Rib-eye Steak via Sous Vide

Motivation
There is something profoundly less cowboy about cooking rib-eye steaks in a sous vide instead of over a hot charcoal fire.  Be that as it may, it's hard to argue with results.  I pulled this recipe from the my very reliable sous vide cookbook.  I was actually surprised to see how different the cooking times were for rib-eye steaks compared to those of beef tenderloin.  A thick beef tenderloin takes about 3-4 hours to cook via sous vide, the same cookbook recommends cooking a rib-eye for 6-8 hours.  Obviously breaking down the connective tissue in a rib-eye takes a bit longer.

An interesting consequence of cooking your steaks via sous vide is pasteurization.  Steak is generally considered most tender when prepared medium-rare, but not everyone is comfortable eating meat that hasn't been thoroughly cooked.  This is a win-win situation because the meat has been held a high enough temperature for hours to pasteurize it without getting so cooked to make it tough.

Dawn has informed me that it's lucky that food cooking via sous vide emits exactly zero aroma, because forcing her to endure 8 hours of steak cooking would inevitably end in someone being mauled.   Good to know.

Ingredients
Rib-eye Steaks
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper
Butter

Special Equipment
Sous Vide
Vacuum Sealer

Mise en Place
You need to vacuum your steaks and get them in the sous vide about 8 1/2 hours before you want to eat.  So, you know, plan ahead.  Season both sides of the steak with salt and pepper then vacuum seal.

Method

Set sous vide to 130 degrees F.  Place in sous vide and wait 8 hours.  Remove steaks from water bath.  If you're planning on making some sort of sauce you might cut the corner off each bag and pour out whatever broth that has formed in the bag (this stuff is a magic elixir).   Then remove steaks from bags.  Heat butter in a skillet over medium-high heat (I went with stainless steel pan because I think it forms a better crust).   Once butter is done foaming and just starting to smoke place steaks in pan and sear on each side for 1 minute.  Remove, plate, and enjoy.

Verdict
While it's true they were missing the charcoal fire taste, they made up for the fact by being super tender, super beefy, and all around awesome.