Being forced to try Sous Vide

JacksBBQ said:
I've got one and I use it mostly for reheating full briskets I need to cook ahead of events. After taking the briskets off the smoker, I let them rest on the counter until they cool down to around 145 or so and then put them a food saver bag and seal them up. They then go into an ice bath and then into the fridge until whatever event I'm cooking for. To reheat, I fill a cooler up with water and set the temp to around 165 with the sous vide. Once the water comes up to temp, I throw the briskets in there for around two hours and then take them out and slice them up. Every brisket I've reheated this way has turned out awesome.

All the steaks I've done with it usually turn out really good too.
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It's a great method...I just haven't gone through the trouble of writing a HACCP plan for the vac sealing or the sous vide...which, of course, commercial business are required to do. I'll get around to it one day.
 
Smokie185 said:
Season up some chicken breasts, bag 'em and cook at 140F for 2.5 hours. Pull them out and cool for a bit sear quickly. Best chicken ever.

Check out some you tube videos...plenty out there.
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Wouldn't 140 be severely undercooked? I've spend days before curled up on bathroom floors from chicken.
 
Rockinar said:
Wouldn't 140 be severely undercooked? I've spend days before curled up on bathroom floors from chicken.
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I got attacked by a Big Mac one time, it won. That was the sickest I have ever been so I am cautious.

It is fully cooked. Most say to kill bacteria, you need to go to 165 which squeezes out all of the moisture but at lower temps the proteins don't constrict as much, retaining moisture.

However, you need to cook long enough to pasteurize the meat which kills all of the harmful bacteria.

Here is a pretty good guide.

https://anovaculinary.com/anova-sous-vide-time-temperature-guide/
 
Did a ginormous T-bone last night ... Straight out the freezer and into the SV @ 135 for 2.5 hours. Gave it a healthy dusting of Oakridge Santa Maria. Seared off on a 19yo Weber gasser ... couple minutes a side. Outstanding. Give it a shot, it's a great tool! No shame, no regrets!
 
The Sous Vide Supreme is a first rate 3 gallon cheese vat. Perfect temperature control. Pair it with a perforated half pan and you have a Cheddar Factory.

Have not tried it with meat yet.
 
My opinion of sous vide steaks is that they can produce technically perfect results. And my "technically", I mean exactly the same doneness edge to edge and a great crust is easy to attain in a cast iron pan. You can make a very good steak with the SV method. However, I feel that while they can be technically perfect steaks, they lack some character that a wood or grill fired steak possesses. There are times for me the convenience factor outweighs the result from cooking that steak on a grill, but all else equal I prefer grilled beef over a fire.

I use my SV often, but 4 out of 5 times it's to reheat barbecue that I've previously cooked and vacuum sealed as opposed to cooking a piece of meat with it. It's worth having just for that function alone.
 
@rockinar If you're interested, there is a FB group called Exploring Sous Vide. (This is not a FB ad, I hate FB) Jason Logsdon does a webinar on sous vide I've read that's pretty good. But today he is doing a live Q&A on the FB page.
 
My favorite use for it has been to ferment sausages. It has been great on that front.
 
I totally agree with all the praise and criticisms everyone has given so far. I have a few recommendations:

On youtube, Sous Vide Everything is a wonderful experiment sous vide channel. I also really like watching Chef Steps.

In terms of internet content, you need to read up on Serious Eats. They have really wonderful comparisons of done-ness at each temperature for any given meat.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned fish. Salmon comes out more perfectly than anything I've ever had.

If I had to give one piece of advice it would be: don't stop experimenting until you find a killer dish.

There are so many options from breakfast food, to sides, to meat, to desserts that all come out great with enough experimentation. :thumb:
 
Love my Anova, my favorite cook is boneless skinless chicken breast with salt and pepper and a cold pat of butter then vac seal and into 145 degree bath for 2 hours, no need to sear is tender juicy and the flavor is amazing, it's what chicken breast should be.
 
Quick question...I know I'm getting one for xmas (I ordered it)...when vacuum sealing, you don't really need to take all the air out of the bag, do you? Since if you have potential liquid in the bag, it would get sucked up into the sealer itself. I know you'd want to get as much air out so it doesn't float, but do you need to completely evacuate the air? Thanks!!
 
You don't need to vacuum seal, just get a heavy duty freezer bag, add your protein, seasonings and fat/marinade then slowly lower the bag into your water sealing after your protein goes under water and it will squeeze out 99% of the air. I would vacuum seal if you were going to bag your protein and freeze for use later.

Another tip - You can start with hot water in your pot, container, cooler, etc. I can't believe how many people bitch about their wand not getting up to temp quickly, just start with hot water! The water is just a medium for heat.

Common sense...…...where have you gone....
 
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