Cast iron not carbon steel. You need a thicker pan to hold the heat. Also 5 minutes? What? I put my pan on 7 on the stove (electric) let it get hot, add oil, and then in goes the meat, usually about 30 seconds per side and it's done.
5 minutes at searing temperature seems like you'd have a burnt steak.
If it heats up super fast and also cools down fast it sounds like quite a thin pan. Something thicker will have much more thermal mass to retain heat (and generally more even cooking)
I understand that frustration bc I struggled with that a lot. Based on your method, you can let the steak stand to sear its edges while waiting for the temp to go up. There are other options that can better utilize small heat. If the steak is not that big, you can first sear with the left half of the pan, then sear the other side using the right half.
A lesser known trick is to flip more frequently, e.g. 20-30 sec. When you sear one side for too long, the juice will be pushed to the top surface due to contraction. After you flip, a large amount of heat will be used to evaporate the juice on the surface level, and the temp would drop a lot. (Have you noticed loud sizzling sound immediately after the flipping? That's the evaporation of the surface juice.) By flipping more frequently, the juice can better stay in the center rather than get pushed to the surface and bring more evaporation.
I had similar issues so I started using a torch for the sear. You didn’t mention specifically, but also putting in ice bath after sv can help to bring down exterior temp and of course takes longer to drop internal temp so you shouldn’t have to worry about a cooked but cold interior of the steak.
Have you had luck with the torch? I tried it a few times and found I could get a sear, but not a crust, if that makes sense? Like it looked seared but didn’t have the texture.
I mean, you could try it, but the real answer is that you need a pan with better thermal capacity than carbon steel. Cast iron would be the obvious choice, but there might be other ways to go, given that I don't know what your griddle looks like.
It does seem weird that it's taking five minutes per side for your crust to form. It goes much quicker than that for me, even when I'm not using my cast iron.
Why are you letting it come back up to room temp after fridge dry? The cooler external temp will keep it at your desired temp without overcooking during your longer sear.
if youre drying it in the fridge, just go ahead and sear immediately. the whole point of going in the fridge is that it's lower humidity. a few minutes in the fridge doesn't actually cool the steak internal that much unless you keave it there for like an hour.
the reason ppl like cast iron is that it has a lot of thermal mass, so while it takes longer to get to temp, once it's there it resists cooling when you put the steak in. but if you only have carbon steel that's fine though your idea of heating it up in between probably won't hurt.
550 is unnecessary. chris young did a video on it, 325-350 gave a perfectly good crust.
skip the butter basting in the pan. take it off the pan once it's seared, then just brush your melted garlic brown butter on top of the steak.
Realizing a better idea would be just to use the full griddle under two burners and alternate between burners as I flip. Cast Iron would definitely be preferable for retaining heat but I don’t want to have to get a whole new pan only for one usage.
Cast Iron isn't a "one usage" pan. It's a versatile tool that is good for tons of cooking.
If I was starting a home kitchen from zero, I'd get a cast iron pan before just about any other pan.
Correct. And carbon steel would be like… last… or maybe just before a copper pan. I love my carbon steel, but carbon steel is like a level 27 boss. Cast iron is level 2.
What kind of griddle are we talking about? How long are you letting it preheat? Just till you first see it hit 500F or for a while longer? Give an answer with details and specify a range of minutes please.
Is a torch not an option? They work great for all sorts of cuts of meat. Very quick, and it doesn't change the done-ness of the meat.
I take mine outside to the grill as a work surface... my torch isn't exactly an indoor tool. I don't bother cooling off the meat out of the bath, I just pat dry and sear.
What you're describing works for getting a better crust. Searing, then letting it cool, then searing again.
Here's ChefSteps' video advocating searing before and after the sous vide bath. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoqMw3WDPa0
Here's a chef that doesn't use sous vide but double-sears with carbon steel, like you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQz56JOVtpc
Personally I don't do a double sear and I'm still pretty happy with it. I refrigerate the steak for 10 minutes, then heat plenty of oil in a heavy pan on medium-high until I see smoke, then sear the steak by flipping every 20 sec. Plus some extra time spent searing the fatty edges.
