I am new to the sous vide world and have used my Anova twice – both times for cooking meat. The first was thick bone-in pork chops, both in the same bag. One was perfect, the other a little overcooked for my taste. In sous vide for 2 hours at 140. Both were seared in a hot cast iron skillet for about 25 second on each side. My second time was 1-1/2 inch strip steaks – sought medium rare, got far end of medium well. 2 hours at 130, seared about same 40 second each side. Should I just cook them for less, like 1 hour 30 or 40 minutes? Should I separate steaks/chops into separate bags. Seeking some expert help here. Many thanks.
When I first started out with sous vide cooking I had similar results as a result of not drying the surface of the meat sufficiently. This resulted in a small amount of steaming that would overcook my steaks. Once I started being more diligent in drying the meat post-sous vide I was getting better results. I also found that allowing the steaks to sit uncovered for 5 to 15 minutes would help the drying and cool the surface slightly giving me a bit of a buffer against overcooking when searing.
When cooking two steaks in a single bag, ensure that they’re “side-by-side” in a single layer rather than “stacked”.
stevej makes some good points, letting the meat rest and dry after a sous vide is helpful. How the meat is placed in both the bag and the container can cause some variation. Having a wire rack on the bottom of the container is helpful to keep the water circulating around the entire piece of meat. If you seared the chops one after the other, the pan may have cooled too much by the time the second one went on the heat. That could account for difference in temperature.
Thanks for the tips and info. Appreciate it.
Greg, let’s work together and do some culinary problem solving.
First, the pork chops.
Please help me understand how you think two pork chops cooked together could be so different? Any ideas?
Were they packed flat and not stacked?
What do you think might have happened to one chop and not the other?
Please describe what, - “a little overcooked for my taste” looks like.
Was it different in both appearance and texture?
What about differences in juiciness?
Moving on to the steaks.
How did you discerne the steaks were cooked to the far end of Medium-Well?
Did you have an internal temperature measurement to confirm that?
Cooking time does not explain the unsatisfactory doneness outcomes you experienced
SV cooking is really very simple.
Temperature regulates doneness.
Thickness is critical to time.
You used normal cooking times and temperatures. That’s why your results are puzzling.
Unless your steaks or chops are unusually large you don’t need tp cook them in separate packs. As long as you have ample water circulation around all sides of the food being cooked the number of items in a pack usually doesn’t create a problem.
I look forward to eliminating the causes of your disappointing experiences with you. Details are always important in doing so.
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Just a quick note. It is not necessary to rest products cooked sous vide. The resting is all about redistributing the juices that have been drawn to the surface during traditional cooking methods. Sous vide does not have this issue. Just blot them very dry before you attempt to sear them.
Thanks. Good to know on the resting.
First, the pork chops.
Please help me understand how you think two pork chops cooked together could be so different? Any ideas?
They were not drastically different; one was more juicy than the other –
Were they packed flat and not stacked? Packaged flat
What do you think might have happened to one chop and not the other? Not sure
Please describe what, - “a little overcooked for my taste” looks like.
Was it different in both appearance and texture?
What about differences in juiciness?
One still had s slight pinkness to it, but was cooked; the other white – a lot less juicy and chewier.
Moving on to the steaks.
How did you discerne the steaks were cooked to the far end of Medium-Well?
They were more difficult to cut than a medium rare steak; gray with little pink.
Did you have an internal temperature measurement to confirm that? I didn’t check temp following removal from the bags; will do so next time.
I’m inclined to point the fault at the searing process. It’s by far the most likely culprit.
My post said nothing about “resting” or “redistributing the juices”. In fact I purposely avoided the use of the term “resting”. As I stated, I’ve found that allowing a short time for the surface to cool slightly gives me a buffer against overcooking during searing.
You’ll note that my comment was not directed to you, but a general reminder. You did not mention resting. @FlashRodgers did.
Hi Ember! I am new to this and very glad to know that resting is not needed. (Have only cooked sous vide once) Thanks!