If you love eating steak, then you will love this Sous Vide Steak recipe! The steak is cooked perfectly and makes even the cheapest cut of beef taste amazing.
I had my doubts about cooking a steak using sous vide, but wow was I impressed with the results the first time. My friend Justin and I used a New York Strip, and it turned out so incredibly flavorful and juicy and perfectly medium-rare, just the way I like it.
What is sous vide?
Sous vide is a method of cooking which involves submerging the item being cooked (beef, chicken, fish, etc) in a bag or jar, in a water bath for a long period of time at a constant low temperature. This ensures completely even cooking throughout. After which the meat, chicken, fish, is usually given a quick sear in a hot pan.
Sous vide steak is very easy to make and tastes incredible. If I can do it, you can do it. Let’s get started!
Step 1: Gather the ingredients
In order to make sous vide steak, you need a handful of ingredients and tools:
- Steak/Beef – You can use whatever cut that you like, sirloin, New York strip, porter house, filet, etc.
- Salt
- Onion powder
- Pepper
- Garlic powder
- Avocado oil – Or other oils like coconut, vegetable, etc.
- Butter
Tools
- Sous Vide machine
- Container (Igloo or Special Sous Vide container)
- Cast iron skillet or normal skillet or use your BBQ Grill
- Plate
- Paper towels or clean kitchen towels
- Straw
- Ziplock freezer bag or silicon reusable bag
Step 2: How to make steak using sous vide
Begin by seasoning the steaks. Lightly sprinkle on salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Make sure to get both sides of the steak. You can also put the seasonings in the bag and then shake the bag with the steak in it to season it.
Now it is time to place the seasoned meat into a plastic bag or silicone bag. If you use a silicone bag it can be used over and over again. One thing that is nice to do is to fold the top part of the zip lock bag over. So when you put the steak in the bag, seasonings don’t mess up the zip lock sealing capabilities.
The bag needs to be vacuumed sealed now. The reason this is done is so the bag doesn’t float with all that air in it. You can do two methods to get the air out of the bag. Push as much air as you can with your hands and then put a straw in the bag and suck out the air then seal it. Or put the bag in the container of water and allow the water pressure to push the air out, then seal the bag. Either way. I like the straw method the best.
You can also use a professional vacuum sealer too if you like.
Step 3: Sous vide that steak
Take a large container like an igloo cooler, or there are specific sous vide containers you can buy, or just use a deep pot. Fill it with water about 90 percent full.
Next attach the sous vide machine to the container and turn it on to the desired temperature. Since I love my steak to be medium rare I set the temp to right around 129 F/54 C.
Here is a handy cooking temp for steak chart:
- Rare (120 F/49 C)
- Medium-Rare (129 F/54 C)
- Medium (135 F/57 C)
- Medium Well (145 F/63 C)
- Well-Done (156 F/69 C)
Place the sealed bags of steak into the water and make sure they aren’t floating. Use clamps if needed to keep them submerged. Let them cook for 1.5 to 3 hours.
Note: If you really want a well-done steak, there is not really a reason to use sous vide. Just cook it until there is no pink at all in a pan or on a grill, it will take far less time than sous vide cooking.
Step 4: Dry the steak and sear it
After the time is up, remove the bag from the water and open it up and pull out the steak. Place it on a plate lined with paper towel and dry it. The steak will most likely look great. Don’t worry! That is perfectly normal.
Place the steak in the fridge for a few minutes will you heat up the skillet.
Place a few tablespoons of avocado oil or another high smoke point oil in a cast iron pan or other skillet. Set the heat to medium-high and allow the pan to get really hot.
Drop the steaks in the pan and let the sizzling commence! Sear each side, it doesn’t take very long, maybe two minutes total. Notice the steak doesn’t look grey anymore, but perfectly seared. Add some butter to the tops of the steaks and allow it melt, you can take a spoon and spoon the melted butter over the steak as well if you like.
You can also sear the steak on a hot grill. This works well, especially if you are already grilling other things like asparagus to go with the steak.
Remove the steak and put it on a plate or cutting board and allow it to rest.
Now just cut into the steak after it has rested. Notice how perfectly cooked it is on the inside? Awesome! If needed you can add more seasonings to the sous vide steak.
Serve it with a perfect baked potato or fries, asparagus, avocado, Jalapeno poppers etc. Enjoy!
How long does sous vide steak last?
After they are cooked the steaks will last about 3 days in the fridge, stored in an airtight container or plastic bag. You can also freeze them to extend their life for a few months.
Here are a few more recipes you may like:
Sous Vide Steak
Equipment
- Sous Vide machine
- Container (Igloo or Special Sous Vide container)
- Cast iron skillet or normal skillet or use your BBQ Grill
- Plate
- Paper towels or clean kitchen towels
- Straw
- Ziplock freezer bag or silicon reusable bag
Ingredients
- 1 lb. of Steak, New York Strip, sirloin, Porterhouse, London Broil, Filet, etc. (455g)
- 1/2 tsp. of salt 2g
- 1/2 tsp. of onion powder 2g
- 1/2 tsp. of pepper 2g
- 1/2 tsp. of garlic powder 2g
- Avocado oil for searing you can use other oils
- 2 Tbsp. of butter for basting
Instructions
- Season the steak with some salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Make sure to get both sides.
- Now you need to bag the steak, a little trick to keep the seasonings, and steak juices off the zip lock part is to fold the top part of the bag over. Place the steak in the bag.
- Push the air out of the bag with your hands, then place the straw in the bag and seal the zip lock bag around it. Suck out the remaining air, pull the straw and seal it completely. Or place the bag in the water and allow the water pressure to push the air out, then seal it. I prefer the straw method. You may also use a professional vacuum sealer.
- Take a large deep container like a cooler, or deep pot, and fill it about 90 percent full with water. Then attach the Sous Vide machine to the side and set the temp. Rare (120 F/49 C), Medium-Rare (129 F/54 C), Medium (135 F/57 C), Medium Well (145 F/63 C), Well-Done (156 F/69 C).
- Place the bagged steak in the container and completely submerge it. It should float to the bottom, if not, clamp it to the side so it stays underwater. Cook the steaks for 1.5 to 3 hours. The time will vary depending on the cut of beef. You can't go wrong with 3 hours though.
- Remove the bag from the water, open it up, and take the steak out. Pat the steak dry with a paper towel. Then chill it for about 10 minutes in the fridge. The steak will probably look gray, don't worry! That is normal.
- Add a few tablespoons of oil to a cast-iron skillet, or use a normal skillet. Set the heat to medium-high and allow the pan to heat up. Use tongs to lay the steak in the pan and sear each side until nice and browned. Add the butter if you like, for more flavor. It only takes about 2 minutes total to sear the steak completely. Remove the steak and allow it to rest. You can also throw it on a hot grill outside instead of using the pan. Cut into it and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Do you like this recipe? Please give it a rating and comment down below, I really appreciate it. If you make it tag me on Instagram @inthekitchenwithmatt. Also, sign up for the newsletter so you won’t miss out on any of my new posts and recipes.
Thanks for all the details and guidance in perfecting a sous vide steak! Very helpful!
You are welcome!
Good things are worth waiting for! Perfectly tender & juicy!! We will be making this for date night in!
Agreed!! 🙂 🙂
This steak turned out perfectly!! My kids are steak crazy and they loved it so much. Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you tried it and liked it! You are very welcome!