Sous vide cooking - anyone have exp cooking this way? (1 Viewer)

[boots11234]

Ok I just purchased a sous vide cooking machine and was wondering if any other fbg have cooked this way? I've read lots of top restaurants use this method and the results are fantastic. For the uneducated basically you vacuum seal your food say steak in a bag then cook it in water to desired temp. So if you like medium rare steak, cook it to 132 degrees and the whole steak will come out medium rare from end to end. You then give it a quick sear. It basically allows you to never over cook anything because you control the water temp.

Anyone?

 

[snitwitch]

I have played around with it once in a commercial kitchen (eggs), and am really thinking of getting a home unit, as they're finally affordable enough to justify.

I've also eaten steaks and turkey cooked sous vide, both were superb.

There are food safety issues to consider given the low temps, and you need to make sure you have a solid vacuum sealing solution.

I'd surf around on the egullet forums. Years ago, Nathan Myrvolds was very active there and he's basically the guy responsible for popularizing sous vide in the US: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/136274-sous-vide-index/ -- the forum has apparently gone downhill over the last few years, but there's probably a ton of info there you'd find valuable.

 

[boots11234]

I have played around with it once in a commercial kitchen (eggs), and am really thinking of getting a home unit, as they're finally affordable enough to justify.

I've also eaten steaks and turkey cooked sous vide, both were superb.

There are food safety issues to consider given the low temps, and you need to make sure you have a solid vacuum sealing solution.

I'd surf around on the egullet forums. Years ago, Nathan Myrvolds was very active there and he's basically the guy responsible for popularizing sous vide in the US: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/136274-sous-vide-index/ -- the forum has apparently gone downhill over the last few years, but there's probably a ton of info there you'd find valuable.

I've been on that forum thanks. I read that it can make lesser cuts of steak taste fantastic, is that your understanding too? The machine I got was 749 on amazon, probably more then I need but my FFB winnings thus far cover it.

 

[VA703]

guy on master chef a few seasons back swore by it. I think he even won that season

 

[snitwitch]

I have played around with it once in a commercial kitchen (eggs), and am really thinking of getting a home unit, as they're finally affordable enough to justify.

I've also eaten steaks and turkey cooked sous vide, both were superb.

There are food safety issues to consider given the low temps, and you need to make sure you have a solid vacuum sealing solution.

I'd surf around on the egullet forums. Years ago, Nathan Myrvolds was very active there and he's basically the guy responsible for popularizing sous vide in the US: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/136274-sous-vide-index/ -- the forum has apparently gone downhill over the last few years, but there's probably a ton of info there you'd find valuable.

I've been on that forum thanks. I read that it can make lesser cuts of steak taste fantastic, is that your understanding too? The machine I got was 749 on amazon, probably more then I need but my FFB winnings thus far cover it.

I think it's a very gentle way to cook meat, and given that it's hard to overcook things (as the temp you cook at is equal to your target temp), you have a much wider margin for error when cooking "lesser" or tougher cuts of meat. Only thing you need to do after sous vide-ing is sear.

You can also add herbs, cooking liquids, etc... to the bag.

 

[sbonomo]

I really want to pull the trigger on one of these for cooking fish. Steaks, to me, need to have the flavor of the grill....i have tried duck, pork and fish prepared at restaurants using this technique with varying levels of success. To me the fish works the best. Very interested to hear others experience....

 

[Chaos Commish]

I was going to buy from Dr Eades a few years ago and completely forgot. Thanks for this thread. My ff winnings won't cover squat until next week's results but I am looking good.

 

[snitwitch]

So my wife's siblings chipped in and got me this bad boy for xmas:http://anovaculinary.com/

I've ordered a foodsaver vacuum sealer direct from foodsaver (there are coupon codes out there, ended up costing me around $150 all-in): http://www.foodsaver.com/vacuum-sealers/T000-18003.html#start=22&sz=12 -- the gold standard for sous vide sealers is apparently a "chamber" model, but those are upwards of $350 for the cheapest home devices. The foodsaver one I got seems to be good for sous vide because it has a moisture detector and seal button, which make including liquids in your bag a lot easier as compared to cheaper vacuum sealers. The only thing it can't do well is "compress" vegetables for sous vide cooking (the chamber sealers do this well apparently)

So at some point over the next week I'm going to dive into this cooking method.

Wondering what I should do first? Anyone given this style of cooking a shot?

