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Sous Vide Picanha (55°C)
Serves — · Prep 5 min · Cook 150 min — A 1.5kg picanha cooked sous vide at 55°C for 2 hours, then reheated in the bath and seared hard on the grill for a pasteurised 55°C finish.
- 1.5kg picanha, fat cap on (trim if thicker than ~1cm)
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Season with salt and pepper (in the bag or just before searing). Seal with the fat cap side down.
- Sous vide at 55°C for 2 hours.
- Take it out and let it cool slightly — it doesn't need to be fridge-cold.
- About an hour later, drop it back into the 55°C bath for 20–30 min to bring it back to temperature.
- Pull, dry thoroughly and sear hard on a screaming-hot grill, 30–45 seconds per side, including the fat cap.
- Rest 5 min, then slice against the grain.
A sear builds crust but doesn't raise the internal temperature meaningfully — that's why the reheat step matters.
Simpler option: sear straight from the bath after the 2-hour cook and skip the reheat.
50–51°C gives rare/blue with no pasteurisation; 54–56°C is medium-rare and pasteurised after ~40 min at temperature.
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