This Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin, is so easy and so delicious. It’s sure to impress your family or dinner guests. Never stress about the big dinner again!
A couple of years ago, Jim was interested in purchasing a sous vide (pronounced soo-VEED). I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a quick fad and then left on the storage room shelf collecting dust, so I wasn’t exactly thrilled with this idea. However, his birthday was quickly approaching, so I pulled the trigger and bought him the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker and the Anova Sous Vide Cooking Container too! Go big or go home and like the air fryer, it was definitely worth the investment! We use it almost every week! One of our favorite recipes is this Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin. It’s unbelievably delicious and only takes a few minutes to put together. Set your temperature and let the magic begin!
What is Sous Vide?
Sous vide is a low-temperature water bath where food is vacuum packed and submerged in water. This cooking method uses heated water (usually around 125 degrees F to 195 degrees F) to cook food slowly, so that it is packed with flavor and bursting with juices!
The temperature the sous vide is set to will be the exact same temperature that your food will reach when it’s cooked. What’s great about this type of temperature controlled cooking, is that it will never exceed the set temperature. This comes in very handy when you are cooking steak and tenderloin to that perfect medium-rare temperature. No guessing involved. In addition, the sous vide cooks both the inside and outside at the same rate, so your meats will have a beautiful, uniform texture.
What type of equipment do you use in Sous Vide cooking?
There are a few pieces of equipment that you will need for sous vide cooking. Three pieces of equipment are generally recommended: the immersion circulator, the sous vide cooking container and the vacuum-packing machine. The first and most important piece of equipment is the immersion circulator.
The immersion circulator is a long, cylinder-shaped piece of equipment that hooks onto the water container or the edge of the pot, and controls the temperature of the water. In addition to heating the water to the set temperature, it also circulates the water so that temperature remains consistent throughout the cooking process.
The sous vide cooking container is a large container equipped with a spot to attach the immersion circulator. In addition, it comes with a wire rack so that you can easily attach the bags of food for submersion. This piece of equipment is not required but in my opinion makes sous vide cooking a lot easier. However, a large deep pot will work fine.
The final piece of equipment is a vacuum-packing machine. This machine removes all the air inside the food bag, creating an airtight seal. Removing the air helps to lock in flavor while eliminating water soaked food during the cooking process. However, you can very easily use the displacement method that we use in our sous vide cooking. This method effectively removes most of the air from your food bag. Just fill a large container with water to submerge the bag, use your hands to force the air out and seal.
Is Sous Vide cooking worth it?
In my opinion, it is definitely worth it! If you enjoy food cooked to perfection, then I would recommend buying the immersion circulator and the sous vide container. Take all the guesswork and stress out of overcooking or undercooking your food. Sous vide cooking helps to ensure that your food will be cooked to the perfect temperature. Plus, it really takes up your cooking repertoire up a notch. In particular, sous vide cooking is great for holiday and special occasion get togethers. Impress your guests with high end restaurant quality food!
Where can I buy the Sous Vide equipment?
You can purchase the ANOVA sous vide cooking container and immersion circulator (precision cooker) from Amazon, Williams Sonoma, Walmart or Kohl’s. We used the following sous vide in this Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin recipe.
Anova Precision Sous Vide Cooker with WiFi and the Anova and the Anova Precision Sous Vide Container from Williams Sonoma ($149.95 and $79.95 respectively).
What type of bags do I use?
Although there are many fancy sous vide bags available, Cook’s Illustrated recommends Ziploc Brand Freezer Bag with Easy Open Tabs, or a similar high quality freezer bag. We use these Ziploc bags in our sous vide cooking. A great thing about these bags is that they can be easily found at your local grocery store.
Is cooking with plastic bags safe?
The overwhelming answer is “yes”. According to Cook’s Illustrated, who reviewed a considerable amount of research, “High-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, and polypropylene are considered the safest plastics. Many name-brand plastic bags are made with polyethylene and polypropylene. These types of plastic are resistant to the sub-boiling temperatures involved in sous vide cooking, and they are also considered safe in and of themselves: Even if you cut up and ate a polyethylene bag, there’s no toxicity risk.”
Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin-Ingredients
- beef tenderloin
- thyme sprigs
- fresh garlic
- olive oil
- salt
- fresh cracked pepper
Beef & Lamb Sous Vide Temperature Chart
| Temperature | Doneness |
| 120-125 degrees F | Rare |
| 129-132 degrees F | Medium-Rare |
| 138-142 degrees F | Medium |
| 148-152 degrees F | Medium Well |
| 160+ degrees F | Well |
Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin-Instructions
- Fill a pot or sous vide container with water and attach the immersion circulator.
- Set the temperature for 131 degrees for medium rare, 140 degrees for medium, or 148 degrees for medium well.
- Add salt and pepper to the tenderloin.
- Use 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to coat the tenderloin on all sides.
- Add rest of the oil, thyme and garlic to the zip lock bag.
- Place tenderloin in zip lock bag and squeeze out most of the air.
- Once water is up to temperature, slowly lower the zip lock bag with the tenderloin into water allowing any remaining air to escape. Once the air has escaped, zip the bag.
- Use a binder clip to attach the bag to the side of the pan or to the rack on the container.
- Cook for 1.5-4 hours at desired temperature.
- Remove the tenderloin from bag, pat dry with paper towel, and lightly salt.
- Place on hot grill, searing all sides for 30-45 seconds per side. This will seal in the juices and add a nice char to the tenderloin.
- Remove from heat and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Carve and enjoy!
For other Holiday or Special Occasions try:
Grilled Sesame Tuna with Soy Glaze
Salads:
Pear and Goat Cheese Salad with Candied Walnuts
Sides:
Fresh Zucchini and Tomato Tart
Desserts:
Quick and Elegant Mini Cheesecakes
Drinks/Cocktails:
Sous Vide Beef Tenderloin
Equipment
- 1 Sous Vide Immersion Circulator
- 1 Large Deep Pot or Sous Vide Container
Ingredients
- 2 lb beef tenderloin trimmed
- 6-8 sprigs thyme
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
- Fill a pot or sous vide container with water and attach the immersion circulator.
- Set the temperature for 131 degrees for medium rare, 140 degrees for medium, or 148 degrees for medium well.
- Add salt and pepper to the tenderloin.
- Use 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to coat the tenderloin on all sides.
- Add rest of the oil, thyme and garlic to the zip lock bag.
- Place tenderloin in zip lock bag and squeeze out most of the air.
- Once water is up to temperature, slowly lower the zip lock bag with the tenderloin into water allowing any remaining air to escape. Once the air has escaped zip the bag.
- Use a binder clip to attach the bag to the side of the pan or to the rack on the container.
- Cook for 1.5-4 hours at desired temperature.
- Remove the tenderloin from bag, pat dry with paper towel, and lightly salt.
- Place on hot grill, searing all sides for 30-45 seconds per side. This will seal in the juices and add a nice char to the tenderloin.
- Remove from heat and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Carve and enjoy!
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