Merridith

CtznCane, I buy bags off the Internet through a couple of different sites depending on the special they are having at the time. All you need to know is that they will work with FoodSaver type machines (channel vacs). When I first started doing this I emailed the different sites and they sent me samples to try. I get the bags for about 20-30 cents each depending on the size and the deal they are running on shipping. I prefer bags to rolls because it is less tedious when I am vac packing big qualities of foods. Food Saver bags and rolls are much more costly and the "off brands" I buy work just as well. When I vac pac anything for any purpose, I try to get as much air out as possible. Air in the bag for SV cooking requires that the bag is submerged and air makes this a challenge - even with the rack that comes with the SVS machine, air in the bag makes keeping the food under water a big struggle. As for spices dry rubs are GREAT. You have to experiment and find your personal preference but salt is always needed. I use granulated garlic like Chris (Penzeys has the best IMHO). For really strong things such as fresh rosemary, you may want to be light handed but with other things (cumin for example) bring it on. SV cooking is a big adventure - just be brave. The thing about raw garlic and olive oil being problematic is easy to work around. Otherwise you can spice liberally or not as your taste dictates.

Thank you a million times thank you. I enjoyed every post and I appreciate the time you took to do this for us. I would love to know about the raw al hanout nuts. Happy new year!!!

Boy do I agree. Every day I have learned something(s) from you Chris. Oh, and I totally enjoyed the photos of the seafood and the beautiful plates of oysters. It made me want to get on the next plane to RI to try them all! Can't wait to see all the party food. Thanks again for all these truly blogalicious days.

Sorry about that. Here is the recipe for FIG AND BLUE CHEESE SAVORY COOKIES adapted from Food 52 Makes about 3 dozen 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 4 ounces mild blue cheese, crumbled Ground black pepper Fig preserves, about 3 Tablespoons 1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2.Place the flour, butter, blue cheese and a few grinds of black pepper in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the dough just comes together and starts to form a ball. 3.Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times to pull the dough together. Roll out to 1/8 inch thick with a floured rolling pin. Cut rounds out of the dough with a floured 1-inch cutter and transfer the rounds to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Alternatively, you can roll the dough into some 1" logs, put it in the fridge for a while and then cut slices 1/8 to 1/4 inches. 4.Using the back or a round half-teaspoon measure or your knuckle, make an indention in the top of each dough round. Place about ¼ teaspoon of fig preserves into each indention. 5.Bake the savories for 10 – 14 minutes, until the preserves are bubbling and the pastry is light golden on the bottom. 6.Let cool on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool. 7.You can make these a day ahead and keep them in two layers separated by waxed paper in an airtight container. They also freeze well and can be served after sitting at room temp for a short while. AND here is the recipe for CHEDDAR THUMBPRINTS adapted from Food 52 makes about 48 12 ounces grated extra sharp cheddar cheese 4.5 ounces unsalted butter 1.5 cups all purpose flour .5 cups toasted pecans, chopped finely 4 ounces hot pepper jelly, habanero jelly, or other onion jelly 1.Put cheese and butter in the bowl of your food processor and pulse a few times. Add flour and pulse until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Remove from g bowl and form dough into a disk. Chill well. (Or freeze for an hour.) 2.Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment or Silpat sheets. 3.Remove dough from the refrigerator and break off 1 teaspoon sized pieces and form into little balls. 4.Roll the cookie ball around in the pecans and then place them about 1" apart on the baking sheet, smushing slightly so they dont roll around. 5.Slide the baking sheets into the oven for five minutes, remove them from the oven and poke a little indentation into each cookie with the end of a wooden spoon or a small dowel. Put a tiny spoonful of the jelly in the indentation. 6.Return the cookies back to the oven and bake until the tops are very lightly browned, about 10 minutes. 7.Cool on the sheet on a rack. These cookies will keep for three days. Store them in layers between wax paper. Can be frozen and served after a brief rest at room temperature.

I made some savory "cookies" this week - the recipe I picked up here and here. They were wonderful, easy to do ahead and very unusual. You have to put up a sign on the table to tell people they are not sweets. They freeze well and are great to take out of the freezer when you need a party snack in a hurry. Sorry, not gluten free.