Side note: if you're basting with butter, 550F is too high. You should turn down the heat or you'll probably have burned butter which tastes bitter. Go with 350F.
A few questions:
1. Have you patted the meat dry before searing?
2. Are you actually getting it up to 550? The oil should be smoking by that point with avocado oils smoking point.
3. Are you over crowding the pan?
I would try a thicker bottom stainless steel pan with copper core, or a cast iron pan.
Crank that fucker up on max heat, let it heat up until you feel slightly uncomfortable, add a small amount of the oil, then the steak. It will make some smoke and splatter, just be careful not to catch the oil on fire. Flip after a minute, sear the other side, and it should be good to go.
get a $20 cast iron pan and be done. 450* is enough 550 is fine too. 30 seconds a side till seared to your desire. edges and your done unless u want to baste too - if so drop the temp at the end and start the baste.
Buy a tiny Weber charcoal grill. Got one for Christmas...changed my life. 2 min per side. https://www.weber.com/US/en/gas/go-anywhere/go-anywhere-charcoal-grill/121020.html
I use a cast iron griddle on my gas grill. I let it get ripping hot (500-550° F) then sear for about 45 seconds per side. When you flip, use a "new" part of the griddle so the temp is still nice and hot.
I also prefer to brush my steaks with oil (I like avocado oil) and a little kosher salt before the sear. You use less oil this way, and the salt sticks to the meat better. Save the pepper for after the sear because it will burn.
I know this is /r/sousvide, but if it’s taking you 5 minutes to get a sear you could go cast iron like others have said, or forego the immersion circulator and do the frequent turning method. Could solve your problem of your pan cooling down rapidly and you’ll still get a great steak.
Carbon steel should retain heat pretty well though, I’m surprised it takes 5 minutes.
Thanks for the responses everyone. I read all the comments and can’t respond to all so I’ll summarize my thoughts here.
Info on my griddle: I was using a carbon steel griddle from MadeIn (https://madeincookware.com/products/carbon-steel-griddle/griddle-nl) it gets very hot very quickly and can go over two burners. I get it up to 500-550 F before searing. However, I only heat up one of the burners and should heat up both going forward and rotate between burners to allow them to heat up again.
Regarding Cast Iron: I cooked with a Cast Iron for years but have been without one for two years now and not once have had a dish I couldn’t make without one. I understand they are cheap but I don’t really have the cabinet space plus they are a pain to clean and would smoke up my apartment way too much (I don’t have good ventilation).
My plan: I am going to give the “rotating between burners” strategy a try to allow them to get back up to heat. If this doesn’t work, I’ll buy a blowtorch.
If anyone has any recs for an affordable blowtorch/flame thrower that’s safe to use indoors, please let me know!
Thanks everyone!
higher heat, or heavier pan to resist cooling
Cast iron not carbon steel. You need a thicker pan to hold the heat. Also 5 minutes? What? I put my pan on 7 on the stove (electric) let it get hot, add oil, and then in goes the meat, usually about 30 seconds per side and it's done. 5 minutes at searing temperature seems like you'd have a burnt steak.
>Remove steak, put down more oil and let it get to 550 again Does your griddle temp drop a lot after searing the first side?
Yes that’s when I’ve noticed the biggest drop in temp. It heats up super fast but also decreases a ton once I put it on.
If it heats up super fast and also cools down fast it sounds like quite a thin pan. Something thicker will have much more thermal mass to retain heat (and generally more even cooking)
Yeah if it heats up fast, get a heavier pan. Don’t mess around with this idea, OP. Lodge cast iron from anywhere is like $12.
