It came! After almost a year of ghetto rigged set ups, and 7 months after backing their kickstarter, my Anova Precision Cooker finally came in today. I felt like a kid again, opening up my long awaited prize. Of course, I had to start it off with what drew me to sous vide in the first place, steak.
I think JD and Turk said it best, it really is the world's best meat.
Cooking sous vide allows you to have a perfect steak every time, as you set the water bath to the exact temperature that you want your steak done (125 for rare, 135 for med-rare and so on). The water slowly cooks the steaks, bringing them up to temperature and you get a perfectly cooked steak from edge to edge. All it needs after is a little sear to give it a nice crust and you're good to go! Top it off with some spicy tart crying tiger sauce and it truly is a treat.
Sous vide Steaks
serves 2
2 1lb ribeye steaks
fresh thyme
salt and pepper
Crying Tiger Sauce
5oz of cherry tomatoes
1 shallot (unpeeled)
3-4 cloves of garlic (unpeeled)
1 chili (add more or omit depending on your spice tolerance)
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp of diced cilantro
2 tbsp of diced rau kinh gioi (Vietnamese mint)
Sous Vide Steaks
1. Season steaks liberally with salt on both sides, and place into a ziploc bag with the thyme sprigs. Submerge the bag under water, keeping the lip of the bag above the water line, to force air out and form a vacuum seal. Or, if you have a vacuum sealer, use that.
2. Set your circulator to desired temperature (I did 130 for just barely medium rare.) If you don't have a circulator, boil some water and adjust with cold water until you get the desired temperature. I recommend going 5 degrees warmer than desired since the water will cool down a bit over time. You'll have to monitor the water temperature throughout the cooking process to make sure it stays within the desired range, but for this short of a time, it shouldn't fluctuate that badly, especially if you use an insulated container like a beer cooler or styrofoam box. Place the sealed steaks into the water and set a timer for 1.5 hours.
3. Once done, remove the steaks from the bags and pat them dry. It'll look grey and pretty unappetizing, but don't worry, we're going to sear it get a nice crust going.
4. Heat a pan or cast iron skillet over high heat, and get it hot hot. Sear the steak on each side for 30 seconds and allow the maillard reaction to take place. The end result is a crispy crust with tons of umami goodness. Finish with a little more salt and pepper to taste. Let the steak rest for a minute and you're good to go! Because of the slow cooking process, you won't lose as much moisture and don't need to rest the steak as long.
Crying Tiger Sauce
1. Place tomatoes, chilis, garlic, and shallots in a roasting pan. Turn your broiler on high and broil for 8 minutes.
2. Once cooled down, use a spoon to smush the garlic and shallots out of their papery outer layers (which should both be almost like a paste) and combine the rest of the ingredients. Blitz with a stick blender or use a food processor. Serve with the steak (duh).
Sous vide Steaks
serves 2
2 1lb ribeye steaks
fresh thyme
salt and pepper
Crying Tiger Sauce
5oz of cherry tomatoes
1 shallot (unpeeled)
3-4 cloves of garlic (unpeeled)
1 chili (add more or omit depending on your spice tolerance)
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp of diced cilantro
2 tbsp of diced rau kinh gioi (Vietnamese mint)
Sous vide Steaks
1. Salt both sides of steak. Place steaks in bags with thyme and seal. Place in water bath for 1.5 hours.
2. Remove from bath, pat dry and sear in a hot pan. Salt and pepper to taste.
Crying Tiger Sauce
1. Toast tomatoes, shallots, garlic and chilis under a high broiler
2. Once cool, combine the rest of the ingredients and blend together.
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