I do the ziploc method & I mark notes on the vac pacs inside. I have taken to vac packing (food saver, nothing fancy) these little bits and pieces because they tend to sit around for a long time before I get inspired for their use. By using the food saver, they keep for much longer. Also, I have different shelves and drawers in my freezer and I try to keep things together - such as frozen veggies, all in one area; different demi-glaces in another, etc. You end up with lots of bits and pieces when you cure meat so I have tons of little packages of smoked pig skin, bacon scraps, guanciale scraps, etc. I also like to save the bag juices from my SV experiments, if I don't use them for a sauce for the meat I just cooked. I have the bag juice from some pulled pork just waiting for a good winter gumbo or maybe a cajun style shrimp dish? I am terrible at keeping lists, spread sheets, etc.

Good morning to everyone. I have been up doing the day's routine (feed, play with dog, mostly). We had a nice quied christmas eve - I made the SV lobster tail with a preserved lemon risotto (flavored with the bag juice from the lobster). It needed a sauce but I had too much going on. I was working on marshmallows, peppermint bark and other things for my dinner on the 27th (this is OUR family dinner). Today it is what I call "a Dierberg's Christmas." That is where my MIL goes to the local grocery and buys all the prepared crap she sees and feeds it to the guests for dinner. Needless to say, she knows nothing about food. Anyway, it is fun to visit with all the distant relatives and great to enjoy the kids with all their new stuff! Chris, I have really been enjoying this thread - I keep sneaking off to the computer to see what is going on. Sorry about the ice cream. Thank you for sharing because we can ALL learn from each others successes and errors. Finally OMG...those cinnamon rolls make me really want to live next door to you!

Not enough milk?

In addition to being a rennaisance man, you are brave. You are apparently not worried that all that good custard will come out of the pouch.

I am about to SV my first lobster tail. Any thoughts, hints, etc.? I am planning on 60C for 1 hour (my tail is out of the shell - 1 pound). I put a stick of butter in there.

I'm thinking cardamom flavored bread pudding for those prunes...

:blink: Well I am embarassed to say that I have NOT done an ice cream base. The closest I have come is French style custardy eggs and let me tell you the crowd went absolutely wild. The back story on the ice cream: we don't eat the stuff (gasp). My husband has a lactose intolerance and I have a big fat person inside of me constantly trying to get out!

What temp and for how long did you cook that amazing pulled pork? Are you making fresh tortillas for that?

Yes, I would agree - I lived in California for 25 years and got spoiled BIG TIME. Artichokes were never bad there. Now, in Missouri, I have to be very picky and accept that they have a short, short season during which time they are good.

Artichokes were one of the earliest "exotic" foods I was introduced to by my mother who, even in the 1960's, knew that fresh and seasonal was the formula for the best food. Never buy one if the leaves are curling in on themself, the edges are browning or it feels "dry." Look for tight/compact construction, a good solid feel and a sense of plenty of moisture. Artichokes, if kept at the right temp, have a fairly long shelf life. Also, size matters - small and scrawny are no good. Then again, they don't have to be giant and I have had more misses with these than with the reasonable sized ones. Small in artichokes works only if they are really "baby" chokes. A great way to prepare them and to help to avoid over cooking is to scrape out the choke before you put them in the water. I like to stuff them with butter and parm cheese. Also, they are yummy if you undercook them slightly, then quarter them, douse them well in olive oil and sea salt and cook them the rest of the way on your grill.

Anyone ever do a boneless leg of lamb SV? It is about 90mm round at the largest point. bagging it with a nice generous rub of rosemary, sea salt, and maybe some raj al hanout? Alternatively, some minced fresh mint and parsely, seasoned with a little granulated garlic and made in to a paste with some dijon mustard? I am thinking 54C for 20 hours or so? (My circulator is incredibly stable and accurate, varying by .1C up or down and I would like the meat a little on the rare side of medium rare.) Douglas does not mention lamb in his primer so I assume it can be treated like beef? Thanks all. JBailey, I would be very hesitant to SV a prime rib. That is a cut that is usually beautifully tender and lends itself to slow roasting in an oven where the fat can render/soften a bit and keep the meat bathed in flavor. I will be very interested to know what you decide and how it turns out.

Thanks Chris for pointing out that wonderful post from busboy and thank you for enriching my day. I truly had fun following you on day one. What a lovely holiday gift. See you tomorrow!

