pbear

This is a bit strange. Although sold out on their own website, the Sansaire is now being offered at Sur la Table. Saw it today, at least half a dozen units on the table and who knows how many in the stock room.

Of course. Bumbles I no longer recall why I call these bumbles but the name stuck. They make a great party snack and are good with soup. As mentioned, they're simply American-style biscuits done bite-sized. 4 c all purpose flour 4 tsp baking powder 1 tsp salt 2/3 c lard and/or vegetable shortening 1-1/2 c buttermilk (or sour milk) 2 tbsp whole milk (or buttermilk) Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture has texture of cornmeal. Add buttermilk all at once; stir quickly just until dough follows fork around bowl. Knead dough gently, 10 to 12 strokes. Roll out 1/2 inch thick; cut into 3/4 inch squares and roll into balls; place on parchment lined or lightly greased baking sheet. Brush with whole milk. Bake in 425 degree oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. May be frozen; thaw, then reheat 5 to 10 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Variations: With the buttermilk, add 2 c grated cheddar (8 oz) (reduce shortening to 1/2 c) and/or 8 slices bacon (8 oz) (chopped, sauteed and drained) or 8 oz breakfast sausage (crumbled, sauteed and drained). Or, add 2 tbsp caraway seeds or 4 tbsp chopped fresh sage, thyme or other herb.

I suggest bumbles, which is my term for small, bite-sized biscuits. Easy to make, easy to store and easy to reheat. Can be as simple or complex as you wish. Complex meaning incorporating herbs, bacon, cheese, etc.

In addition to the heat transfer factor, consider that the cage protects the bags from physical damage by the circulator.

Bear in mind that the "vegetable protein stabilizer" probably is soy based. Indeed, if it isn't, I don't see how they can get away with labeling the product as soy sauce. Whether it's "real" soy sauce is a different issue. My understanding, based on an article I read a few years ago but couldn't locate just now in a quick Google search, is that U.S. regulators draw the line at soy-based rather than naturally fermented vs. hydrolyzed.

With respect, no. You might as well object, as perhaps you do, to the American usage of entrée. Personally, I prefer the term low temp over sous vide. See Post #16. But, the latter is common usage and calling it wrong is, well, wrong,.

FWIW, I raised a similar concern a few days ago in the Anova thread. JoNorvelleWalker posted that she has tested between clumped bags and found the water stays at the set temp. Meanwhile, in another thread, KennethT reports that he tested temp below bags resting on the bottom of a water bath and again found no problem. In other words, it seems we're making much ado about nothing. Circulation and the naturally efficient heat transfer of water does the trick. If you want to be absolutely certain, put a flat rack in the bottom of the bath and use a vertical rack or other procedure (e.g., the one gfweb suggests) to keep the bags separated and away from the sides. I do this because I can, easily, but it isn't necessary and isn't standard practice in commercial kitchens.

Thanks, all, for the responses. Your test, Jo, is particularly illuminating and probably explains why I've seen no discussion of the issue.

If you want to pursue stove-top low temp cooking, I'd strongly recommend you get a heat diffuser. You want the two-layer type, e.g., this one available from Amazon, which dissipates heat, as opposed to the thick single-layer type which merely spreads it out. With a two-layer heat diffuser, you're creating a stable heat-in, heat-out environment which doesn't depend on retaining heat as does the cooler method. Also, it's small, cheap and useful for general simmering (which, indeed, is its original purpose).

Got my Anova about a month ago. This is my third low temp unit, so the Anova hasn’t gotten as much of a workout as it would if it were my first. (The other two are an Auber PID-controller I use with a 6 qt slow cooker and a Sous Vide Supreme, both of which are still going strong.) I will say I’m seriously impressed with the design and engineering of the Anova. Solid construction, easy to set up and use, reasonably quiet, and holds the set temp perfectly (according to my Thermapen). That said, I’ve noticed something which bugs me. To be fair, this may have little or nothing to do with the Anova as such but rather be a characteristic of circulators in general. What I notice is that, depending on buoyancy, bags tend to do one of two things: sink to the bottom of the bath or cluster against the sleeve (which, of course, is the intake for the circulator). ISTM the effect of either tendency should be to reduce the efficiency of heat transfer. That is, bags on the bottom will be heating mostly from the top side only, whereas clustered bags will be insulating each other and/or impeding the flow of water around them. By contrast, the SVS uses a rack system which keeps the bags off the bottom and separated from each other. Even without a circulator, the SVS system seems to me more efficient.. (The issue doesn’t arise with the PID controller, as I use that only for large pieces of meat in one piece and place a silicone hotpad with ridges in the slow cooker to act as a sort of bottom rack.) So, I have several questions. First, do others observe the same phenomena with the Anova and other circulators? Second, do you worry about it and, if not, why not? Third, is there some trick to set-up that I’m overlooking? I’ve tried the Anova in a 12 qt stockpot, a 16 qt and even the SVS (used as just a bath). I’ve tried every configuration I can think of for directing the circulator output. No matter what I do, I get sinking or clustering. Suggestions? Fourth, is the solution to replicate the SVS rack system? It’s the only thing I’ve found that works. As it happens, the 16 qt stockpot is also my water bath canner, so I have a bottom rack for it. Also, I have an extra SVS vertical rack which I use for handling bags on the counter. Using both with the Anova works but seems a bit kludgy, especially as I’ve not seen any authorities (e.g., Douglas or Nathan) recommending such measures. Nor does the Anova manual. Thoughts?

