Sous Vide Steak question

Tried sous vide cooking for the first time tonight. Cooked 2 grass fed top sirloin steaks 1" thick for 50 minutes at 132F in a Anova circulator. The steaks were cooked perfectly as far as color and temperature, but the texture was very very chewy. Is this a problem with the cut, the grass fed nature of the beef, or something else altogether?

BTW looking forward to your new sous vide class starting on Friday, I believe. Thanks for your knowledge in this area.

John Carlson

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douglas_bd

I wouldn't change the temp, but I'd cook longer next time. Maybe try 2-2.5 hours if you have the time. What was the quality of the steaks like? In my experience, many times grassfed has less marbling than grain finished steaks.

tshewman

I would tend to agree with Brian. The literature suggests the top sirloin has more collagen than other cuts (in one study they compared to top loin - Evaluation of the Tenderness of Beef Top Sirloin Steaks) and thus would take longer to break down. He's also correct in the marbling. My understanding is grain fed tend to have an inflammatory reaction on the cow's digestive system (lamb as well, not so much with pig) and thus more fatty deposits (marbling). The last item would be the way we cut (with opr against the grain) as hat can also influence texture.

Tim_Sutherland_52834

What country was the cow from? Most US grass fed beef are old brood cows from cow-calf operations and so are older than ideal slaughter age and thus tough. Grass fed beef from other counties are slaughtered at ideal age.

I know a number of major beef players with operations in the US and around the world, where cow is always on the menu, but they will not eat US grass fed beef as the risk of getting an old brood cow is too high.

Note you can get good grass fed US beef from small operators, but if you are buying the beef from a major US supermarket chain and is says, Grass Fed Beef, Country of Origin USA - it will be an old brood cow.

John_Carlson_44748

Thanks. The beef was from Australia. There was not a lot of marbling. So, if I am getting this right, less marbling will require much more cooking time to achieve a more desired texture and still be in the medium range of done ness. Sous vide is fascinating!

douglas_bd

The way I think of it, less marbling will be drier/chewier/less unctuous, but by cooking sous vide for a longer time, you can break down some of the collagen into gelatin which will give it a more tender bite - similar to what happens when you braise meat, but while still maintaining a medium rare doneness. For a sirloin, you still want it to have some bite, so I think 2-2.5 hours should be sufficient. You could probably go longer and get more of a braise texture.

Personally, I like the idea of grassfed, more so than the experience. It is hard to get a great quality grassfed steak. Anyway, 2-2.5 hours at 55C or so is what I'd do given the product you've described. No guarantees, just my opinion.

Osa_Vera_Sophia_Smith_124858

Cook it a bit longer, a 2 hrs a bit.

Then, if you don't want to cook steaks, then, just dine out,

I recommend you to the Steersons Steakhouse.

They have a mouthwatering steaks, and seafoods out there, plus a

panoramic water view for your romantic date.

merridith

I find that grass fed beef varies highly and has many issues. As a result, I opt no to eat very much beef (of any kind) at all. I am often disappointed with grass fed unless it is ground meat, we are talking about. I am morally in favor of it however, because I cannot stand all the issues pertaining to CAFO meat. I agree with @Tim_Sutherland_52834 about the smaller producers but I have had the opposite problem he describes - they often kill their cattle too young. I have had my best grass fed beef from a small producer who takes plenty of time to fatten their cattle. If you look at the meat and it is under-sized and lacks fat, don't buy it. Good grass fed meat is definitely more expensive because the cows don't grow as fast. Best to buy your meat on the hoof (which requires a place to store it after slaughter or a group to split it with so you get manageable portions) if you have the opportunity and then you can specify a desired range of hanging weight. But you have to be willing to pay for it as it costs the rancher more to keep the feeding going. Many producers of grass fed beef finish their cattle on corn/grain. IMHO, this always makes it taste better and have more marbling. Of course, you have to decide how you feel about feeding corn and grain to a cow.

Greg_Honeycutt_83826

when you bagged the beef, did you add any additional fat? Butter or olive oil? I'd suggest some added fat, and a longer cook time.

anthony_34093

I thought the same until I recently watched an episode of Mind of a Chef where Magnus prepared the most incredible looking grassfed beef dish. I think more than anything the "grassfed" may not contribute as much to the final product as a lot of additional factors. Wish I was a farmer and knew more on it.

Urwhatu8_123114

I cooked a grass fed sirloin a few nights ago and it was delicious. I bought it from Wegmans . I used a mechanical meat tenderizer on it ( the Jacquard Supertendermatic 48-blade) and season with salt and pepper. I cooked at 125 degrees F for 50 minutes and then browned it with blow torch. Next time I will brown in a hot cast iron pan.

allan.balliett

Tim - What major US supermarket chains sell 'grass fed' steaks? (btw Grass FINISHED is what you want to be looking for. That's what means no grains. Grains acidify the rumen of the animal and change the carcass in substantial ways. Important if you are eating for your health. If you are eating for flavor, you probably want the grain fed beef

Tim_Sutherland_52834

Tom Thumb (Safeway) as part of their Open Nature product line have Australian grass fed strip and coulettes. They are sold as vac packed sub primals and occasionally the store may cut steaks and sell them in the case individually.

All cows are raised on pasture and it is only in the US that the majority of cows are feed grain for the last 60-90 days before slaughter. The rest of the cows in the world continue to eat grass until they reach slaughter weight. I disagree with you on flavour. To me grass fed beef has much better flavour and texture than grain fed beef, because I grew up eating grass fed beef.

Tim_Sutherland_52834

The breed of cow has a big impact as well. Not all cows are the same.

jeekqing_126476

Where in the world can I find a nice set of sieves like the round ones chef steps always uses?!

http://www.fifautc.co.uk/

allan.balliett

Growing up with it will certainly account for the difference in 'taste'! ;-) Unfortunately, Monsanto and Cargill and other massive Pharm/AgriBiz multinationals are behind grainfeeding cattle to 'put on weight faster' It's common in all nations, even, for now, Argentina, home of the best grazing lands in the world

Sue_134222

I have just cooked two "Highland" sirloin steaks sous vide, 56C for two and a half hours. Then seasoned and grilled for about one minute each side. They were very tender and tasted as good as a steak can be. The beef was from a 30month steer which was grass fed throughout its life except for the three months after it was weaned (9-12 months)

I am not aware of the quality of beef in the USA but this works for the quality of beef that we rear.

Ron_Berg_87068

I recently bought two 1 1/2# thick grass fed NY strip steaks. The first one I prepared as I do for grain fed steaks - sous vide for one hour at 129 degrees F. and a final sear. The result was disappointing - tough and chewy. I took a different tact on the second one. I first pre-salted the steak with 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt on each side along with some freshly ground black pepper and put that in the refrigerator uncovered for a couple of hours. I patted them dry before vacuum packaging them and placing them in a 130 degree F. sous vide for four hours (following some steak advice from Kenji at Serious Eats). Suffice to say, the steak was nicely tender with a pleasant chew and perfectly seasoned from the pre-salting.