I wonder, if you don't use a circulator (i.e. you are using something like a PID'd rice cooker), can you forgo the bagging and just cook them in the water? I imagine the result was very good but honestly I think most people are barbarians when it comes to mashed, never having seemed to have good ones. And even then, they'll say "wow, these are fantastic, best I ever had" followed shortly by "that is too much trouble" 'cause they got no respect for good mashed (or a good burger or a few other things); even in the face of better, they still will settle for less because it is "just" mashed. Ok, I stop before I hit full rant mode.... I learned all I know from Jackal's great potato primer mentioned here.

Chris, I share your love of Charcuterie. Once you cure your own bacon, it is difficult to eat any other! I have lust in my heart for your slicer. You must have a real knack for scoring great old stuff. On the duck breasts, are you making ham or prosciutto from these? How are you smoking them? On the subject of duck, I have 6 leg/thigh portions from Moulard ducks that I just made confit of (using the circulator). I have NO IDEA what to do with them next...I would like to make some kind of dish as a course for my christmas dinner but I am having 18 people. Any suggestions?

Easy way to make spaetzle with out the machine is to find a tool with holes about three times the size of the ones in the sugar/cocoa dredge. The holes need to be about 2mm or so(?). Press the spaetzle dough through the holes, kind of like using a grater (in fact, thats what the spaetzle maker looks a lot like), and voila. I think that Marian Rombauer Becker describes this method in the Joy of Cooking. I will look it up but I am pretty sure this is where I learned to make it that way. You could also use your Moulinex (you know, a food mill thingy) if you have a blade with reasonably large holes. I have even used my potato ricer for this purpose, though this takes a very strong arm and they come out a little fine. Look here to get an idea of what it is.

I agree completely. My favorite SV'd things after a year of playing, have been the meats I refer to as "well exercised." For instance, pulled pork made from the picnic is superb and has totally replaced my crock pot version. I also made a "deconstructed beef stew" from a chuch roast that had the eyes of my guests rolling back into their heads. Keep in mind, however, that I do not use any commercially (intensively) produced meat: all is purchased directly from my local farmers. Good quality meat, just like all ingredients, is an essential and HUGE factor for successful SV cooking (as it is for all cooking, I feel). One last thing: I made retrograde mashed potatoes (after learning about them here) using Yukon Golds for Thanksgiving. I used the circulator to fix the starch and people told me that I had ruined them for all other mashed potatoes for the rest of their lives. Crazy, eh?

I did NOT know about this book but I find their books to be excellent references and also they have many very good recipes to use as guides (though I nearly always make adjustments). I own their Garde Manger books which covers some charcuterie in a very useful a number of recipes with left out steps or ingredients throughout their books (I also have Baking and Pastry and Cooking. I will definitely buy this book!

I think that when we all start to experiment with SV cooking we think we are going to use it for everything and that it will/should be a miracle maker in the kitchen. But really, when you think about it, food cooked in this manner is only as good as the cook creating it and the ingredients they use. A chef friend of mine says "try using the stove." SV is just another method in our arsenal and it is not right for everything. Personally, I would never cook a hangar steak SV - they are naturally juicy and delicious and,from a high quality cow, it should be very well marbled and quite tender. On the other hand, I have to agree with others here that SV cooked short ribs are a culinary revelation. But this is true only if one chooses the temp correctly, trims the meat really well and uses seasonings that lift and enhance the natural flavor of the meat. I am sure I am not saying anything that is original here. To me, the greatest benefit of SV cooking is seen with tougher, "cheaper" cuts of meat. But that having been said, it is still very important (and makes a HUGE difference) to use high quality product. Perhaps the word "cheaper" should be abandoned for "well exercised" or just say tougher and leave it at that. I only use grass-fed, pastured, all natural meats and poultry which I buy direct from the farmer. As for fish, I cannot say - I have yet to find SV cooked fish that I prefer, unless it is fish that is best poached.

WOW what a great thing to know! Thank you. Is one kind of potato better to use that another? I often use a mixture of waxy (red or yellow) with your basic Russet to get the consistency I want but I do this mostly to avoid that "glue" effect. EDIT: Thanks for the link to the potato primer. I will read it all. I never met a potato I didn't like!

Ok, I admit it, I am the dummy....what are "retrograde starch mashed potatoes?" I have done potatoes sous vide at 80C for about 2 hours. I used yellow/waxy ones. They are GREAT for later use on the griddle but otherwise, they were too solid to mash or puree.