If it's any consolation, argie916, you're not the only one who feels this way. I've been doing sous vide for more than five years and have tried steaks many times, a couple dozen at least. In my experience, there's simply no way to give a sous vide steak the same flavor as one cooked conventionally. You have to decide which is more important to you, texture or flavor. Personally, I opt for the latter. Sounds like you're inclined the same direction. That's okay. There's no law that says one must prefer sous vide in all situations where it can be used.

This is a reasonable question. The short answer is that the "danger zone" guidelines were designed with a significant margin for error. If you don't have access to Modernist Cuisine (nor do I), you might take a look at Douglas Baldwin's Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking, especially the section on Food Safety.

They grow the pear in the bottle. See, e.g., here, here and here. FWIW, I didn't figure this out either. Rather, I saw the answer in a cooking magazine several years ago, before I had ever really thought about the question.

I'm not surprised. Garlic in oil has very low available water.

chefessay, that looks like a creditable list. Not definitive, of course - no lists are. And, of course, the list is skewed by the criteria you chose - all lists are. Most importantly, ISTM an eminently suitable list for purposes of your class assignment.

I had in mind, in particular, Table 3 of the CDC's report on U.S. botulism cases from 1990 to 2000, which identifies just two cases involving garlic in oil, affecting a total of four people.(in a nation of 300 million). Moreover, a couple months ago, I went through the annual surveillance reports (this is one of the links nickrey posted yesterday) for every year from 2001 to 2011 (the latest available) and found no other cases linked to garlic.

Gotcha. And thanks for the link.

Well, if you liked the bite, there's no reason for you to reduce the gluten. Based on your feedback, I'll try the recipe as written first and with less gluten second. As for rolls, I use a very soft roll for veggie burgers, basically a souffle batter baked into pancakes. Mind, all this is something I do to accommodate vegetarian friends, as I'm not a vegetarian myself. The objection to beef base was based on this alone. Obviously, if one isn't a vegetarian, this isn't an issue.

FWIW, Chris, there's no need to vacuum seal garlic. I've been freezing for years the same product you're buying. I just put it in a plastic tub with a screw top lid (the one it used to come in, before they switched to pouches). It sublimates a bit over time, i.e., loses moisture which collects as ice in the tub, but the garlic is fine. Having it loose brings the convenience of being able to remove as many or few cloves as needed. Aternatively, I suppose you could split the difference and vacuum pack in 1/2 lb clumps, moving each to a tub as opened. This would have the same convenience advantage, but reduce the sublimation. I agree with others that vacuum sealing isn't hazardous if freezing.* I'm just saying it's not necessary. Or even advantagous. * Indeed, my research has found that the risk of botulism in garlic is greatly exaggerated, but I don't have time at the moment to dig up the references.

Interesting. I'll probably give that a try. (I have two veggie burger recipes, both baked, which use egg for binding.) Two comments. One, beef base seems wrong to me in a veggie burger. (Don't have the beef base but do have the chicken one and it's not vegetarian.) I'd use something else for the umani, e.g., veggie base or Marmite (use half as much). Second, I suspect you could get away with half as much gluten. How was the "bite" of these?

There are two ways to think about this. The one you have in mind, it seems, is influential restaurant chefs. On that, there are several good articles, e.g., here, here and here. IMHO, though, the more interesting question is cooks who had a transforming influence on everyday cooking. In America, that would be folks like Fannie Farmer, Irma Rombauer, Julia Child, James Beard and Craig Claiborne.

This is what came to mind when I saw the OP. Here's a link (not avocado green). Can't speak to how well it cooks. I got one for the pot, which happens to be a nice fit as an insert for the Sous Vide Supreme. But, if I were the OP, it's what I'd try.

Just so. From time to time, I find myself cooking something for which I can't find an appropriate table from Nathan or Douglas. In those cases, I use a thermometer.

Thanks for the update. i first heard about the book at v.2.3 (here on eG, albeit in a different thread). It has been very useful. I'm sure the revised version will be even more so.

IMHO, RG's point about foreigners bringing fresh eyes to an ethnic cuisine is valid. I've learned dozens of cuisines at a "greatest hits" level and books written by foreigners (usually someone who married into the cuisine) tend to be the most useful. This shouldn't be surprising. They're in the same position as me. Meanwhile, every time I've had an opportunity to query an ethnic as to his or her cuisine, what I mostly get is what mama or grandma did, but with little awareness of the cuisine as a whole. I've come to accept that this also isn't surprising. Which is to say, Dakki, that I take your point. Kennedy, Bayless, etc., don't capture the complete diversity of Mexican cuisine. I never assumed they did. But, then, one can make a pretty good cassoulet without knowing the ins-and-outs of every version in Toulouse, Castelaundary and Carssonne.