The instant pot is a versatile kitchen machine that can do the job of many different types of cookers, including a pressure cooker, rice cooker, slow cooker, yogurt maker, and more.
In addition to its other functions, some instant pots have a sous vide function that allows you to cook food at constant temperatures for long periods of time. This can be used for different types of food.
I will be discussing how to sous vide in an instant pot in this guide plus provide some tips for getting started with this technique.
Key Takeaways
- Sous vide is a cooking method that uses temperature-controlled water baths to cook foods. The result is perfectly cooked food with a natural, tender texture.
- Sous vide is most commonly used for cooking meat, chicken, and fish, but you can also use it for vegetables and eggs
- You can use sous vide machine or an instant pot with a sous vide function
- The Instant pot comes with a built-in timer plus temperature setting which makes it ideal for sous vide cooking
- You will also need a Ziploc bag, a vacuum sealer to seal the sous vide bag and an instant pot with sous vide in order to cook using this method
Why Use an Instant Pot?
Has a Sous Vide Function
The Instant Pot has a sous vide function that allows you to cook your food in the water bath at a precise temperature without worrying about overcooking or undercooking it.
Precise Temperature Control
The Instant Pot has accurate digital controls that allow you to set the temperature of your water bath between 95°F-210°F.
You can also set the minimum amount of time it will take for your food to cook (from 10 minutes up to 240 minutes). This makes it easy for you to maintain precise temperatures throughout your cooking process.
The Instant Pot is Easy to Use and Convenient
Instant posts are also convenient and easy to use, and they help you achieve restaurant-quality results at home while saving time and money. That’s why so many people use an instant pot for sous vide cooking. If you haven't tried instant pot sous vide food yet, it's worth giving it a go.
The Instant Pot is a great kitchen machine for people who want to cook meals quickly and easily. It can be used for steaming, slow cooking, pressure cooking, sautéing, as a sous vide machine, and more.
The Instant Pot has become so popular that there are now Instant Pot-specific cookbooks, Facebook groups, and even a whole YouTube channel dedicated to using the appliance.
What Does Sous Vide Mean?
Sous vide is a cooking technique that involves sealing food in airtight sous vide plastic bags and cooking it in a water bath at low temperatures. The temperature of the water bath is set according to the desired doneness of the food.
The most common method of sous vide preparation involves immersion circulators, which are able to maintain accurate temperatures over extended periods of time. You can also use an instant pot with a sous vide function.
Can Cook any Type of Food
Sous vide cooking can be used for any type of food, from vegetables to meat and fish. Sous vide is a great way to cook food evenly without drying it out or overcooking it.
Sous vide also helps retain moisture and enhances flavor by sealing in juices and flavorings. This process allows you to cook food exactly as you want it without worrying about overcooking your sous vide or undercooking your meal.
On top of that, sous vide kills bacteria which makes this cooking method really safe. Food is cooked at temperatures needed to eliminate bacteria, so there's no danger of food poisoning or food-borne illness from improperly cooked meat or fish.
How to Sous Vide in Instant Pot
Gather Needed Things
- Instant pot with sous vide function (this will allow you to set the temperature on the instant pot so you can go about your day while it cooks)
- Freezer bag to place food (make sure it is big enough)
- Food (in our case we will use beef)
- A vacuum sealer (to remove the air out of the freezer bag)
- Tongs (to remove food from a freezer bag)
- 3 cloves of garlic (chopped up)
Step 1: Prepare your Food for Sous Vide Cooking
Place your meat in the freezer bag and add salt, garlic, and any other seasonings or marinade that you would like to use while cooking the meat.
You can also add aromatics such as herbs or spices which will infuse flavor into your meat during cooking time.
Step 2: Vacuum Seal the Bag
One of the key components of sous vide cooking is the use of vacuum-sealed bags. Seal the bag using your vacuum sealer which will remove the air out from inside the bag and prevent water from getting into it when cooking in a water bath method using your instant pot.
Step 3: Add Water to the Instant Pot
Half-fill the instant pot with water or to a level where your food will be fully submerged.