Seems like short ribs really benefit from a 48-72 hour cook -- and you can target different textures / internal colors with shorter cooks. 8 examples here: http://www.chefsteps.com/activities/short-ribs-time-and-temp

Also considering playing around with eggs at first: http://www.fitbomb.com/2011/07/lucky-peachs-egg-chart.html

It seems like there is a whole 'nother universe of food safety information that's helpful to know for sous vide. I purchased this book which seems to get recommended often: http://www.amazon.com/Sous-Vide-Home-Cook-cookbook/dp/0984493603

The author has a website with a lot of the same info: http://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html

 

[snitwitch]

Oh, another thing you need to consider is imparting the maillard reaction after the cook. I have a butane blowtorch that I plan to employ to sear red meat, but apparently for poultry / pork cooked sous vide, you're better off searing off in a pan. Not sure about fish yet.

Some recommend a blowtorch / sear before dropping it in the bag, to kill off surface bacteria, in addition to a finishing sear once the cook is done.

 

[Vrana]

I've really wanted to jump on board with this for awhile... but I have my concerns.

Is cooking something in a bag of plastic really safe? I don't microwave my food in plastic, so how can it be safe to slowly heat up my food in plastic?

Any research been done on this?

 

[BroadwayG]

What if you like your steak 250 degrees?

 

[VA703]

please keep me updated... I am very interested

 

[snitwitch]

I've really wanted to jump on board with this for awhile... but I have my concerns.

Is cooking something in a bag of plastic really safe? I don't microwave my food in plastic, so how can it be safe to slowly heat up my food in plastic?

Any research been done on this?

I think if you get the correct bags it's not an issue (graded for food safety / BPA free, etc....) These guys seem to be a good purveyor: http://www.thevakshack.com/Vacuum_Sealer_Bags.html

remember that you're cooking at relatively low temperatures -- I even think ziploc bags are OK at such low temps. eGullett forum should have more info

 

[snitwitch]

What if you like your steak 250 degrees?

I think sous vide maxes out at around 200 - 210. For a 250 degree steak, set your oven for 250 and leave the steak in there for 1-2 days. HTH.

 

[BroadwayG]

What if you like your steak 250 degrees?

I think sous vide maxes out at around 200 - 210. For a 250 degree steak, set your oven for 250 and leave the steak in there for 1-2 days. HTH.

I could do that at 132 degrees also. Why bother with sue's vide?

 

[snitwitch]

What if you like your steak 250 degrees?

I think sous vide maxes out at around 200 - 210. For a 250 degree steak, set your oven for 250 and leave the steak in there for 1-2 days. HTH.

I could do that at 132 degrees also. Why bother with sue's vide?

Most home ovens don't get below 170. And if you cook something using 132 ambient temp, the middle is never going to get above 132. So, to cook a steak to 250, you need to use 250 or higher as your cooking temp.

 

[snitwitch]

ok for my first cook i did some eggs this morning. 13 minutes in a 167F water bath. i ate one and shocked the rest in ice water to eat later. will warm those up in a 140F bath. egg was incredible, tasted like custard!

linky http://imgur.com/a/L3pHT

 

[snitwitch]

Played around with this some more over the long weekend:

1. Salmon filets, water bath temp of 128F for 25 minutes with a little butter and soy sauce in the bag. Perfect medium rare / medium throughout. Seared with torch afterwards, and served the crispy skin on top (baked skin between parchment paper and a silpat, weighted, for 45 minutes in oven, then seared with torch). Would have gone lower bath temp had the fish been of higher quality. Perfectly done for most of our dinner guests, one guy thought it was too squishy (but he's a picky eater).

2. Short Ribs, 48 hours at a water temp of 140F degrees. Nothing else in the bag except the ribs. Seared these with the torch as well (though in retrospect, I think a pan sear with some fat or a quick grill would have been better). Texture was something you can't really achieve any other way -- somewhere between a steak and a braised piece of meat. Perfectly pink throughout. The fat doesn't render at such low temps, which was sort of off-putting for my wife. You really need to trim away as much fat and gristle if you're going to sous vide at temps this low. Might try for a 130F cook for 72 hours next time for these...

 

[Ignoramus]

What if you like your steak 250 degrees?

I think sous vide maxes out at around 200 - 210. For a 250 degree steak, set your oven for 250 and leave the steak in there for 1-2 days. HTH.

I could do that at 132 degrees also. Why bother with sue's vide?

Could you bake a straight-line pizza at 132 degrees, too? Asking for a friend.