Sous Vide Hamburgers

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For a thick and juicy hamburger cooked just the way you like, you’ll want to try these Sous Vide Hamburgers! 

You might be skeptical about cooking hamburgers in a water bath, but I promise, the results are worth it!

If you love medium or medium rare hamburgers like us, you know it’s easy to overcook thick beef patties using traditional cooking methods.

When you cook sous vide style, you set the temperature of the water bath, so your hamburgers are cooked to your desired doneness without any guesswork.

All they need is a quick sear in a hot skillet, and you get to enjoy the best burgers of your life! 

Be sure to serve them up with some duck fat parmesan truffle fries, air fryer frozen french fries or these baked parsnip fries, for the ultimate burger and fries meal!

If you love burgers, you’ll also want to try this goat cheese stuffed bison burger!

Check out the sous vide hamburgers story!

What is Sous Vide?

Sous vide is basically a method of cooking using what is called an immersion circulator. This immersion circulator circulates water in a temperature controlled water bath at a certain temperature to perfectly cook your food every time.

Because the temperature doesn't change, and it keeps your meat (or dessert, veggies, etc.) at the same temperature, your risk of overcooking becomes very minimal.

To learn even more about sous vide cooking, head over and read "what is sous vide cooking."

What is the Water Displacement Method?

The displacement method is where you slowly submerge a ziplock bag in water pushing the air out of the top of the bag (the bag should be slightly open at the top to allow air to escape).

Use a clip (I use binder clips) to clip the bag to the side to keep it from floating and getting air and/or water inside.

Tools Used

• Anova Precision Sous Vide Cooker
• 12 quart container for water bath
• Vacuum sealer
• Cast iron skillet (for searing)

More sous vide recipes

• Sous Vide Pastrami
• Sous Vide Oxtails
• Sous Vide Mahi Mahi
• Sous Vide Octopus

Why this recipe works

1. The recipe recommends using the water displacement method instead of vacuum sealing so the burger patties don’t get too compressed. 
2. While it takes 1 ½ hours for the burgers to cook in the water bath, it doesn’t involve much active time. You don’t have to keep a close eye on the burgers to ensure they cook perfectly.
3. Whether you like your burgers medium or well done, the sous vide is a foolproof way to cook burgers to your desired doneness.
4. The recipe keeps it basic with just ground beef and steak seasoning for the burgers.
5. The sous vide method works best for thick burger patties as it keeps them tender and juicy without overcooking them.

Ingredients

You’ll need 2 pounds of ground beef for these burgers. For the best results, I recommend using 80/20 ground beef. This means the ground beef is 80 percent lean to 20 percent fat. If you use 90/10, it’s going to be leaner beef and the burgers may turn out a little dry.

The ground beef is seasoned with 1 tablespoon of steak seasoning. Feel free to change up the seasoning with different dried herbs and spices.

To sear the burgers after they come out of the water bath, you’ll need 1 tablespoon of avocado oil. You can also use vegetable or canola oil.

To build the burgers, you’ll need hamburger buns, sliced cheese, pickles, tomato, lettuce, red onion and any other toppings you enjoy!

Step by step instructions

Heat a sous vide water bath to 130F degrees.

Mix the seasoning in a bowl with the ground beef.

Form it into 8 patties about 1-inch thick.

Place in a ziplock freezer bag and use the water displacement method to remove the air from the bag.

Cook for 1 ½ hours. Remove burgers from the bag and pat them dry. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.

Heat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat while the burgers rest.

Add the avocado oil, then the burgers. Sear for 60-90 seconds per side, until a crust is formed.

Remove and serve on buns with condiments.

**Water displacement method is recommended to avoid smashing the burgers.

Expert tips

1. When using the water displacement method, use the instructions above to remove the air from the sealable bag to avoid bacteria entering the bag.
2. The burgers should be fully submerged in the water bath. If air gets in the bag while the burgers are cooking and the bag starts to float, just open the ziplock bag, remove the air and reseal it again.
3. To prevent floating, you can also use a sous vide sinker weight or something heavy to weigh down the bag.
4. Make sure you’re using a large enough bag and water bath container to fit 8 burger patties. You may need to use two ziplock bags with 4 burgers in each one.
5. You’ll want to arrange the burgers in the ziplock bag(s) in a single layer as best you can. If they’re overlapping, they may not cook evenly.
6. The cooking time is based on 1-inch thick burger patties. If your burgers are thicker, you will need to cook them longer. 
7. Letting the burgers rest when they come out of the water bath helps get a good sear. You’ll also want to pat them dry with a paper towel to remove any excess liquid.
8. When making the burgers, be careful not to overwork the beef or pack the patties together too much. This will result in tough burgers.
9. Instead of searing them in a cast iron skillet, you can use a grill. Depending on the size of your skillet or grill, you may need to sear the burgers in batches.
10. You’ll only want to sear the burgers for 60-90 seconds per side. Any more than this and they may overcook in the center.

Common questions

Make it a meal

Here are some of our favorite side dishes to serve with burgers:

• Spicy Mac and Cheese
• Spicy Mexican Pasta Salad
• Sous Vide Corn on the Cob
• Duck Fat Crispy Smashed Potatoes

Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment below and let me know how it turned out!