Sous Vide Pork Chops | Guaranteed Perfect Every Time

Sous Vide Pork Chops are moist, succulent, and oh-so juicy! Cooking your pork chops in the sous vide method seals in massive flavor and makes them tender enough to cut with a butter knife.

Since pork is a lean meat it can easily dry out in the oven or skillet. Cooking pork chops in a sous vide seals in their natural juices and brings out the best of their delicate flavors.

I love to sous vide as much as possible because it’s easy and it cooks everything to perfection. Nothing ever burns or gets overcooked. Sous vide cooking makes everything super flavorful!

For this recipe, I’ve used huge French-cut bone-in pork chops that are about 1 1/2 inches thick. Use this setting for a medium rare meat temperature. This setting and times work just as well with smaller thinner cuts too!

The best part about using a sous vide machine is it allows you to cook with confidence. That means you get perfectly cooked food every time. No more poking and prodding your meat to death.

Sous Vide Pork Chops Recipe

This simple cooking method guarantees moist tender pork chops every single time. It locks in the meat’s natural juices and slowly cooks it to perfection with hardly any effort on your part.

Ingredients

• 4 pork chops
• salt and pepper
• Italian seasoning or fresh chopped herbs (optional)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Equipment

• Sous Vide
• Large pot or sous vide container (with or without lid)
• Freezer zip lock plastic bags or vacuum seal bags
• Vacuum sealer (optional)

Instructions

1. Insert your sous vide (also known as an immersion circulator) into a large pot or container and fill it with water above the minimum water line recommended by the sous vide manufacturer.
2. Set the sous vide temperature to 134F or 57C and allow it to come up to temperature, this could take 5 to 15 minutes.
3. Season the pork chops with a little salt and pepper and put them into the sous vide bags (vacuum seal bag or heavy freezer zip lock bag). If you are using Italian seasoning or chopped fresh herbs add those as well.
4. Remove the air from the sous vide bag. Vacuum seal the bag or follow this method if using a plastic bag.
5. Close the bag until 1 inch remains open and submerge the bag into the water bath, leaving the opening above the water. When you have expressed as much air as possible out of the bag, seal it completely.

• Release the bag into the water. Make sure the pork chops are completely submerged. If needed, put weights on top of the meat to keep them under the water.
• If the pork chops are 1 1/2 inches thick or thicker, the cooking time for them is 2 to 6 hours. If they’re under 1 inch, they’ll be done in 1 hour, but they hold beautifully for 6 hours in the sous vide too!
• When you remove the pork from the sous vide, it will be gray and unappetizing.
• Finish the chops off by drying them with a paper towel.
• Then brush them with olive oil and sear them on a hot grill pan or in a cast iron skillet for 3 minutes on each side.

*Note: Either vacuum seal the meat or use a name-brand freezer bag. I’ve used generic ones in the past and they’ve either leaked or fallen apart during the cooking process.

If you are concerned about the seal breaking open, keep the meat submerged but clip the sealed bag top to the edge of the water container with a binder clip.

Is sous vide cooking safe?

I get this question a lot from people unfamiliar with the sous vide cooking method. Sous vide cooking was first used in hospitals because it was proven to be a safe and effective cooking method.

This article by America’s Test Kitchen Cook’s Illustrated is the best I’ve read that discusses the safety of using an immersion circulator. It talks about which plastic bags are best, food safety, how to safely use your sous vide, and foodborne illness.

What if I like my meat well done?

If you prefer your meat temperature well done, cooking in the sous vide method will give you the most desirable results.

After taking the meat out of the sous vide, sear it longer on the stove or grill top until the meat thermometer reads 160F to 165F (71C to 74C). Then take the pork chops off the heat and cover them with foil for 10 minutes. This will allow the meat to stay juicy as it continues to cook up to the well-done temperature of 170F (76C).

What to serve with sous vide pork chops

Here are some ideas on how to top off your chops:

• Creamy mushroom sauce
• Chimichurri
• Pesto
• Herb butter
• Steak sauce

Some of our favorite sides to pair with your pork chops are:

• Parmesan garlic salad
• Turmeric honey carrots
• Homemade fries (papa frites)
• Braised asparagus with tomatoes and feta