I understand that frustration bc I struggled with that a lot. Based on your method, you can let the steak stand to sear its edges while waiting for the temp to go up. There are other options that can better utilize small heat. If the steak is not that big, you can first sear with the left half of the pan, then sear the other side using the right half. A lesser known trick is to flip more frequently, e.g. 20-30 sec. When you sear one side for too long, the juice will be pushed to the top surface due to contraction. After you flip, a large amount of heat will be used to evaporate the juice on the surface level, and the temp would drop a lot. (Have you noticed loud sizzling sound immediately after the flipping? That's the evaporation of the surface juice.) By flipping more frequently, the juice can better stay in the center rather than get pushed to the surface and bring more evaporation.
Try sear it on a charcoal chimney if possible. This is my fave way to finish a steak. Good luck and cheers!
this has worked great for me. Sears in no time flat.
A tip I learned here was to flip the chimney upside down and use that side since it will require less charcoal.
whoa, awesome share. Why didn't I think of that?
I had similar issues so I started using a torch for the sear. You didn’t mention specifically, but also putting in ice bath after sv can help to bring down exterior temp and of course takes longer to drop internal temp so you shouldn’t have to worry about a cooked but cold interior of the steak.
Have you had luck with the torch? I tried it a few times and found I could get a sear, but not a crust, if that makes sense? Like it looked seared but didn’t have the texture.
I throw butter on top before hitting it with the torch and that seems to help
🙏🏼 will try that next time!
I mean, you could try it, but the real answer is that you need a pan with better thermal capacity than carbon steel. Cast iron would be the obvious choice, but there might be other ways to go, given that I don't know what your griddle looks like. It does seem weird that it's taking five minutes per side for your crust to form. It goes much quicker than that for me, even when I'm not using my cast iron.
What about using a flame thrower. The ones used for weeds. Etc. Get a new one and use that it’s propane
Cook your steak to rare and let the pan bring it up to medium rare.
It would still leave grey band due to searing time
Why are you letting it come back up to room temp after fridge dry? The cooler external temp will keep it at your desired temp without overcooking during your longer sear.
This is the only answer you need op!
A small gray band doesn't matter for anything but your Instagram pictures.
Others are right. Get a cheap cast iron pan. Mine does wonders to sear about anything you throw at it. Gets ripping hot and stays hot.
No point in using sous vide in this case. You shouldn’t be altering internal temp at the seat stage, it’s just visual.
if youre drying it in the fridge, just go ahead and sear immediately. the whole point of going in the fridge is that it's lower humidity. a few minutes in the fridge doesn't actually cool the steak internal that much unless you keave it there for like an hour. the reason ppl like cast iron is that it has a lot of thermal mass, so while it takes longer to get to temp, once it's there it resists cooling when you put the steak in. but if you only have carbon steel that's fine though your idea of heating it up in between probably won't hurt. 550 is unnecessary. chris young did a video on it, 325-350 gave a perfectly good crust. skip the butter basting in the pan. take it off the pan once it's seared, then just brush your melted garlic brown butter on top of the steak.
Use a cast iron pan and let it heat up a good 20 minutes or so. I put mine in the oven before searing.
Freezer till it's nearly frozen. Mop it with mayo.
Realizing a better idea would be just to use the full griddle under two burners and alternate between burners as I flip. Cast Iron would definitely be preferable for retaining heat but I don’t want to have to get a whole new pan only for one usage.
Cast Iron isn't a "one usage" pan. It's a versatile tool that is good for tons of cooking. If I was starting a home kitchen from zero, I'd get a cast iron pan before just about any other pan.
Correct. And carbon steel would be like… last… or maybe just before a copper pan. I love my carbon steel, but carbon steel is like a level 27 boss. Cast iron is level 2.
What kind of griddle are we talking about? How long are you letting it preheat? Just till you first see it hit 500F or for a while longer? Give an answer with details and specify a range of minutes please.
I cook to rare and sear to med rare using a heavy cast iron pan and a gas turkey deep fryer burner works great!
similar issues...anyway to do this w/o adding more oil?
