FeChef

This would be a good experiment to try with Sous vide + rotisserie. I would probably Sous vide @ 145F for atleast 12-24 hours, then finish in the rotisserie till internal temperature of 155-175F. Less if the skin crisps up sooner.

I told you that MC recipe uses too much water and too much sodium citrate. Next time, try using 7g sodium citrate, 8oz cheese, and 1/4 cup of milk to start, once the cheese is melted gradually add another 1/4 cup of milk or stop when you reach the thickness you prefer.

Tri2Cook, As ive already mentioned, I have the same size container as the OP, from the same company and mine does NOT look anything like the OP's. Mine looks just like CH's picture. Very fine granules.

It is alot. I use only 7g for roughly the same amount of cheese. It seems they use alot of water aswell. I do prefer the sauce to be thick and gooey so i start off with only a 1/4 of liquid and add while stiring. Probably less then 1/2 of the liquid MC recipe calls for. I also think using milk instead of water reduces the sour taste aswell. Cant imagine why anyone would like that recipe.

I have sodium citrate from Will powder aswell BUT, mine is very fine granules. Yours looks like little small beads of calcium citrate or calcium chloride used for pickling. I am wondering if you got a batch that was labeled wrong? Also when i make mac and cheese i use roughly 7g of sodium citrate and 8oz of cheese and 1/4 cup of milk. I add more cheese or milk as i go but never more then 7g of sodium citrate. Sorry i dont know the gram conversion off hand and im too lazy to look it up.

I am not sure if this is an insult, or a compliment? I dont know what paulraphael's steaks tasted like so it would be tough to judge, ya know what i mean? I can say that a 1 1/2 inch ribeye on a 700F infrared searing burner for 2 min per side results in a charred rare-med rare steak. Maybe she doesnt like charr, or rare-medrare. My wife loves rare-med rare, but doesnt like charr (she calls it burnt)

Hot dogs and scrapple are made with "lips and @$$holes" but i still eat and love both. Its ironic i said this earlier today, but ignorance is bliss.

I picked these ribeye's up last week. They were choice grade. They were $5.98/lb with a $2.00 off coupon because the sell by date was the next day. I did the 3 day paper towel wrap fridge age. And cooked them on the infrared sear burner for 2 min per side. Best steaks we had this year and cost less then $5.00 for both steaks. I would never pay $30/lb thats nutz.

Can you explain what exactly is the benifit of cooking in the "unsafe" zone for 4 hours? I am having trouble understanding. If its a tenderizing method, wouldnt cooking at a higher temp of lets say, 132F (a pastuerization temp) for a longer period make it just as, if not more tender? Also, if its a flavor method, dont you think between dry ageing, pre and post searing, theres plenty of flavor compounds going on there. It just seems your playing with fire for very little benefit.

Doesnt this bacteria growth cause unpleasant taste? I have had a batch of short ribs that i pre seared before a 33 hour bath that smelled like, and im quoting another member that had the same effect...baby poo. Yes, mild smelling $hit. That said, i will never play games with unsafe temp zones.

Sorry, my wallet, and brain doesnt allow my eyes to even see what $30 beef looks like. It automagicly passes that section of the meat cooler case.

I have used those drybagsteak bags a few times with NY strip, ribeye, and beef tenderloin and they work very well. I keep my basement fridge around 35F. With SV, a cheaper grade ribeye comes out better then some prime rib ive had at steak houses.

I use my dry aged beef trimmings for making a bold stock for a hearty beef stew, stroganoff, or pot roast.

Ouch $8 for chuck? Even if its prime, Its common in my area of PA to get angus choice ribeye for $5.98/lbmore marbled then that chuck roll. Obviously it doesnt come dry aged but thats what drybagsteakdotcom is for. Hope it turns out well for you though. Never heard of 4 hours in the "unsafe" zone before though.

