In this weeks blog we take a look at using our Sous Vide to cook Japanese A5 Wagyu, the worlds most expensive beef. If you haven’t been online recently, its popularity has exploded #wagyumafia. The conventional method to cook it is fairly easy but a lot of home cooks worry about getting expensive cuts of wagyu, for fear of overcooking and ruining. Well we have a tool known as the Anova Precision Cooker to help. So today we’ll take a look at a side by side comparison of A5 wagyu just seared and through the method of Sous Vide. I also have a video where i have fun with some A5 and make it into A5 Wagyu Sushi.

Instructions

I started out with this beautiful A5 Wagyu Strip that was a little over an inch thick. 

Now, if you’ve never eaten A5 Wagyu before, it is not like a traditional NY strip. Its so rich and dense its best served in small portions. So I cut this beautiful strip into thirds and we’ll only be working with one of the portions (8oz) for this cook.

From there we’re going to prep for the side by side comparison so we’ll cut the portion into equal 4oz cubes.

I took the piece that will be cooked in the traditional way and put it on a plate, uncovered on the counter to come to room temp. The other piece will be getting the Sous Vide treatment so I seasoned it with salt and off to the Anova Vacuum Sealer it went.

Next, set your Anova Precision Cooker  to 129 degrees F / 54 degrees C. Place your bag into your Anova Sous Vide Container. If you’re using ziplocks and the water displacement method, secure the bags to the side of the Sous Vide container with clips. For tonight this A5 was sharing a bath with my dinner. Love combining cooks!

Ok your SV Wagyu is done and my other portion is at room temperature. It was at this point that I salted the room temp portion for the sear. This is one I had to think about. I decided I was going to sear them both the same way. When you really think about it you’re treating them the same it just one is already cooked to your exact liking in the middle. You just want that sear. Heres how I treated them both:

1. Non Stick Skillet on medium-high
2. No oil. The rendered fat will be all you need.
3. 1 minute on the first side. flip. thirty seconds on the other 
4. quickly seared the other two edges till I had my desired look. 15-20 sec.

And they we go. Was that simple. I will admit tho. Letting that non SV one cook in the skillet was kind of nerve wracking. I def didn’t want to overcook it. I would have been heartbroken. Heres the result of the sear. The winner of the most beautiful sear actually went to the SV piece which surprised me greatly. Both sears were phenomenal though. Butttt I am guessing you aren’t here to see sear pictures. You want those money shots. So lets get to it.

I started by slicing into the traditionally “just seared” method. And it was all I ever hoped for. Beautiful rare and just butter in texture. 

Next for the SV A5 Wagyu. Did I ruin it? Did it melt? Nopeee. This was incredibly amazing as well. Buttery smooth, perfectly done 129. 

Differences? Well the only difference is the temperature really and I can just control that with the SV temp so that is a wash. The traditionally seared one was a little cooler inside than the SV. The textures were amazingly similar.

Is one way better than the other? Nope. The Sous Vide is a tool to be used by people of all skill levels. I know in my opinion just searing this expensive investment was nerve wracking because I didn’t want to overcook it. If only there was a tool to use to get the perfect temperature on the inside without worrying. There is nothing wrong with using your SV with wagyu but if  you just sear thats fine too it will come out tasting the same.  

Thank you for checking us out. Do you cook your Wagyu using SV? Comment below if you do or you think I was insane for doing it. Also, you’re going to want to go ahead and subscribe to the blog below so you will be the first to be notified when I post new blogs. Check out our social media’s (YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest) and go ahead and share this blog with a friend. See ya next time!

Equipment List Links:

Vacuum Sealer: Anova Vacuum Sealer

Vacuum Seal Bags: Anova Pre Cut Vacuum Sealer Bags

Vacuum Seal Rolls: Anova Rolls Vacuum Sealer bags

Sous Vide Circulator: Anova Nano 

Sous Vide Circulator: Anova Pro

Sous Vide Container: Anova Sous Vide Container

Chef Knife: Wustoff Chef Knife

Meat Church Rub: Meat Church Rub

BBQ Sauce: Lillies Smokey Hot

Sheet Pan With Wire Rack: Sheet pan with a rack

Skillet: Skillet

Meat Tenderizer: Meat Tenderizer