# Sous Vide Cooking Time vs Temperature – What Works Best for You? **URL:** \ **Category:** Anova Precision® Cooker\ **Created:** [April 6, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553 "2026-04-06T16:02:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![marcico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@marcico](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/marcico)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/1 "2026-04-06T16:02:16Z")
I’ve been experimenting with sous vide cooking recently and noticed that small changes in temperature or cooking time can really change the final texture of the food. Sometimes recipes suggest different times for the same cut of meat, so I’m curious — do you usually follow exact recipes, or adjust based on your own experience? For example, do you prefer longer cooks at lower temperatures or shorter cooks at slightly higher temperatures? Would love to hear what has worked best for you and any tips you’ve learned along the way. ---
**Author:** ![john.jcb](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.anovaculinary.com/john.jcb/32/7269_2.png) [@john.jcb](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/john.jcb)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2026, 5:26pm UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/2 "2026-04-06T17:26:50Z")
It depends, chicken and fish textures are personal taste or feel. I like my fish just cooked but chicken I use a bit higher temperature for a more traditional texture. For tough meat I go for long cooks. ---
**Author:** ![Douglas](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.anovaculinary.com/douglas/32/7533_2.png) [@Douglas](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/Douglas)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2026, 9:42am UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/3 "2026-04-07T09:42:38Z")
I recommend to you Douglas Baldwin’s _A Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking_. [A Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking](https://douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html) Dr. Baldwin is first a mathematician and that is evident in his description of the principles of SV cooking. My take away from _Practical Guide_ is that **temperature is doneness** , indeed a personal taste, and that **time is tenderness** , an objective empirical observation the principles of which he well explains. I prefer in general lower temperatures and adjust time as needed, usually longer. For beef I cook at 131ºF and ‘all day’. Baldwins ‘perfect egg’ is quite illustrative. I am quite happy with sashimi fish. I regard factory chicken as the foulest fowl and tend hotter and longer. My clear objective in learning SV was to make cheap beef as good as it can be. ---
**Author:** ![Douglas](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.anovaculinary.com/douglas/32/7533_2.png) [@Douglas](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/Douglas)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2026, 10:01am UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/4 "2026-04-07T10:01:04Z")
Coincidentally I just came across J. Kenji-Alt’s _Food Lab_ and noticed similar correspondences of temperatures to doneness as described in _‘A Practical Guide’._ ---
**Author:** ![Jack3879](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7c8e57/32.png) [@Jack3879](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/Jack3879)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 5:19pm UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/5 "2026-04-08T17:19:26Z")
yeah you right john ---
**Author:** ![Lakedweller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7cd45c/32.png) [@Lakedweller](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/Lakedweller)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2026, 6:38pm UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/6 "2026-04-13T18:38:41Z")
I rely on the experience and guidance of Serious Eats website. They have done extensive testing and can provide the precise time and temperature for the texture and level of doneness you prefer. It’s really helped me get good results with chicken. ---
**Author:** ![rowan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e99b99/32.png) [@rowan](https://community.anovaculinary.com/u/rowan)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2026, 7:45am UTC](https://community.anovaculinary.com/t/sous-vide-cooking-time-vs-temperature-what-works-best-for-you/35553/8 "2026-04-22T07:45:39Z")
> [@marcico](#): > > I’ve been experimenting with sous vide cooking recently and noticed that small changes in temperature or cooking time can really change the final texture of the food. > > Sometimes recipes suggest different times for the same cut of meat, so I’m curious — do you usually follow exact recipes, or adjust based on your own experience? > > For example, do you prefer longer cooks at lower temperatures or shorter cooks at slightly higher temperatures? > > Would love to hear what has worked best for you and any tips you’ve learned along the way. Great question this is exactly where sous vide gets interesting, because you move from “following recipes” to actually _dialing in texture_ the way you like it. Personally, strict recipes are a good starting point, but they’re not something I stick to long-term. Once you understand what temperature does vs. what time does, you can tweak things pretty confidently. **Here’s how I think about it:** **Temperature = final texture (most important)** - Lower temp → softer, more tender, sometimes “silky” - Higher temp → firmer, more traditional “cooked” texture **Time = how evenly that texture develops + tenderness (especially for tough cuts)** - Short time → just cooked through -