Sous Vide Essentials: Butter & Bacon Topped Filet
By
Andy Anderson !
@ThePretentiousChef
24
I want to talk about cooking the perfect bacon filet every time, and another thing would be, how do you get the bacon that is wrapped around the filet nice and crispy without overcooking the steak?
And, another thing that I know everyone is wondering about… How do I eat a filet while wearing a mask?
These any other natty little questions will be answered in this recipe.
So, you ready… Let’s get into the kitchen.
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Ingredients
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PLAN/PURCHASE
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2 slicebacon, medium dice
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1beef filet
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1 tspolive oil, extra virgin variety
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1 Tbspsweet butter, unsalted, softened
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·black pepper, freshly ground, to taste
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·salt, kosher variety, to taste
How to Make Sous Vide Essentials: Butter & Bacon Topped Filet
- Sous Vide to the Rescue
A filet does not possess a lot of fat, so if they are overcooked, which is easy to do, they will be dry. For that reason, I prefer to cook them a few degrees below what I would do for steaks that contain more fat.
Using a Sous Vide machine gives us absolute precision over the temperature of our filet reaches. No guessing, no instant thermometers. When it comes out of the water bath it will be perfect… Full Stop.
Although you can overcook anything, you have a flexible range to work with; in our case several hours. Beyond that point, they will not be overcooked, but they will begin to have a mushy mouthfeel. - Save For Later
Here is a neat trick. After you Sous Vide a steak (or most other foods), you do not have to sear and eat them right then. You can store it in the fridge for up to two days or freeze it for several months.
It goes something like this… You vacuum seal a couple of steaks and drop them in a 135f (67c) water bath for two hours. You then remove the bag from the water, but do not open it. Instead you plunge it into an ice bath for 10 – 15 minutes to quickly bring down the temp. Then stick it in the fridge or freezer.
Now, you want that steak, so you get your Sous Vide machine up to 135f (67c) and drop the bag with steak in to warm it up. About 10 – 12 minutes if it was in the fridge; about 18-20 if it was in the freezer.
Take the reheated steak out of the bag and give it a quick sear in a hot pan, about 90 seconds per side, and there you go.
When I am doing steaks for a party, or catering event, I will ask the guests (a day or two ahead of time), how they like their steaks cooked. Then I individually vacuum seal them, label them, and toss them in the properly heated water baths.
The day of the bash, I bring them out reheat, and slap on the grill, and everyone is amazed at how I can make everyone’s steak perfect every time. - Sous Vide Times and Temperatures
Here are the times and temperatures for cooking a filet. It should be noted that the times represent filets that are 1.5 – 2 inches (3.8 – 5cm) thick.
Rare
120f (49c) to 128f (53c)
45 minutes to 2 1/2 hours
Medium-rare
129f (54c) to 134f (57c)
45 minutes to 4 hours
Medium
135°F (57°C) to 144°F (62°C)
45 minutes to 4 hours
Medium-well
145°F (63°C) to 155°F (68°C)
45 minutes to 3 1/2 hours
Well done
I DO NOT DO WELL DONE
FYI: For food safety reasons, steaks cooked at a temperature below 130f (54c) should not remain in the bath longer than 2.5 hours; otherwise it gives bacteria opportunity to grow… And I HATE it when that happens. - This Little Piggy Went to Market
One of the more difficult things to do properly is to get the bacon that wraps the filet cooked correctly; while at the same time. making sure you do not overcook the filet.
We are going to solve that problem by not wrapping the steak. We are going to chop up the bacon, cook it crisp, and sprinkle it on the finished filet.
Then, to get that yummy bacon flavor infused into the steak, we will give it a quick sear in the rendered bacon fat… YUMMO - Water Displacement Method
If you are not using a vacuum-sealing machine (Food Saver, etc.), then you, most likely, are employing standard plastic food bags (Ziploc, etc.).
To get as much of the air out of the bag, as possible, fill it with food and slowly sink the open bag into a pan of water, while keeping the open end just above the waterline.
The pressure of the water will push against the bag and force out most of the air. Then, seal the bag and you are ready to sous vide.
If I am using Ziploc-type bags, I always clip the bag to the side of the container with the zip-seal portion above the water line.
One more thing, do not use the “regular” Ziploc bags; use the ones designed to go into the freezer. They are much stronger and less prone to leaks. - Steak and Taters
I love taters with my steak, and in this recipe I am using my Sous Vide chunky taters. If you are interested, here is the recipe:
Sous Vide Essentials: Chunky Mashed Potatoes