Sous vide cooking

[MTBake]

Anybody use one of these things to cook with? Any advice on where to start with it?

I was gifted one over the weekend for my birthday. I haven't used one or even seen one in action. Never researched them either.

Kinda looking for likes/dislikes. Perhaps a first dish to try, that type of stuff. Please share your experience if you've tried one.

And because every thread needs pics, here's the one I got...

 

[Butuz]

We have Anova, very similar. Love it, albeit we dont use it often. I would start with eggs! Just google sous vide eggs and you will see various temps for various finish consistency. You will impress all the skeptics with restaraunt quality eggs benedict. Just google for other recipes, download the app. Its actually very simple once you understand how they work. Bottom line, you cant overcook something if the temp is right, it equalizes whatever it cooks to the temp of the water. You can vacuum seal a chicken breast, drop it to 165F, go to work and come back to still perfectly juicy 165F chicken breast. Add butter and seasoning before you vacuum seal, marinates while cooking. Finally, for longer cooks, cover the pot so you dont lose water to evaporation.

 

[MTBake]

We have Anova, very similar. Love it, albeit we dont use it often. I would start with eggs! Just google sous vide eggs and you will see various temps for various finish consistency. You will impress all the skeptics with restaraunt quality eggs benedict. Just google for other recipes, download the app. Its actually very simple once you understand how they work. Bottom line, you cant overcook something if the temp is right, it equalizes whatever it cooks to the temp of the water. You can vacuum seal a chicken breast, drop it to 165F, go to work and come back to still perfectly juicy 165F chicken breast. Add butter and seasoning before you vacuum seal, marinates while cooking. Finally, for longer cooks, cover the pot so you dont lose water to evaporation.

Great idea starting with eggs! Thanks for that.

I was just reading about maintaining the water level. Had me wondering if an Aqua Smart micro ATO sensor can handle the temps, lol. An ATO for my sous vide pot! Doubt it can handle high temps though.

 

[dhof]

Anybody use one of these things to cook with? Any advice on where to start with it?

I was gifted one over the weekend for my birthday. I haven't used one or even seen one in action. Never researched them either.

Kinda looking for likes/dislikes. Perhaps a first dish to try, that type of stuff. Please share your experience if you've tried one.

And because every thread needs pics, here's the one I got...

I love to cook with sous vide. My recommendation is to download the Anova Culinary app, or the Joule App, and just follow their directions for various recipes. Generally speaking it is so phenomenal on steak/filet that I won't cook those by any other method. I like it for pork steak as well because I can get it 'well done' for the wife, but still have it tender and juicy. In my experience, chicken is better using the traditional cooking methods. Chicken is tender and moist when cooked sous vide, but the texture is a bit weird and I've given up on trying to make it work. I might consider sous vide for chicken that is going into a noodle dish or something but I wouldn't cook chicken in sous vide to eat directly on a plate. I've also given up on trying to get multiple steaks to a different level of done-ness. It's just too hard to accomplish various levels for various steaks. If someone wants a different level of done-ness than what I'm cooking they just have to go somewhere else and get it.

The key to making it a success is in the sear of the meat after the sous vide completes. This takes some trial and error. I have found taking the steak out of the bag and setting it on some paper towels and pressing more paper towels on top gets a majority of the water off the steak. I then uncover the steak for a few minutes and let it get as dry as possible from heat evaporation. You want the steak as dry as possible before you sear it. I have a cast-iron skillet as hot as possible by leaving it on a burner on the propane grill outside for 30-40 minutes and I throw the steaks on the super hot cast iron. The cast iron is so hot that putting your hand a few inches above it is painful in seconds. I immediately surround the steak on the cast-iron with small bits of butter that basically burn off immediately, but enough gets under the steak to create a nice char (something about needing the milk fat in butter to create a char). Whenever possible I use unsalted butter as that seems to burn less. If you do this inside, be prepared for every smoke alarm to go off. NO MORE than 30 seconds on each side will create a super char. I sometimes hold the steak vertically with some tongs to sear the fat on the edges as well. It's very easy to sear a medium rare steak to well done if you go longer than 20 or 30 seconds on a side. There is no need to let the steak sit for 5 minutes like traditional methods (it does not continue to cook further when you take it out like it does on the grill or oven). I have found that the steaks are so tender and juicy, and that the done-ness of the steak is more edge-to-edge than traditional cooking methods. This edge-to-edge uniformity of done-ness makes the person eating it to interpret it as less done than they are used to (i.e. a well-done sous vide is slightly pink from edge to edge, but the person is used to only a small sliver of slightly pink in the center when they have traditionally cooked steak, so they interpret it as 'more pink' than normal). I've also found that the steak is so juicy that the plate fills up with juice immediately when the steak is first cut. My last tip is that immediately after searing, I perform 5 or 6 slices of the steak before I put it on the plate (so that the juices escape on the cutting board and do not flood the plate)