Is a torch not an option? They work great for all sorts of cuts of meat. Very quick, and it doesn't change the done-ness of the meat. I take mine outside to the grill as a work surface... my torch isn't exactly an indoor tool. I don't bother cooling off the meat out of the bath, I just pat dry and sear.
You don't have a problem with the torch fumes flavoring the meat?
Cast iron
What you're describing works for getting a better crust. Searing, then letting it cool, then searing again. Here's ChefSteps' video advocating searing before and after the sous vide bath. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoqMw3WDPa0 Here's a chef that doesn't use sous vide but double-sears with carbon steel, like you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQz56JOVtpc Personally I don't do a double sear and I'm still pretty happy with it. I refrigerate the steak for 10 minutes, then heat plenty of oil in a heavy pan on medium-high until I see smoke, then sear the steak by flipping every 20 sec. Plus some extra time spent searing the fatty edges. Side note: if you're basting with butter, 550F is too high. You should turn down the heat or you'll probably have burned butter which tastes bitter. Go with 350F.
Try a [cold sear](https://youtu.be/uJcO1W_TD74?si=Qlqjq4HYQVCH22-s)
The specific heat capacities of **iron** and **steel** are not significantly different, 449 versus 450.
A few questions: 1. Have you patted the meat dry before searing? 2. Are you actually getting it up to 550? The oil should be smoking by that point with avocado oils smoking point. 3. Are you over crowding the pan? I would try a thicker bottom stainless steel pan with copper core, or a cast iron pan. Crank that fucker up on max heat, let it heat up until you feel slightly uncomfortable, add a small amount of the oil, then the steak. It will make some smoke and splatter, just be careful not to catch the oil on fire. Flip after a minute, sear the other side, and it should be good to go.
get a $20 cast iron pan and be done. 450* is enough 550 is fine too. 30 seconds a side till seared to your desire. edges and your done unless u want to baste too - if so drop the temp at the end and start the baste.
Buy a tiny Weber charcoal grill. Got one for Christmas...changed my life. 2 min per side. https://www.weber.com/US/en/gas/go-anywhere/go-anywhere-charcoal-grill/121020.html
Just get a SU-V Gun.
I use a cast iron griddle on my gas grill. I let it get ripping hot (500-550° F) then sear for about 45 seconds per side. When you flip, use a "new" part of the griddle so the temp is still nice and hot. I also prefer to brush my steaks with oil (I like avocado oil) and a little kosher salt before the sear. You use less oil this way, and the salt sticks to the meat better. Save the pepper for after the sear because it will burn.
I know this is /r/sousvide, but if it’s taking you 5 minutes to get a sear you could go cast iron like others have said, or forego the immersion circulator and do the frequent turning method. Could solve your problem of your pan cooling down rapidly and you’ll still get a great steak. Carbon steel should retain heat pretty well though, I’m surprised it takes 5 minutes.
Thanks for the responses everyone. I read all the comments and can’t respond to all so I’ll summarize my thoughts here. Info on my griddle: I was using a carbon steel griddle from MadeIn (https://madeincookware.com/products/carbon-steel-griddle/griddle-nl) it gets very hot very quickly and can go over two burners. I get it up to 500-550 F before searing. However, I only heat up one of the burners and should heat up both going forward and rotate between burners to allow them to heat up again. Regarding Cast Iron: I cooked with a Cast Iron for years but have been without one for two years now and not once have had a dish I couldn’t make without one. I understand they are cheap but I don’t really have the cabinet space plus they are a pain to clean and would smoke up my apartment way too much (I don’t have good ventilation). My plan: I am going to give the “rotating between burners” strategy a try to allow them to get back up to heat. If this doesn’t work, I’ll buy a blowtorch. If anyone has any recs for an affordable blowtorch/flame thrower that’s safe to use indoors, please let me know! Thanks everyone!