Beef – Sous Vide Strip came out medium well, what did I do wrong

beefsous-videsteak

I picked up two NY Strip steaks, about 6 oz each this weekend with the hopes of showing off how awesome my new sous vide circulator (Anova Precision Cooker) with a nice medium-rare steak. I pre-heated my water to 130 degrees, brushed olive oil on the steaks and seasoned them with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. After that, I vacuum-sealed them (not touching) and submerged them for 2 hours. When they came out, they felt pretty tender, so I seared them in a heavy aluminum pan in hot oil, 30 seconds per side.

They came out OK, but certainly not medium rare. They had the slightest of pink centers, so I would call them medium well to almost well done. I really want to master the art of the steak, so what did I do wrong?

Best Answer

130 degrees is certainly the temperature to aim for, I'm thinking that it's the pan sear that did it. 1 minute in a pan is actually quite a bit for a thinner steak (at 6 ounces I'm thinking yours were maybe 1/2 - 3/4 inch), certainly enough to add 10-20 degrees or so to the steak's temperature and make it medium well.

As for how to avoid it there's a few things:

  1. Get a thick steak: a thick steak can take a minute in the pan without cooking much more
  2. Cook to rare: if you want to use a thinner steak cook it to 115 or 120F instead of 130F, that way the sear will bring it up to the perfect temperature
  3. Use a torch to brown it: A chef's torch would give a good, quick sear without cooking the steak as much as a hot pan
  4. Sear the steak first: it's not as good as searing after, but then you will get your perfect temperature
  5. Cook the steak, then let it cool, then sear it. Your steak will only overcook if the temperature goes over 135F
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