Description
When the classic beef cheeks in red wine sauce meet the modern sous vide cooking method, you can serve up this gourmet dish in the comfort of your home anytime.Â
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 sous vide beef cheeks in one bag (the cooked cheeks are about 1.5 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup white onion, roughly chopped
- 1 1/2 cups carrots, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup red wine
- 2 cups cooking juice from the sous vide bag (Add beef broth if it’s not enough)
- A few sprigs of fresh thyme, oregano, 3 bay leaves, tied together
Instructions
- Prepare the sous vide beef cheeks: Place the bag of sous vide beef cheeks (unopened) in a pot of warm water or a 100°F (38°C) sous vide bath to melt the gelatin into liquid form. Open the bag, transfer the beef cheeks to a plate, and pat them dry with paper towels, reserving the cooking juice in the bag.Â
- Sear the beef cheeks: Over medium-high heat, melt butter in a non-stick pan with decent depth. Place the beef cheeks in the hot pan to sear, about one minute on each side, or until the surface is slightly charred. Remove the cheeks to the same plate you used to dry them before.Â
- Make the red wine sauce: In the same pan, still hot, add onions and carrots. Stir a few times to get them to start cooking. Add red wine and pour the reserved cooking juice with the garlic from the bag into the pan. (Add beef broth if the juice is less than 2 cups.) Bring to a boil, uncovered, and cook for about 15 minutes until the sauce is reduced by half. Add mushrooms and a bundle of prepared herbs. Cover and cook until the carrots are tender and the mushrooms are cooked through about 5 to 7 minutes.Â
- Finish it up: Nest the beef cheeks in the pan with red wine sauce and vegetables to bring them to temperature. Spoon the sauce over the beef cheeks constantly.Â
- Serve: Serve the beef cheeks over mashed potatoes or mashed cauliflower. Spoon the vegetables and red wine sauce over. Garnish with fresh herbs. Voila!Â
Notes
This meal is part of the meal plan with sous vide beef cheeks. To sous vide beef cheeks, please follow the instructions below or refer to the step-by-step guide in my article.
- Preheat water to 180°F (82°C) or to your desired temperature, following the time and temperature chart in my article.
- Trim and season beef cheeks with a generous amount of salt and a pinch of pepper on both sides.
- Place the beef cheeks in multiple sous vide bags (I usually do two cheeks per bag), add three cloves of garlic and a few sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary in each bag, and follow with some olive oil. Vacuum-seal the bags.
- Submerge the bags in the pre-heated water and set the timer for 9 hours (or longer if you cook at a different temperature). Cover your cooking vessel to prevent water from evaporating.
- After the timer goes off, if you don’t use the beef cheeks immediately, transfer them directly into an ice-water bath to cool before refrigerating or freezing.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 443
- Sugar: 4.8g
- Sodium: 786.8mg
- Fat: 16.7g
- Saturated Fat: 8.1g
- Carbohydrates: 11.9g
- Fiber: 2.4g
- Protein: 48.7g
- Cholesterol: 143.1mg