Sous Vide Beets (+ VIDEO)

Sous vide beets are so much easier than making boiled, broiled or roasted beets. They are completely hands-off once you pop them in the bag, and always come out easy to pierce with a fork. I make beets sous vide style in large batches then enjoy them for days in sous vide beet salad with arugula and goat cheese.

Why sous vide beets?

Sous viding root vegetables is a thing — a delicious and convenient thing — that proves there is more to underwater cooking than just steak and pork. This method of cooking helps beets retain more nutrients than boiling, for example, because they cook in a vacuum seal bag. That means the nutrients aren’t spilling into the water. That resulting flavor is very, very deep and rich.

Beets cooked sous vide style turn out with a perfect texture for beet salad. They are soft and easily pierced with a fork, but never mushy. I enjoy them right out of the bag (soaked in butter from the sous vide cooking process) and as leftovers for days to follow. Let me teach you how to make ‘em.

Ingredients for sous vide beets

You don’t need much when it comes to ingredients for this recipe. Start with beets sliced in 3-4” chunks, butter, and salt.

Do you peel beets before sous viding?

I usually don’t. I give them a wash before cutting and putting them in the sous vide bag. When they come out, they are soft and tender, and the skin is really easy to cut off with a paring knife.

How to cook beets sous vide style

Step 1. Preheat sous vide machine to 185ºF.

Step 2. Vacuum seal beets with salt and butter in a flat layer.

Time and temperature

Step 3. Sous vide beets at 185ºF for 3 hours and 15 minutes.

Step 4. When done, remove beets from water.

Cut open the bag and transfer sous vide cooked beets to a cutting board.

Use a paring knife to cut the thin layer of skin from beets. Slice and serve immediately or chill in the fridge.

Sous vide meal prepping idea: beet salad

Did you ever notice you can’t keep dressing on lettuce in the fridge for a day or two and expect delicious salad? Beet salad is the opposite. Unlike salads with lettuce which wilts when it has been dressing on for an extended period of time, beets drenched in orange vinaigrette last well for a couple days in the fridge. It’s a grab and go snack / lunch for busy days.

In the recipe video at the bottom of this post, you’ll see how I make beet salad with goat cheese, arugula, and an orange vinaigrette using these tender sous vide beets.

A quick and tasty dressing for beet salad

Sometime soon, I’ll publish my specific dressing recipe, but for now here’s the gist of it… whisk together 1 tbsp orange juice with equal parts olive oil and champagne vinegar (about 1 tbsp each), salt and pepper to taste. Add a little honey if you like sweeter dressings (which tastes great with beets). Toss beets in dressing and enjoy.

So, are beets sous vide better?

If you know me at all, you know I have a weird obsession with getting my hands on any ingredient that can be experimented with cooking sous vide style. Not everything is a hit, but most things are… and that’s true for sous vide beets.

Using this method of putting them in a bag with butter and salt, then putting the bag in water, means they cook super tender, but don’t lose all those nutrients in the water, since they’re obviously in the bag. 

The flavor just builds and builds and builds.

The resulting flavor of beets sous vide style is SO DEEP. 💜 🧡 💛 They stay that beautiful vibrant purple / orange / golden whatever color you’re into. And unlike roasting or boiling them, there’s no guessing game to knowing when beets are done. 

I highly recommend em’. 10/10 stars! And there aren’t a ton of sous vide vegetable dishes compared to all the steaks and other meats made with this machine, so it’s a good one for your bucket list. 

Sous vide cooking has become somewhat of an obsession of mine, as I’m on a quest to recreate restaurant-style food at home. It even inspired me to write a cookbook.

Find new ways to enjoy your favorite food with sous vide cooking. Get inspired with my new book – The Home Chef’s Sous Vide Cookbook.

Are you a foodie, too?

Make a complete meal with your sous vide cooking skills, make a side of these sous vide fingerling potatoes and the main dish like sous vide beef short ribs with creamy peppercorn sauce. For a holiday meal, serve alongside something special like sous vide rack of lamb.

For more fun in the kitchen, find me on Instagram @sipbitego and see my latest sous vide recipe videos on the Sip Bite Go channel.

The Perfect Sous Vide Setup

Everyday I’m asked, “what do you need to sous vide food?”. Here’s my answer.

1. A sous vide machine.
   Option 1: “stick” models like the Joule, Anova, or Instant Pot Slim.
   Option 2: “multipot” models like the SousPreme multipot or InstantPot Duo Evo Plus.
2. Sous vide container.
   If using a sous vide “stick” model, you need something to hold the water the food cooks in, like a bucket or stockpot.
3. Bags to cook sous vide food.
   Keep it simple and sous vide in ziplock gallon bags, or get fancy like me with a vacuum sealer setup.
4. Nice-to-have accessories for sous vide cooking.
   – Sous vide weights to hold down food that floats.
   – Mini mason jars for desserts and sous vide egg bites.
   – Cast iron skillet to sear sous vide steaks to finish them.
   – My sous vide cookbook with 100+ recipes.
5. Butcher quality meat.
   Stock up on top-quality meats like wagyu at Crowd Cow and Snake River Farms. They always have specials, and will ship delicious cuts of craft meat right to your door.