Hop onto the ATK app and

[02:18] for our review of these appliances.

[02:20] I've got a couple of ribeyes here

[02:21] that I'll use for this demo,

[02:22] but I'm going to keep the discussion broad

[02:25] because this method can be used

[02:26] for so many different types of meat.

[02:28] So when it comes to the container,

[02:29] the biggest consideration is,

[02:32] You need something that's big

[02:34] and the water that surrounds it.

[02:37] Smaller considerations are, how

[02:39] and how long is the cook time?

[02:42] A good recipe will do

[02:44] but if you're scaling a

[02:47] then remember, the higher the temperature

[02:49] and the longer the cook, the

[02:53] and so the more water you'll

[02:55] Or just a really good lid.

[02:57] So, for these steaks,

[02:59] a Dutch oven or a Cambro

[03:02] Or if you do this a lot,

[03:03] maybe you want to invest in a

[03:06] And for a lid, you don't

[03:09] Plastic wrap works great.

[03:11] Generally, you want to fill the bath

[03:12] so that the food is fully submerged,

[03:14] but that the water doesn't

[03:16] for your circulator.

[03:17] As for the water temperature,

[03:20] to whatever the serving temperature is.

[03:22] When we cook a steak, we

[03:24] at 125 degrees for a medium-rare.

[03:27] That's not the serving temp.

[03:28] As it rests, that steak continues to cook

[03:30] for a couple of minutes, and

[03:32] it usually goes up three,

[03:35] So we want to set our water

[03:39] to 130 degrees.

[03:40] I'm taking these to medium rare,

[03:41] so I'm going to use 130 today.

[03:44] These are the other

[03:47] Finally, you need a bag for the food.

[03:50] A sturdy Ziploc bag like this

[03:52] But before we get to that,

[03:53] we need to get these

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[03:59] So I'm just going to season these ribeyes

[04:01] before putting them in the bag.

[04:03] Now, one of the nice things

[04:05] is you don't have to salt

[04:09] When we salt a steak and let it sit,

[04:12] we're giving the sodium ions

[04:13] time to move into and season the meat.

[04:15] Sous vide cooking,

[04:18] and that's plenty of time

[04:20] to move in while the steak cooks.

[04:22] We're also giving the chloride

[04:25] Remember, salt is a molecule

[04:28] sodium and chloride.

[04:29] Chloride helps the proteins not contract

[04:31] as tightly when they're heated,

[04:33] and that keeps the meat juicy.

[04:35] This is really important if

[04:37] or grilling, because all of those methods

[04:39] bombard the surface of the meat with heat

[04:41] for minutes to hours.

[04:43] And that means that any

[04:46] to a half an inch of the surface,

[04:47] they're going to be kind of

[04:51] Sous vide doesn't do that

[04:52] because the water temperature

[04:54] So food cooked sous

[04:56] and it doesn't need the

[04:59] Okay, now that the steak is

[05:02] You might find some recipes

[05:04] before and after bagging,

[05:06] but I prefer searing just once, after.

[05:09] It goes faster,

[05:10] and because the meat doesn't

[05:13] there's less overcooking at the surface.

[05:15] When I use zipper lock

[05:18] and then I like to cuff them like this.

[05:20] This keeps any stray bits

[05:24] from getting stuck in that groove,

[05:25] which is going to really make sealing it

[05:27] a lot harder than it needs to be.

[05:29] And then we just drop

[05:32] Now, the steak isn't the only

[05:35] You can add other herbs

[05:37] or garlic powder.

[05:39] I'm going to use thyme, and

[05:42] You definitely do not

[05:45] whether it's smashed, cloves, whatever.

[05:47] It's a potential source of botulism.

[05:49] We don't worry about botulism

[05:50] most of the time in the kitchen

[05:53] in an anaerobic environment,

[05:57] Sous vide is one of the few exceptions,

[05:59] so, garlic powder is a much better choice.

[06:01] It's been heat-treated, so it's safe.

[06:04] I'm not using it today, but if I were,

[06:05] I would just sprinkle a little bit,

[06:07] maybe half a teaspoon over the steak,

[06:09] kind of the way you'd

[06:12] Last up, we need oil. About

[06:16] Oil does a couple of things for us.

[06:17] It keeps the food from

[06:19] It also helps to distribute flavor.

[06:21] So, you can see that the thyme

[06:24] is just hanging out right up here.

[06:26] If I didn't have any fat in that bag,

[06:28] really, it would just be

[06:31] that picks up that flavor.

[06:32] But because so many of those

[06:36] they're going to diffuse into that oil,

[06:37] and the oil fully surrounds

[06:40] Last thing, the oil's going

[06:42] out of the bag, and

[06:47] So, why is air bad?

[06:50] If you wanted to cook a

[06:52] and your choices are a 212-degree oven

[06:56] or a pot of boiling water,

[06:58] and remember, water boils at 212.

[07:00] Which are you going to choose?

[07:01] You are going to boil that potato, right?

[07:03] It's going to go so much faster in the pot

[07:05] because water is great at conducting heat

[07:08] and air is terrible at it.

[07:09] So, if you've got air in the bag

[07:11] and it's between the food and the water,

[07:13] then the food is going to

[07:17] If you sous vide a lot,

[07:18] you might want to invest

[07:19] to get the air out,

[07:22] Here's how to do it

[07:24] You just need your tub of water.

[07:25] And when you seal this bag up,

[07:26] get as much air out of it as you can.