Wow thats cheap. I dont think there is any bakery dealers in my area though. We have bakery supply stores but they dont offer those kind of services, that i am sure of. And there is only two of them within 50 miles. But i will definitely look into getting this vessel coated with something if its less then $25

You guys are probably right. I was considering even something like that flex seal in a spray can. Its like liquid rubber that dries quickly after you spray it on. I dont know what the temperature rating on it is, but it should be high considering it can be used to seal roofing and gutters that can get pretty hot in the summer. I dont know how toxic it would be if someone ate a piece dried, but im thinking once dried its toxic level is probably low.

Well, sometimes you get a leak in a bag and i would hate to throw away something if some water got in the bag. Also, when i sous vide something smoked, the smell gets out of the bags even without a leak, and triple bagged, so it seems possible that if a smell can get out, something toxic could get in. Am I right?

I have been building sous vide rigs out of deep fryer/steamers for a few years and the only con i have is some of the vessels to hold the water is made out of steel that has a cheap enamel coating that everntually starts to deteriate and develop rust spots. I am wondering if anyone knows of a food safe paint or coating that i could buy at places like lowes or home depot to prevent these rust spots from getting worse. I would like to buff out the rust spots now before they get worse. I would replace the vessel with stainless steel but it is a double size fryer with an odd shape/size dimension.

Good to know they open up. But 200F is way too high to make SV worthwhile. I use an electric steamer with a drip catch to collect all the juices if im reserving them for a dish like lemon butter clams for example.

Ive done lobster and shrimp SV with very good results. I thought of doing clams a few years ago but decided not to try with the idea that the clams probably wont open in a low heat. Then theres also the idea of bacteria growth if the shell prevents the clam from reaching pastuerization temps.

Late to the party, but a good dipping sauce for any shrimp is coconut mango pepper sauce. It is mildly spicy but you can always add some cayenne powder if you like more heat. I use this dipping sauce for my coconut panko breaded shrimp.

I have had really good results smoking partially frozen dry aged (pellicle) chuck roasts for 4+ hours and bringing internal temp to 150F. Then slathering with a thick bbq sauce and vacuum sealing it, then SV for 24-28 hours at 158F. The partially frozen state (pellicle formed skin) allows the bark to get really thick and the thick bbq sauce absorbs any juice that expelled from the meat during the long cooking process. The texture ends up being what i describe as "chop shred" every bite is an extremely moist burnt end.

I would go with 185F for double the recipe time. You can always add more water or make a concentrated stock instead of broth. Obviously apples to oranges, but for example when i make pork stock i cook it down to where its double or triple concentrated. Then filter and chill and remove the top fat layer and reheat the gelatin and pour into ice cube trays and freeze. I can then use those cubes as is for a really intense dish or add a cup of water or vegatable stock for a really flavorful pork stock. Also, it helps to fine chop or shred the vegetables so you extraxt the most flavor, and would most likely cut your time down, but i would still cook it down further.

I sourced those soy sauce packets somewhat locally (30 miles) and a case of 500 is like $5usd. I am just going to go that route from now on. They definely have a milder flavor/aroma then even that La Choy brand. I dont know if it has to do with being better quality (which i doubt) or its just that alot of people dont care for the strong flavor of "authentic" soy sauce/s. Its probably specificly made to be a salt substitute with a hint of soy sauce flavor. I mean now that i think about it, I have never seen salt packets, or salt shakers in any chinese take out places. Obviously im in the minority of people that dont care for super strong flavor "authentic" quality soy sauce.

Ok so here is an update. I made a batch of my general tso sauce that i love when i use those soy sauce packets.(yes i know general tso is an chinese american dish) Anyway, i used the La Choy soy sauce and while it turned out better then using kikkoman, it still had a slightly unpleasant taste to it. Smell was not an issue atleast. Anyway, i found a packet of soy sauce i normally get at my favorite place and its called Yi Pin. Whats strange is the ingredients. Soy is not even listed! It taste really good, i could drink the stuff straight out the packet...LOL maybe im crazy, but i like what i like, and you only live once. So anyway, i found a picture of the stuff so here it is.