How to Cook Carrots Sous Vide

Have you heard of sous vide? Why do we want to cook like this? And why carrots?

These are all excellent questions, dear reader.

How exactly does sous vide work? Well, a immersion circulator immersed in water creates a constant temperature environment that ensures consistent cooking results. It’s the equivalent of slow, gentle poaching that also helps food retain its moisture.

There’s a bit of a learning curve when using this style of cooking, but it’s nothing to be overly cautious about. It’s mostly a manual process, not unlike cooking in a slow cooker.

New to sous vide cooking? Start here!

• Everything you were wondering about sous vide cooking at home
• How to use your new sous vide immersion thermostat
• How to seal food without a vacuum sealer
• Sous vide and food safety: what you need to know

What’s so special about sous vide carrots?

The carrots in today’s recipe not only become beautifully tender when cooked sous vide, but they also become intensely flavorful – it’s as if cooking sous vide concentrates the flavors and transforms them into the best specimens of the carrot. They get sweeter and crunchy, but also taste earthy and distinctly carrot-in a way that frying or steaming can’t achieve.

The low, slow method of sous vide cooking works well with many vegetables, and carrots are no exception. Steamed carrots sometimes get mushy or just too wet to the touch, and they lose their bite very quickly if you don’t keep an eye on them. Oven-roasted carrots can also become easily overcooked and mushy as their tough fibers soften.

Because sous vide cooking involves enclosing the carrots in a tightly sealed plastic bag and then gently cooking them in precisely controlled hot water, they are protected from both water absorption and moisture loss and are not nearly as likely to overcook.

How long to cook carrots sous vide?

Compared to many other sous vide recipes, carrots cook fairly quickly. A large cut of meat, like a bottom round roast, can take up to 24 hours to tender, but carrots are ready in 15 to 20 minutes, making them an easy side dish for dinner.

Exact timing will depend on the size and thickness of your carrots (e.g. lean, lean spring carrots versus fatter, knobby supermarket carrots). I would recommend checking your carrots after about 15 minutes and then resealing the bag and cooking longer if needed. If you can stick a fork into the thick part of the carrots and remove them easily, they’re done.

• Tip for cooking! If you find the carrots are floating when you add them to the sous vide bath, carefully remove the bag from the water and add several scoops, which will weigh down the bag and keep the carrots submerged while cooking.

Make-ahead sous vide carrots

One of the biggest benefits of sous vide cooking is that you can prepare meal components like these carrots ahead of time and quickly reheat them when needed.

After cooking, let the carrots cool in their bag, then toss them in the fridge for later. You can then reheat them as needed for a quick side dish or add them to other dishes like quick pasta, salads, soups or quesadillas.

I cooked these carrots and ate some of them as I tried them because they were irresistible. I put the rest in the fridge and later browned them in a cast iron skillet with some sous vide potatoes I also cooked earlier in the week.

More sous vide recipes to try!

• Sous vide potatoes
• Sous vide pork chops
• Sous Vide Teriyaki Salmon
• French sous vide dip sandwiches
• Sous vide beef fillet with port wine and garlic