[07:29] There's some in there, but that's okay.

[07:30] So you want to lower it kind of slowly,

[07:33] and as you're lowering it,

[07:35] that plastic bag up

[07:39] and force the air towards the top.

[07:42] So, if you go slowly

[07:44] and then open up a tiny corner,

[07:46] you don't want to open up the whole thing,

[07:47] because if something slips,

[07:48] then you're going to

[07:51] And then keep working the bag down slowly

[07:54] and letting the air work its way up.

[07:58] Now, this method isn't as

[08:03] but as you move the seal

[08:07] you should be able to work out

[08:11] and then you just seal it back up.

[08:15] So, I'm going to clip this

[08:25] So, I like to clip these bags

[08:28] to make sure that the

[08:32] If I'm using a vacuum sealer,

[08:35] So the only thing to remember is that,

[08:36] for your food to cook evenly,

[08:38] the water has to circulate

[08:41] So, if you have multiple bags in one bath,

[08:43] you got to make sure they're not stacked

[08:45] one on top of the other.

[08:46] And if you have multiple items in one bag,

[08:49] make sure they're spread

[08:53] Now we're just waiting

[08:55] And here is where sous vide really shines.

[08:58] (energizing music)

[09:01] Know how conventional cooking means

[09:03] that you have to pay attention

[09:05] towards the end of the cook time,

[09:06] because if you don't, you have

[09:09] And on top of that, you need to make sure

[09:11] that the outside is properly

[09:14] Sous vide is great because it separates

[09:15] those two steps entirely.

[09:17] Recipes for sous vide take into account

[09:19] how long it takes the meat

[09:21] of the bath and how long

[09:24] to get tender at that temperature.

[09:26] Here's the thing, though,

[09:28] than the water in the bath,

[09:31] This steak can hang out in this bath

[09:33] after it's done for about an hour,

[09:35] and you can get other things done.

[09:37] Conventional cooking methods,

[09:40] or grilling, they can't

[09:43] That's why sous vide recipes

[09:44] don't list a single

[09:46] Instead, you'll see a

[09:49] or 14 to 16 hours.

[09:52] Within that window, the

[09:55] If it stays in the bath too long, though,

[09:57] it's not that it'll overcook,

[09:58] but the texture's going to suffer.

[10:00] Meat and fish become

[10:03] and some vegetables lose their

[10:06] So, once the meat is cooked

[10:09] the final step is to sear

[10:11] so that you can get that

[10:12] and those great flavors and

[10:16] Since the interior is at the perfect temp,

[10:18] the searing step, it's

[10:20] Just take the meat out of the bag.

[10:22] And by the way, you want

[10:24] Once the steak's out of the

[10:27] Any water that remains on

[10:30] is going to splatter when we go to sear.

[10:32] And so, the drier that steak,

[10:36] Now we need just a smidge of oil.

[10:37] And once that pan's hot, we sear.

[10:39] (pan sizzling)

[10:41] Searing doesn't just improve

[10:44] it also kills any microbes.

[10:45] After you've seared the first

[10:48] you can chuck some butter

[10:50] This is a really nice way to get heat

[10:51] on the sides of the steak really easily.

[10:54] Or you can just use your tongs

[10:55] to give those sides a quick sear.

[10:57] When the steak is browned

[11:01] Remember how I said you

[11:03] after the steak came out?

[11:05] Those juices are full of delicious flavor,

[11:07] and they're perfect

[11:09] There's nothing really tricky here.

[11:10] We're going to follow the

[11:13] I want to leave just a

[11:14] less than a tablespoon, and

[11:18] It's going to saute gently,

[11:19] and then I'm going to add minced herbs.

[11:21] I use thyme in the bag this time around,

[11:23] so this is minced thyme that I'm adding.

[11:25] I want to give that maybe

[11:27] before I deglaze with some red wine.

[11:30] And then instead of adding the broth,

[11:32] I'm going to add the juices.

[11:33] So, I like to do this

[11:36] and just snipping the bottom corner.

[11:38] Not enough that any of the

[11:40] just enough to release those juices.

[11:42] Then once all the juices have

[11:45] I'll give the bag a pinch

[11:46] when the fat starts to come through.

[11:49] It's totally okay if a little

[11:52] you just don't want all of it.

[11:54] Now we're just going to let

[11:56] Once it's reduced, I whisk in cold butter,

[11:58] just as I would for any normal pan sauce,

[12:00] check the seasoning, and then it's done.

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[12:09] There's something so satisfying

[12:13] It's so easy,

[12:14] and if you take a peek, the

[12:19] It's that edge-to-edge pink

[12:23] and people go for.

[12:24] And sous vide is, like, the one way

[12:25] where you can absolutely get it.

[12:27] I can't wait to try this.

[12:31] Wow, the marbling on this is ridiculous.

[12:37] This is incredibly tender.

[12:39] It eats almost like a filet mignon,

[12:41] except, because of all that

[12:45] it's so much beefier tasting,

[12:47] it's fantastic.

[12:48] And this pan sauce, really awesome,

[12:50] considering we just needed

[12:52] you know, a splash of

[12:54] If you want more info on sous vide cooking

[12:56] so that you can experiment at home.

[12:59] Or if you want just some

[13:02] get yourself a copy of

[13:04] It's a great resource.

[13:05] Did I miss anything?

[13:06] What's your favorite

[13:08] Let me know in the comments.

[13:10] (energizing music)