Sous Vide Flank Steak Sandwich

If you’ve had the pleasure of participating in a proper tailgating experience, you know that sometimes the liquid pursuits at the tailgate can lead to, shall we say, “inattentiveness” at the grill. That’s never the case with sous vide: Because everything is already perfectly cooked, you show up and all you need to worry about is heating things up and learning how to humbly accept all the compliments that will be coming your way. Here, I’m sharing with you my favorite tailgating recipe: Sous Vide Peppercorn Crusted Flank Steak and Bacon Sandwiches — take that, overcooked burgers!

Author

James Briscione

Meet this awesome #anovafoodnerd, Chef James Briscione. Chef James has been in kitchens since the age of 16 and built his epic career through humble beginnings as a dishwasher at a restaurant in Pensacola, Florida. Since then, James has worked in top tier restaurants and is currently the Director of Culinary Development at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE), teaching budding chefs modern techniques like sous vide and encouraging his students to always find ways to improve and evolve. He loves to use his constantly evolving culinary knowledge to improve the cooking (and eating) experience, whether it takes place in a 5 star restaurant or out of a truck bed at a pre-game tailgate. When Chef James is not cookin' up killer sous vide dishes and passing his knowledge on to novice food nerds, he is spending time with his family and feeding his passion for football.

Prep Time: 00:45

Recipe Time: 02:00

Temperature : 134F / 56.7C

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 pound flank steak cut into 4 pieces
• 12 slices extra thick bacon
• Horseradish Cream
• Watercress or Arugula (as needed)
• Rolls, toasted

Directions

1. For the brine (optional): Combine the water, salt, brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic and pepper in a bowl and whisk until dissolved. Transfer the brine to a one-gallon zip top bag; add the steaks, squeeze out any air and seal. Refrigerate overnight or for a minimum of 4 hours.
2. Remove the steaks from the brine, discard the liquid, then pat the steaks dry. Set your Precision Cooker to 57˚C / 134.5˚F to begin preheating the water while you finish prepping the steak.
3. Coat the steaks on both sides with black pepper, then return the steaks to the zip top bag.
4. Use the immersion technique to seal the bag.
5. Add the steaks to the water bath and cook for two hours.
6. OPTIONAL: To include bacon in the recipe, increase the temperature in the water bath to 66˚C (151˚F) and add the bacon. Leave the bacon to cook overnight (8-12 hours). Follow the same finishing steps for bacon as you will with the flank steak.

Finishing Steps

1. When the steaks are done cooking, remove from the water and transfer immediately to a bowl of ice water to cool quickly. Leave the steaks submerged in the ice water for 30 minutes, then store refrigerated for up to two weeks or frozen for up to six months. Do the same for the bacon (if including),
2. Remove the steaks from the ice bath, let it rest until at room temperature or quickly reheat in lukewarm water, then quickly sear the steaks on a hot grill (about one minute per side for the steaks; for bacon, only sear 30 seconds per side).
3. Thinly slice the steak against the grain.
4. After slicing the steak, layer it over the toasted rolls with the bacon, horseradish cream and watercress.
5. Serve and enjoy at your tailgate, party, or dinner. Enjoy!