Sous vide cooking continues to grow in popularity as a nearly effortless and delicious way to cook food. As the sous vide method grows in prevalence, the market for sous vide related equipment also continues to expand.
From sous vide weights to vacuum seal bags, the available selection of sous vide accessories can be overwhelming.
Based on our significant experience in the test kitchen, below we guide you to the best sous vide accessories that can appreciably improve your cooking process and results.
Table of Contents
9 Best Sous Vide Accessories
1. Vacuum Sealer
Properly sealing a bag devoid of air will make or break the entire sous vide process. Vacuum sealers eliminate the associated risk by removing all air from the sous vide bag and assuredly sealing it to keep water out. This ensures the food will cook evenly and safely.
The FoodSaver Vacuum Sealer Machine is the model we use. The sealing process is quick, simple and reliable. The machine automatically detects and is capable of sealing both dry and wet foods, so sealing something like meat in a marinate is not an issue.
The FoodSaver Vacuum Sealer Bags are great because not only are they reliable, but the rolls are designed to be custom cut to the size of the food you are sealing.
The machine comes with a limited 5-year warranty, providing peace of mind.
The best part of a vacuum sealer is its functionality goes well beyond sous vide and will no doubt save you money over time. Think leftovers or buying steak, pork, chicken, etc. in bulk and vacuum sealing; Vacuum sealed foods last up to 5 times longer without any freezer burn.
*Find our write-up on 11 Best Sous Vide Vacuum Sealers and Best Sous Vide Bags – Ziplock, Silicone, or Vacuum here.
2. Sous Vide Container
The biggest advantages of using a sous vide container over something like a stock pot is (1) the ability to see your food while it’s being cooked (and therefore easily being able to spot mishaps), and (2) the fact that proper sous vide containers transmit far less heat, which leads to far more efficient cooking.
A proper sous vide container needs to be durable, correctly sized, and able to handle high temperatures. The LIPAVI C20 Sous Vide Container easily checks all of those boxes. LIPAVI’s containers can handle water temperatures up to 210 Fahrenheit (well beyond what you’ll need to sous vide) and is made from strong and durable polycarbonate material.
- Tailored lids available for : Anova Precision, Anova One, Nomiku, Sansaire, ChefSteps Joule, PolyScience Creative, Wancle, Garmercy, Gourmia, Instant Pot and many more!
- Perfect Match with Lipavi L20 Sous Vide Rack - gives extended capacity and even warming
The container can also be purchased with a lid that’s perfectly tailored to fit popular sous vide cookers, including the popular Anova models and Joule models mentioned below.
The LIPAVI sous vide container is available in four different sizes, but I recommend opting for the large, 26 quarts size. This ensures you have plenty of room to cook almost any recipe.
*Read our write-up on 7 Best Sous Vide Containers (2022) here.
3. Searing Accessories
The secret to producing mouthwateringly crispy sous vide recipes is the Bernzomatic TS8000 High Intensity Trigger Start Torch. The sous vide method produces tender food that’s perfectly cooked internally.
However, searing is the critical extra step that will take your sous vide food to the next level. This torch makes searing an absolute breeze with its instant trigger and high heat output.
The torch also includes tons of adjustable controls and a lock button for full safety and control. Added bonus, there’s little to no clean-up associated with a torch sear.
Pair the TS8000 with a Searzall Torch Accessory to give you an even better, more even sear. The Searzall gives you an evenly spread flame, while minimizing any of the propane gas taste you might get from kitchen torches.
You can read our full review of the TS8000 and Searzall here:
*You can read our review of 6 Best Sous Vide Torches here.
If you prefer not to have a mini flame thrower under your roof, an oversized searing skillet should be part of your kitchen arsenal to accommodate larger cuts of meat.
Lodge makes a great and affordable cast iron skillet. The heat retention of cast iron will go a long way in pan searing, which is the most common and versatile form of searing food sous vide.
Read this if you have a sticky cast iron you need help fixing.
*To learn more about Searing Sous Vide Steak and More, read this.
4. Sous Vide Rack
If you plan on using the sous vide to prepare a meal for a party full of people of a table or more, then the EVERIE Weighted Sous Vide Rack Divider is exactly what you need. The rack fits snugly in a container and allows you to cook multiple items easily and evenly.
Unlike other dividers, the EVERIE divider is a vertical mount with built in clamps between each section for stability. EVERIE’s model also includes five dividers that are detachable, so you can customize it for each meal.
*You can find our Top 10 Best Sous Vide Racks here.
5. Weights & Magnets
Sous vide is a wonderfully easy way of cooking your food, as long as the bags stay fully submerged in the water. Lighter items, such as vegetables, are difficult to keep submerged.
The SO-VIDA Sous Vide Weights, though, are an easy solution. The weights are food safe and fit directly into the sous vide bags to effortlessly weigh the bag down. The weights are also dishwasher safe for easy clean-up.