 

[MTBake]

I love to cook with sous vide. My recommendation is to download the Anova Culinary app, or the Joule App, and just follow their directions for various recipes. Generally speaking it is so phenomenal on steak/filet that I won't cook those by any other method. I like it for pork steak as well because I can get it 'well done' for the wife, but still have it tender and juicy. In my experience, chicken is better using the traditional cooking methods. Chicken is tender and moist when cooked sous vide, but the texture is a bit weird and I've given up on trying to make it work. I might consider sous vide for chicken that is going into a noodle dish or something but I wouldn't cook chicken in sous vide to eat directly on a plate. I've also given up on trying to get multiple steaks to a different level of done-ness. It's just too hard to accomplish various levels for various steaks. If someone wants a different level of done-ness than what I'm cooking they just have to go somewhere else and get it.

The key to making it a success is in the sear of the meat after the sous vide completes. This takes some trial and error. I have found taking the steak out of the bag and setting it on some paper towels and pressing more paper towels on top gets a majority of the water off the steak. I then uncover the steak for a few minutes and let it get as dry as possible from heat evaporation. You want the steak as dry as possible before you sear it. I have a cast-iron skillet as hot as possible by leaving it on a burner on the propane grill outside for 30-40 minutes and I throw the steaks on the super hot cast iron. The cast iron is so hot that putting your hand a few inches above it is painful in seconds. I immediately surround the steak on the cast-iron with small bits of butter that basically burn off immediately, but enough gets under the steak to create a nice char (something about needing the milk fat in butter to create a char). Whenever possible I use unsalted butter as that seems to burn less. If you do this inside, be prepared for every smoke alarm to go off. NO MORE than 30 seconds on each side will create a super char. I sometimes hold the steak vertically with some tongs to sear the fat on the edges as well. It's very easy to sear a medium rare steak to well done if you go longer than 20 or 30 seconds on a side. There is no need to let the steak sit for 5 minutes like traditional methods (it does not continue to cook further when you take it out like it does on the grill or oven). I have found that the steaks are so tender and juicy, and that the done-ness of the steak is more edge-to-edge than traditional cooking methods. This edge-to-edge uniformity of done-ness makes the person eating it to interpret it as less done than they are used to (i.e. a well-done sous vide is slightly pink from edge to edge, but the person is used to only a small sliver of slightly pink in the center when they have traditionally cooked steak, so they interpret it as 'more pink' than normal). I've also found that the steak is so juicy that the plate fills up with juice immediately when the steak is first cut. My last tip is that immediately after searing, I perform 5 or 6 slices of the steak before I put it on the plate (so that the juices escape on the cutting board and do not flood the plate)

The tips on searing are super helpful! That was one of my main concerns going into this. Thanks a bunch

 

[wesman42]

You can narrow the description of sous vide cooking down without a bunch of cluttering adjectives.

1. Put (probably marinated) meat in vacuum sealed bag or ziplock bag.
2. Submerse to remove air.
3. Look up temperature and recipe via Google (*doesn't have to be a single brand's recipe)
4. You can sear the meat before OR after cooking, doesn't really matter.

A good rule of thumb is, the longer you cook it, the more tender the meat will become.

 

[WVNed]

I have an Anova. My favorite thing to cook with it is salmon.

What do you like to eat? We have done fish, chicken and beef with ours. Some tougher cuts of beef get cooked 24 hours and come out amazing.

 

[MTBake]

I have an Anova. My favorite thing to cook with it is salmon.

What do you like to eat? We have done fish, chicken and beef with ours. Some tougher cuts of beef get cooked 24 hours and come out amazing.

I was wondering how fish turned out with this. Does fish need to be seared off as well? Or sous vide it to the correct temp and serve? We eat a lot of fish and leaner meats.

 

[Salt1972]

Sous Vide is a game changer. We're Big Green Eggers and the sous vide is a GREAT addition. Typically, you'll see best results with tougher meats -- a flank steak or a pork chop that is difficult to cook to the correct temp and long enough to break down the connective tissues. A filet is good no matter how you cook it... a flank steak can be great sous vide.

