Can You Get Microplastics from Sous Vide? What Every Mom Should Know
I’ve been digging into a question that might be on your mind too: Can sous vide cooking introduce microplastics into our food? Spoiler alert: yes, it can. But don’t panic just yet—let me break down the science in mom-friendly terms so you can make smart choices at home.
Sous vide cooking means sealing your food in plastic bags and gently cooking it at controlled temperatures—usually for hours. When these plastic bags get heated, especially above about 65°C (149°F), the plastic can start to break down a bit. This process is called polymer degradation (basically, the plastic’s molecules start to loosen up). When that happens, tiny bits of plastic—microplastics—and chemical additives can leach into your food. For example, a study showed that fish cooked sous vide had an average of 1.27 microplastic particles per gram, and hotter temps meant more breakdown. If you geek out on the details, check out the study here and a thorough discussion on microplastic release here.
Now, before you swear off your sous vide forever (pun intended), remember — microplastics are literally everywhere: in water, air, and lots of foods we eat. So sous vide is just one small piece of the whole “forever chemicals” puzzle we’re all facing.
Sous Vide Without Microplastics? What Are Your Options?
Here’s the reality check: no plastic bag is completely free from generating microplastics when heat’s involved. All plastics can eventually degrade into teeny particles. But most sous vide bags are made from high-quality, food-grade polyethylene — which is designed to handle those gentle sous vide temps and minimize nasty chemical leaching. These bags are usually free of BPA, phthalates, and those sneaky hormone-disrupting forever chemicals we moms want to avoid like the plague.
Want to take it up a notch? Reusable silicone bags might just be your new best friend. Silicone is more chemically stable and inert compared to plastic, making it way less likely to send microplastics or harmful chemicals into your food during sous vide cooking. Science is still catching up on chemical migration from silicone at sous vide temps, but these bags are gaining serious traction among health-conscious families like ours. For more on this, check out this great resource from SousVideKenner.
My Go-To Tips for PFAS Free Sous Vide and Cutting Down Microplastics
- Stick with high-quality, food-grade, BPA-free polyethylene sous vide bags. These are built for sous vide temps and help keep chemical leaching low.
- Avoid cheap everyday plastic bags for sous vide, especially at higher heat. Those are more likely to break down and release microplastics.
- Try reusable silicone bags as a way to sous vide without microplastics—or at least with fewer.
- If you’re super worried about microplastic exposure, consider limiting sous vide use. Steaming or roasting are great alternatives that don’t involve plastic contact.
- Keep yourself updated on PFAS and other harmful chemicals by using trusted databases like the PFAS Free Life Database.
In a nutshell: yes, sous vide can introduce some microplastics into your meal—but using the right bags or silicone alternatives can help keep your family safer. Compared to all the other ways microplastics sneak into our lives every day, sous vide is probably a minor player. Still, as a savvy science-loving mom, I believe these small precautions are worth it to dodge those forever chemicals and keep our plates—and our planet—clean.