Magnets are also a good option to use in a similar capacity. The use cases can be a little broader than weights as they can also simply replace the clothespin or binder clip you’re using to keep bags in place.
Unlike weights, magnets do no need to be placed inside the bag, which assures food safety and easy clean-up. We like the KORE Sous Vide Weighted Magnets for their added heft relative to competitors.
*Check out our 5 Best Sous Vide Weights & Magnets here.
6. Ping Pong Balls
Ping pong balls may seem like an odd sous vide accessory, but trust me that they make all of the difference on long cooks if you don’t have a lid to your container.
Ping pong balls reduce the evaporation of the water bath and provide some heat insulation. This means you’ll be less preoccupied monitoring the water level while you sous vide.
BPA free ping pong balls are definitely a small but mighty accessory. We find Locisne Sous Vide Cooking Balls to be a great option.
- Food grade materrial: BPA free, made of Food material polyethylene. Reusable and can be used for sous vide cooking. Lower energy loss during cooking. Provide more convenient cooking for your family.
- No more middle of the night water level alarms: Sous vide balls are able to minimize the effect of heat loss and water evaporation, allow you cook water for hours on end without ever having to re-fill. Due to the surface exposure between the water and air, water hardly evaporates during the cooking process.
*Read our write-up on sous vide ping pong balls here.
7. Silicone Gloves
Never underestimate the power of a good set of gloves in the kitchen. Though sous vide cooks low and slow, you’ll need to handle wet items too hot for bare hands.
The GEEKHOM Heat Resistant Gloves are perfect for sous vide because they’re both waterproof and heat resistant up to an impressive 446 degrees Fahrenheit. These gloves are also very thick and comfortable with a non-slip design, so you can confidently handle any sous vide needs.
Furthermore GEEKHOM provides a best in class 100% no questions asked money back guarantee, making the buy basically risk-less free.
8. Silicone Trivets
The Walfos Silicone Trivets are handy during sous vide cooking. Despite being a low temperature cooking method, you’ll want to protect your countertop from the heat and abrasions the rather heavy container of water can cause.
Walfos’ product doubles as a trivet and pot holder, providing protection to not only your counter top, but also your hands when you go to dump that hot container of water.
It’s constructed of silicone material, which is very lightweight and easy to clean. They’re a great accessory to have in the kitchen that will prove useful beyond sous vide cooking.
9. Sous Vide Machine
Less so an accessory, a sous vide machine (aka immersion circulator) is the crucial component to cooking the sous vide method. Thus, it’s important to ensure you have a high-quality one that accurately reads and regulates water temperature.
The most popular, and deservedly so, immersion circulators are the Anova Precision Cooker series and the Breville Joule Sous Vide Cooker.
- Perfect results every time: Never over or under cook your food again. The Anova Precision Cooker circulates water at the exact temperature required for perfectly cooked meals, no matter what’s on your menu. Use the Anova app to access thousands of free recipes and monitor your cook from anywhere via your smartphone.Power 1100 Watts.Power 1100 Watts
- What to cook: Sous vide (pronounced “sue-veed”) cooking offers the perfect level of doneness for nearly any food. Chicken, fish, vegetables, eggs, beef, lamb, pork and more are all ideal foods for sous vide. The ability to lock in flavor and moisture during the cooking process results in texture and taste that is second to none.
Last update on 2024-10-12 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
- Smallest, sleekest sous vide tool available at just 11 inches tall and 1.3 pounds, with streamlined white body and solid stainless steel cap & base.
- Saves space: Half the size of other sous vide machines, it's small enough to slip into a top drawer.
*For a more complete comparison of sous vide cookers find our review of the 10 best sous vide machines.
Final Thoughts
Though the only necessity in order to sous vide is a sous vide cooker, there are several accessories worth considering. These accessories will further your ability to consistently cook any delicious sous vide recipe you desire, while taking some pressure off your effort.
The two items I’d strongly suggest are a vacuum sealer and a cast iron skillet if you don’t already have one. Fortunately, both of these items can be used for much more than just sous vide.
Sous Vide Cooking Accessory FAQs
While a sous vide machine is all you need to sous vide, a vacuum sealer goes well beyond a nice-to-have. A cast-iron pan falls in the same category if you don’t already have one. Other notable accessories worth serious consideration are a sous vide container and a searing torch. Nice to haves include silicone gloves, sous vide weights or magnets, BPA free ping pong balls, a sous vide rack and trivets.
Food grade vacuum seal bags are ideal for sous vide because they foolproof removing air and tightly sealing.
Sous vide is very popular among chefs at both top-quality restaurants and chains like Chipotle.
Sous Vide Recipes
Hungry to cook something with your sous vide? Check out these sous vide recipes:
- Sous Vide Wagyu Steak Recipe
- Sous Vide Ribeye Steak Recipe
- Starbucks Sous Vide Egg Bites Bacon Gruyere Recipe
- Sous Vide Carrots Recipe
- Sous Vide Broccolini: Tender and Bright, Yet Crisp
