Fall-apart, melt-in-your-mouth, juicy, and delicious, sous vide short ribs are a perfect meal for any occasion. Sous vide cooking removes any guesswork and worry from cooking this cut of beef.
Sous vide short ribs are the perfect way to get fork-tender, juicy ribs without any of the hassle. This recipe has about 10-minutes of hands-on time for an amazing entree that will impress any guest you can imagine.
This cooking method uses a water bath and precise temperature control to cook the ribs slowly and evenly, resulting in ribs that are packed with flavor and fall-off-the-bone tender.
Plus, sous vide beef ribs are incredibly easy to make - simply season the ribs, seal them in a bag, and cook them in the water bath.
For more sous vide recipes, try our Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin or Sous Vide Pork Chops next!
Ingredients
- Beef Shortribs - Shortribs can come in several different cuts. I used the boneless cut for this recipe.
- Onions - Sliced and added to the bag, they boost the flavor of the beef.
- Garlic - Peel and chop before adding.
- Thyme - You can use any fresh herb you enjoy.
- Salt and Pepper - Season to your preference.
How to Make Sous Vide Beef Short Ribs
1️⃣ Prep & Seal
Remove the short rib from the packaging and pat dry with a paper towel. Season both sides with salt and black pepper, then place into a vacuum seal bag with sliced onions, chopped garlic, and a few sprigs of thyme. Then use a vacuum sealer to seal the bag.
2️⃣ Cook
Place the sealed sous vide bag into your preheated sous vide water bath. Allow the beef to sous vide in the water bath at 160°F for 48 hours.
Top Tip
On long sous vide cooks, be sure to cover your water bath to stop evaporation. You don't want to have to add more water to your sous vide as it is cooking. The goal is to keep it at a constant, precise temperature. If you don't have a lid, you can use foil or plastic wrap.
3️⃣ Remove & Dry
Once the beef is done in the sous vide bath, remove it from the sealed bag. Dry it thoroughly. Reserve the liquid in the bag to make an optional red wine sauce.
4️⃣ Reverse Sear
Reverse-sear the sous vide beef ribs on a preheated high-heat grill. It only takes 2-3 minutes per side over high heat to give a nice seared texture to the beef.
Alternatively, you can sear it on the stovetop in a piping hot cast-iron pan
Once the beef is seared, plate and serve. Enjoy!
Top Tip
When reverse searing after sous vide cooking, it is important to dry the meat with paper towels before searing. If you don't, the heat source needs to first evaporate the moisture before it can sear the meat. This will result in a poor sear and dry overcooked meat. The easiest way to dry it is to use a paper towel to pat it dry.
Variations
This short ribs recipe is easy to customize to your own taste preferences.
- Spices - Sub in your favorite spice rub for the seasonings mentioned.
- Herbs - We chose thyme, but rosemary, sage, or oregano would also work in this recipe. You can add some crushed bay leaves or your favorite herb mixture.
- Shallots - Swap out the onions and garlic for shallots, which have notes of flavor found in each of these. Add in a couple of pats of butter along with the shallots to kick this up a notch.
- Teriyaki - Drizzle the beef with some sesame oil and soy sauce, rub it with brown sugar, and then seal it with onions and garlic.
Love beef? Make sure to try Sous Vide Corned Beef and Sous Vide Chuck Roast for your next gathering.
Common Questions
What if I don't have a vacuum sealer?
It is easy to use a ziplock bag. Just put your ingredients into a zip-lock bag without sealing it. Slowly submerge it into the water bath, bottom first, making sure no water goes into the bag. As the bag of ingredients goes into the sous vide container, the water pressure removes the air from the bag, and then you can seal the top of the bag. This is called the water displacement method.
What do I serve with sous vide short ribs?
- Potatoes: As with most beef entrees, potatoes are a natural choice. Boursin Mashed Potatoes or Loaded Baked Potatoes are excellent accompaniments.
- Vegetables: If you decide to serve this with potatoes, I would choose a green vegetable to go with them, like green beans or broccoli.
- Salad: Since the beef is so rich, a refreshing side salad goes well.
- Bread: Our Cornbread Casserole falls somewhere between cornbread and corn pudding, but is a perfect side for this.
Recipe
Sous Vide Short Ribs
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless beef short rib
- ¼ small onion
- 2 garlic clove
- 2 sprigs thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the water bath with sous vide. Set water temperature to 160°F.
- Slice a quarter of a small onion into thin slices. Mince two cloves of fresh garlic.
- Remove the boneless short rib from its packaging and pat it dry with a paper towel. Place it into a sealable bag along with sliced onions, minced garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. Vacuum seal bag.
- Place the sealed bag into the water bath at 160°F for 48 hours.
- Once the cooking time has ended, remove the short rib from the bag and pat it dry with a paper towel.
- Reverse-sear the rib on a hot grill over high heat. Cook for 2 minutes per side.
- Plate and serve!
Nutrition
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Originally Published October 17, 2022. Revised and Republished March 30, 2026.
Nicki says
This looks delicious!! But, really? 48 hours!!? Just double checking on that length of time.
Paul & Taryn says
That really is how long we cook it for. I've seen other recipes cook for anywhere from 36 to 72 hours. You can try this recipe if you want a shorter cook time.