I’m in a slump. I used to make delicious, flavorful, NY strips (2 hours at 132). Now they are lacking flavor.
Salt and pepper used in the bag. Sear comes out pretty good.
But less flavorful in the past and much more greasy (used prime for the first time).
What am I doing wrong?
by EdgarInAnEdgarSuit
21 Comments
more salt?
but if you dont like the flavor you coulda changed tbh
Finishing salt. Especially with prime.
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I first realized this after I became pretty consistent with seasoning and temperature. I cooked two steaks perfectly and seasoned properly, for my son and I anyway. They weren’t very good. Looked amazing, but the taste wasn’t there. I always understood that there are different cuts of steak with different texture and flavor. But I also thought that a filet is a filet, a ribeye is a ribeye and so on. Nope. Grades matter.
Edit: Sorry. Just saw that you used Prime. Idk. I’d say try again. Focus on post seasoning and a good sear. Maybe a compound butter on top, a little rosemary in the pan with the sear??
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What if marinade the steak before dropping in the bath?
Maybe try drying it in the fridge for 5 or so days before cooking.
My first thought when I saw the pic was Why is there an impression of a foot in that cutting board lol.
Finish with truffle salt
Cure your steaks folks….. mix salt and sugar 50/50 coat the steak heavily in the mixture. Let it sit for 30 minutes to an hour….rinse with cold water.
Cook in the bag, remove, dry, sear, then sea salt.
There’s a ceiling on what you can achieve with the traditional steak cuts in SV.
If you really want to improve, you need to try the smoker cuts – ribs, brisket, picanha.
Dipping sauce on side. Worcestershire is a start. And I use soy sauce on all my cooks, and herbs and garlic, which you can later use to dip or sip straight from the bag like a fine cognac.
Are the strips grass fed? For me, those have less flavor.
Skip the sous vide and just fry it. Go harder on the sear. Finish by basting with butter and aromatics. Also, MOOR SALT.
Good luck meat warrior.
Agreed
Striploins are highly dependent on intramuscular fat for flavor. You may have just bought some low grade beef.
Personally I like to go a few degrees higher to render the fat better and get more flavor that way. Plus I would season before searing. And they look pretty thick, maybe an extra 30-60 minutes in the bath would help.
Typically salt. Especially if these are prime. I find finishing salt is the best at being able to tell if you undersalted. Just a nice dip or coverage on one piece and you’ll be able to tell if the steak is just flavorless or undersalted.
I met a chef who was absolutely against spices in the bag because he claimed it made no difference to the outcome. His claim was that the flavors don’t penetrate the meat and are basically there for you to smell on the surface. I don’t agree with him 100%, but I agree that there’s a difference between the spices in a bag vs marinade vs dry rubs. Anywayyyys, I take the steak out of the bag and pat dry, and then I re-season it for the sear like a non-sous vide steak.
I started dry aging my steaks because, in my opinion, a lot of steak does not have great flavor.
Fish sauce in the bag is my go to .. and try to stick with chuck steaks.