On of our FAVORITE sous vide ventures is a pork shoulder / Boston butt. We sous vide for 20 hours at 160deg then apply dry rub and put on the Green Egg to 195deg. It's PERFECT.

Another is Prime Rib... true- that's good no matter how you do it, but sous vide gets it PERFECT EVERY TIME.

 

[MTBake]

Sous Vide is a game changer. We're Big Green Eggers and the sous vide is a GREAT addition. Typically, you'll see best results with tougher meats -- a flank steak or a pork chop that is difficult to cook to the correct temp and long enough to break down the connective tissues. A filet is good no matter how you cook it... a flank steak can be great sous vide.

On of our FAVORITE sous vide ventures is a pork shoulder / Boston butt. We sous vide for 20 hours at 160deg then apply dry rub and put on the Green Egg to 195deg. It's PERFECT.

Another is Prime Rib... true- that's good no matter how you do it, but sous vide gets it PERFECT EVERY TIME.

That beef looks good!

I have a Weber Smokey Mountain for smoking stuff. Really like it. Here's a pork butt I did overnight Saturday. 18 hours total on the smoker. I'll have to try it sous vide then smoked next time.

 

[WVNed]

I was wondering how fish turned out with this. Does fish need to be seared off as well? Or sous vide it to the correct temp and serve? We eat a lot of fish and leaner meats.

You can do whatever. I never use canned salmon. I sous vide a piece and break is up for salmon patties. One of my wife's favorite things.
I serve it straight from the bag with wild rice or I finish it in a cast iron skillet.
Anything you would use cooked chicken in comes out great instead of dry and stringy. Homemade chicken salad for example.

You throw the bag away and dry the pot and put it away.

 

[hart24601]

I use mine a couple times a week. Beef mostly but also chicken, turkey breast, shrimp and scallops. Leaner cuts of beef I like 128, fatter ones 133-135 to render the fat more. Rosemary added to the bag really imparts a lot of flavor and I sear a lot with a torch.

I like turkey at 142. Lots of good reading about lower temps for poultry but done for a longer time for the same bacterial reduction.


My favorite cut of steak now is flank steak with what you can do with the sous vide. Of course it's still fun to get a 2" porterhouse and know you will cook it perfectly.

 

[MTBake]

You can do whatever. I never use canned salmon. I sous vide a piece and break is up for salmon patties. One of my wife's favorite things.
I serve it strait from the bag with wild rice or I finish it in a cast iron skillet.
Anything you would use cooked chicken in comes out great instead of dry and stringy. Homemade chicken salad for example.

You throw the bag away and dry the pot and put it away.

Again, thanks for the tips!

Going to try some eggs tonight just to get this thing wet

Got some trout in the freezer that I'll most likely try tomorrow.

I fish. A lot. I keep most of what I catch and eat it then and there or freeze it for later use. I already have a food saver, so vacuum sealing is like second nature to me.

 

[MTBake]

I use mine a couple times a week. Beef mostly but also chicken, turkey breast, shrimp and scallops. Leaner cuts of beef I like 128, fatter ones 133-135 to render the fat more. Rosemary added to the bag really imparts a lot of flavor and I sear a lot with a torch.

I like turkey at 142. Lots of good reading about lower temps for poultry but done for a longer time for the same bacterial reduction.


My favorite cut of steak now is flank steak with what you can do with the sous vide. Of course it's still fun to get a 2" porterhouse and know you will cook it perfectly.

I'll admit that I was hesitant to start this thread. What are chances of sous vide cooks here on R2R was the thought I had.

Really glad I started this though. Lots of good tips and cooking ideas coming through!

Thanks for the input for sure!

Keep it coming guys.

 

[WVNed]

I used to use mine a lot. I have slacked off. You have to plan your meals ahead and my life has been get the cast iron very hot and throw something in it lately.
You can have a rare hamburger. It will be sterile and safe from the heat and time.
You can cook a really thick steak to rare and then blast it in a cast iron skillet. You can also cook one to well done and not dry it out to shoe leather.
It is a fantastic tool for cooking.

 

[MTBake]

I finally had time to use my sous vide!

Made some eggs just to try it. I'm liking it so far. Going to try a small pork roast tomorrow.

The eggs came out pretty much perfect. I was impressed!