Make sure your instant pot has a sous vide function. You can find one online for about $60-$200 depending on the size of your family.
If you don't have one already but want to try this method out, I would suggest getting one anyway since they are very useful for many other things besides just cooking food.
Step 4: Set up your Instant Pot sous vide cooking time and Desired temperature
Adjust temperature and cooking time depending on what you are cooking. Once you've set up your instant pot for sous vide cooking, it's time to adjust the temperature and cooking time based on what type of food you're preparing.
For example, if you're making sous vide chicken or steak, you'll want to set the temperature between 130°F (54°C) and 140°F (60°C). If you're preparing salmon filets or another type of fish filet, set the temperature between 120°F (49°C) and 130°F (54°C).
Cook to Medium Well
For our steak, we chose 130 degrees Fahrenheit to cook for 2 hours for medium well. If you want your steak to be rare or medium rare, use a lower temperature and shorter cooking time. If you want it well done, choose a higher temperature and longer cooking time.
Step 5: Cook
Now put the sealed bag with the steak into the instant pot and make sure the bag is fully submerged in water. Close the lid.
Once your instant pot sous vide food has cooked for about 2 hours, turn off your instant pot and open it up. Use tongs to remove your sous vide bag from the inside of your instant pot.
Sear your Sous Vide Steak
After it's been sous vide, searing your steak is an important step in the cooking process.
The sear helps develop a nice brown crust on your steak, which adds flavor and texture. It also helps seal in the juices and makes sure that they don't get pushed out during cooking.
Another way of cooking a steak sous vide is a tri-tip with sous vide that cooks the meat at a lower temperature compared to grilling or roasting, thus giving the meat time to tenderize and become more flavorful.
How to Sear Your Steak After Sous Vide?
Remove your steak from its bag or pouch, pat dry with paper towels, and season with salt and pepper if desired. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat or use a grill.
Add Oil
Add some oil or butter to the pan (I like using clarified butter because it makes it easier to get a nice brown color). Put your steak in the pan and let it cook for 3-5 minutes per side depending on how well you want it cooked.
If you have a meat thermometer, check the internal temperature of each side when you flip it over so that it's cooked to your liking before transferring everything to a plate or cutting board (if you don't have a meat thermometer, check for doneness by pressing down on the top of the steak with tongs until it feels firm).
How to Use the Instant Pot Sous Vide Function?
The instant pot is a multi-cooker that can replace your slow cooker, rice cooker, pressure cooker, sauté pan, and even yogurt maker. You can use it to make everything from soups to yogurt. It's also great for sous vide cooking.
The instant pot sous vide function is a new feature on the Instant Pot Duo Plus. It allows you to cook your food at a precise temperature, so it's the perfect cooking method for tender cuts of meat, fish, and vegetables.
Here Is How to Select Instant Pot Sous Vide
The function uses the same basic principles as traditional sous vide cooking with a water bath. You add water to the pot, select sous vide, set your temperature and time then add your food. When it's done cooking, you just remove it from the pot and serve.
Which Instant Pot Has the Sous Vide Function?
There are several instant pot models with sous vide functions and they include:
- Duo Crisp Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Max
- Instant Pot Duo Plus
- Duo Gourmet Instant Pot
The Instant Pot Duo Plus
This model is the most popular among all the Instant Pots. It has built-in sous vide function, so you can cook food like steak and cook multiple eggs perfectly.
The Instant Pot Max
The Instant Pot Max is also a cooker with sous vide functionality. It has all of the same features as the Duo Plus, but it also includes a few extra features such as Bluetooth connectivity and an app that allows you to control your device from your phone.
The Duo Crisp Instant Pot
The Duo Crisp Instant Pot is another multi-purpose cooker with sous vide capabilities. It can slow cook, pressure cook, sear, and even steam food for you at various temperatures and times depending on what you need to prepare for dinner tonight.
The Duo Gourmet Instant Pot
The Duo Gourmet Instant Pot is another multi-functional device that can do everything from steam vegetables to sauté food. With its sous vide function, this pot can even make perfectly cooked food if you have time to experiment with some new recipes while you're at it.