Common Sous Vide Problem - Cooking steaks to different temperatures in the one cook

Have you got guests coming over who all like their steak cooked differently? Peter likes rare steak, Mary likes hers medium rare and Tom won’t have steak that is any less than well done. So how do you accommodate this when you are using the sous vide method of cooking to prepare your steak?

Here we explore this common sous vide problem and outline the 3 most common ways that sous viders overcome this tricky situation.

Sous Vide steak with potato crisps on top

Photo credit: Unsplash

But first, let’s look at what sous vide cooking is. It’s a super easy cooking technique that you can master in your own kitchen to cook like a pro chef.

Feel free to skip the next section if you are already familiar with sous vide cooking.

What is sous vide cooking?

Sous vide in French means “under vacuum”. Sous vide is a cooking technique whereby vacuum-packed food pouches are submerged within a water bath at a precise temperature for a specific (and often long!) period of time. At the end of this time, you find yourself with restaurant quality food and can create succulent meals in the comfort of your own home.

Food Pouch being put into pot with Anova Nano

Photo credit: Amazon

Are you new to sous vide cooking? If so, feel free to head to our Start Here section or FAQ page to learn more about how you too can create restaurant quality meals easily in the comfort of your home, any (or every!) night of the week.

Common Problem – Cooking sous vide steaks to different temperatures to create rare, medium rare and well done steaks in the one cook

The perfect steak is different for everyone. And as any good host knows, you want to please your guests no matter your personal preference when it comes to cooking steaks.

Sous vide cooking does an absolutely AWESOME job of creating restaurant quality steaks in the comfort of your own home. So it’s worth finding a workable solution for this common problem that works for you, your family and your friends.

A word about the best temperatures to use for rare, medium rare, medium and well done steaks

There is no RIGHT answer to the temperature you should use for your water bath when creating succulent steaks. Each of your family members or guests are likely to have different preferences. As you know some people like their steak very well done. Others prefer steak that is very pink on the inside.

When cooking any steak to a specific temperature and level of “doneness” you need to consider:

The cut of meat you are cooking
The brand of your sous vide immersion circulator or water oven
The thickness of the meat you are cooking
Your specific preferences when it comes to what you consider to be rare, medium rare, medium or well done steak

Under the Further Resources and Reading section below we have included a link to a helpful Reddit post. This conversation thread provides links to commonly used temperatures guides that you might find useful when cooking your steaks.

The 3 most common ways to cook rare, medium rare and well done sous vide steaks all in the one cook

It is not overly convenient to deal with this common problem by buying multiple sous vide immersion circulators or water ovens! Whilst this is one option, it’s pretty impractical and expensive.

Here are three common ways to cook the perfect sous vide steak for each of your guests every time, no matter how they like their steak cooked.

1. Put the steak food pouch you want warmest into your water bath first

This method sees you putting the steak you want more “well done” into your water bath first. That means these steaks will cook for longer than the steaks that you want to cook “medium rare” or “rare”.

In a nutshell:

Set your water bath at a temperature and time suitable for “well done” steak. Put in the steak food pouches that you would like to cook to “well done” first in line with a relevant recipe (aligned with the thickness and type of steak you are cooking)
Turn down the water bath temperature to a temperature suitable for “medium rare”. Add your steak food pouches. The food pouches that you added earlier will be fine to stay in the water bath. Set your timer in line with a recipe that will cook your steak to “medium rare”
Then add the steak food pouches that you would like to cook “medium” next (and in line with times reflected in medium steak recipes)
Turn down the water bath temperature to a temperature suitable for “rare” steaks
Add the steak food pouches that you would like to cook “rare”
Pull all steaks out of the water bath at the same time
Remove each steak from its food pouch and pat dry
Pan sear, BBQ or use a kitchen torch to finish off your steaks before serving

Photo Credit: Unsplash

2. Put all steak food pouches into your water bath at the start of your cook

In a nutshell:

Put all of your steak food pouches into your water bath at once set to a temperature for “rare” steak doneness
If you want to serve some steaks “rare” or “medium rare”, pull these food pouches out first
If you want to serve some steaks “medium”, pull those steak food pouches out next
Turn the temperature up, not down (as referenced in Option 2) as your cook progresses. Continue to cook the steaks you want to serve “well done”
Remove each steak from its food pouch and pat dry
Pan sear, BBQ or use a kitchen torch to finish off your steaks before serving

The downside to this cooking approach is that it will add more time to your cook. So if you are time poor, this may not be the best option for you.

Photo credit: Pexels

3. Cook your sous vide steak as usual. Pan sear steaks to different levels of “doneness”

Using this method, you remove all sous vide steak food pouches from your water bath at once. That is, each food pouch is cooked to the same temperature for the same amount of time in your sous vide water bath.

You alter the temperature of each steak by pan searing for a different amount of time. This will alter the “doneness” of your steak.

In a nutshell, once your sous vide steak is cooked in your water bath:

Cook each steak sous vide, set to the “pinkest” temperature setting your guest seeks. For example, if someone in your group likes their steak “medium rare” but someone else likes their steak well done, set your sous vide water bath according to a recipe that cooks your steak to “medium rare” temperature
Remove all steak food pouches from your water bath at the same time
Remove each steak from its food pouch and pat dry
Sear steaks for 30-60 seconds if you are looking to serve them medium-rare
Sear steaks for longer (maybe 2-3 minutes) per side if you are looking to serve your steak well done. Longer searing will allow the temperature in the middle of your steak warm up more and therefore cook your steak a little more too
When you pan sear, add the steak you are looking to cook to “well done” first. Then “medium”, “medium rare” and lastly, “rare”
Serve and enjoy!

Sous Vide Steak from Great British Chefs

Photo credit: Great British Chefs

Pro tips to make sure you cook the perfect sous vide steak

Many sous viders battle the challenge of cooking sous vide steaks to different temperatures, to suit their family and friends. Here are some pro tips to help you nail the technique of cooking sous vide steak on masse whilst still being able to create the juiciness each guest loves:

You are unlikely to be able to use a kitchen torch such as the Searzall to raise the temperature inside the steak you are cooking. Pan searing is really the only way to raise the temperature efficiently in the middle of your steak
Don’t forget to label your vacuum sealed or ziploc bags with “rare”, “medium rare”, “well done” etc if you are using approaches 1 or 2. With food pouches in and out of the water you will quickly lose track of which bag is which!

Common Sous Vide Problem – Cooking steaks to different temperatures in the one cook