Sous Vide Hamburgers are a great beginner sous vide recipe to try this week. The burger patties are cooked at a precise temperature so that you get the doneness that you prefer every time. No overcooked and dry burgers here.
Table of contents
Hamburgers Sous Vide are my new favorite way to cook hamburgers.
I often keep frozen hambuger patties in my freezer to make an easy weeknight meal.
I can throw the frozen hamburger patties into the sous vide bath and have dinner on the table well within an hour.
We love to serve these sous vide hamburgers with french fries in the air fryer for a quick meal.
Disclosure – I may get a small commission for purchases made through affiliate links in this post.
The Joule
I recommend the Joule Sous Vide appliance if you’re new to sous vide cooking.
It has a fantastic app that you can download that will help guide you through the cooking process for pretty much anything you’d like to cook.
You set the temperature and cook time within the app then your food will be cooked precisely at temperature until the app tells you that it is cooked.
After your food is cooked, you can leave it for up to 2 hours in most cases, and your food will still be perfect.
You will also need a sous vide container or a large stockpot to use as a cooking vessel.
I always use a large stockpot because I like to buy things that pull double-duty in my kitchen.
I don’t have a lot of space to store items that I won’t use very often.
Whichever container you choose, be sure to put it on a heat-proof surface because it will get hot while your food is cooking.
🔑 Key to Success #1 – Use Lean Ground Beef
One of the keys to great burgers in the sous vide is using lean ground beef for the hamburger patties.
When I make hamburgers at home, I like to use 93% lean ground beef.
The fat can bring a lot of flavor, but I really don’t enjoy eating a greasy burger.
Even with 93% lean meat, you’ll get plenty of flavor and the burgers will still be juicy without being greasy.
Since we’re using the sous vide to cook at a precise temperature, there is no fear of overcooking the meat so that it becomes tough.
🔑 Key to Success #2 – Form Even Patties for Even Cooking
I have a little trick for forming perfectly round hamburger patties and it’s this little gadget right here – a hamburger patty mold/press.
I take 1/4 pound of ground beef and press it evenly into the mold with my hand (or a piece of waxed paper).
Then I take the press and press it down to make those nice “grill” marks on the top of the burger.
Then the fun part – I slap the mold face-down onto a piece of waxed paper on the cabinet to release the perfect patty.
It works perfectly every time.
You may be thinking that 1/4 pound of beef doesn’t sound like much but since you’re using lean ground beef you don’t get as much shrinkage due to fat loss during the cooking process.
Tip! Don’t forget to season your meat on both sides!
🔑 Key to Success #3 – Choose Your Thickness and Doneness
How do you like your burger cooked?
Your desired doneness will determine the cook temperature.
I like to cook my burgers well done.
They are still pink in the middle, but they’re not dripping pink juice.
Choose the doneness that you prefer.
- 126 degrees F = rare
- 133 degrees F = medium-rare
- 140 degrees F = medium
- 147 degrees F = medium-well
- 158 degrees F = well done
The thickness of your burgers will determine the sous vide cook time.
- 1/2-inch burgers =15 minutes
- 3/4-inch burgers = 22 minutes
- 1-inch burgers = 30 minutes
After your cook time is up, you can leave your burgers in the water bath for up to 30 minutes without overcooking the food.
If you have a Joule Sous Vide like I do, you’ll set your thickness and doneness right in the Joule app.
❓ Q & A – Can you Cook a Frozen Burger Sous Vide?
YES! I cook burgers from frozen much more often than I cook them fresh.
I make four beef patties then season them and place them all into the same gallon-sized FoodSaver bag.
I vacuum seal the bag then freeze it until we’re ready to eat them.
You’ll cook at the same temperature based on your desired doneness, but a frozen burger will take longer.
Here’s a chart with the cook times for frozen burgers.
- 1/2-inch burger from frozen = 23 minutes
- 3/4-inch steaks from frozen = 33 minutes
- 1-inch steaks from frozen = 45 minutes
This will include Bubba Burgers and any other frozen burger patties that you find in the grocery store.
The cook time will depend on the thickness of the burger no matter the brand or variety (i.e. bison burgers.)
📌 Get the Printable Recipe for Sous Vide Hamburgers
Save this Sous Vide Hamburgers recipe to your favorite Sous Vide Recipes board or your Burgers board.
Sous Vide Hamburgers
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef, lean
- salt & pepper, to taste
- butter for searing
Directions
- Fill a stock pot or sous vide container 3/4 full of water. Place on a heat-proof surface and add immersion circulator.
- Heat water to temperature based on your preferred doneness for your burgers. (126 degrees F = rare, 133 degrees F = medium-rare, 140 degrees F = medium, 147 degrees F = medium-well, 158 degrees F = well done). (We like 158 for our burgers.)
- Divide ground beef into 4 even portions and form into round patties. Season both sides to taste.
- While water is heating, season hamburger patties and place them in a single layer in a 1-gallon plastic zip-top bag or vacuum seal bag (and seal the bag). Can put hamburger patties into more than one bag if needed.
- When water is heated, lower each bag into the water making sure the meat is fully submerged. Fold top of bag over the side of the stockpot. Clip bag to the side, if needed.
- Set timer for cook time. Cook time depends on thickness of your steak (1/2-inch = 15 minutes, 3/4-inch = 22 minutes, 1-inch = 30 minutes).
- After cook time is finished, remove bags from sous vide and remove hamburger patties from the bag. Preheat heavy skillet over high heat. Place 1 Tbsp butter or olive oil in skillet then sear hamburger patties 1 minute on each side.
Notes
- 1/2-inch burger from frozen = 23 minutes
- 3/4-inch steaks from frozen = 33 minutes
- 1-inch steaks from frozen = 45 minutes
Brenda
Tuesday 11th of October 2022
I am very new to the world of sous vide cooking and this was only the 2nd thing I made. They came out WONDERFUL! My family said they were the best burgers I've ever made. :-) I love how concise the instructions were and LOVE the cooking temp/time charts for thawed and frozen. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Looking forward to more of your recipes!!