Sous Vide & Traditionally Steamed Puddings

[Atomizer]

Hi I am thinking of making a Steak & Kidney Pudding and instead of steam it, I was thinking of vacuum packing the whole lot including the pudding basin and Sous Vide-ing. Does anyone know how the Suet Pudding Pastry would take to it, I was thinking of a Temp around 80C for 12 hours? David

[Kerry Beal]

I seem to recall reading in the Pudding Club Cookbook that suet might require higher temperatures - but I'm thinking an experiment might be in order. Report back!

Edited December 29, 2013 by Kerry Beal (log)

[Atomizer]

Thats what I thought if you don't experiment then you will never learn. As a meal for family I think I will cook something else alongside just incase.

[Kerry Beal]

Very sensible!

[Kerry Beal]

I suspect if you tried the sous vide for a regular steamed pudding that the vacuum step might just knock all the air out of it and make it rather stodgy. Pressure cooker pudding suggests 20 minutes at simple boiling temperature before applying the pressure to prevent just that.

[rotuts]

apropo the above:

i routinely SV my classic stuffing when Im dispatching a couple of 22 lbs Turks.

I make my traditional mix, ( cornbread, cranberries, apples, sausage, pecans, ... , ) and let it sit for a bit so the breadcrumbs equilibrate with the stock.

i then vacuum portions in bags ( Weston not Chamber ) and add them to the white meat batches SV

Why ? well, then its done. usually 4 - 8 6" x 10 " bags. 1 - 2 Arnnold CornBread stuffing mix bags ( unseasoned )

Ive learned to microwave the apple portion as the white meat temps do not cook the apples through ... still a bit of crunch left at SV White meat temps.

sausage etc cranberries etc.

the result is indeed stodgy. but tasty. and they wait expectantly in my freezer next to the SV white and dark meat.

I re-heat as I do the meat, but then open the bag, put the 'mass' in a corningware casserole dish and fluff it up a bit w a fork

then pop that into the Oven-toaster to brown the top.

is this as good as just cooking the mass en casserole ? nope. but being raring to go, its a bazillion times better than no stuffing at all.

just my thoughts on SV and "stodgy"

Edited December 29, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Kerry Beal]

Interesting - last stuffing I made outside turkey was terribly dry - this would be a very worthwhile solution I think.

[rotuts]

your outside stuffing was dry simply because you didnt add enough stock to the mix before hand.

just saying.

( come on, its a Joke ! )

I have not added stuffing to any bird for at least 40 years. the key is the stock you use which makes all the diff.

F.D. I saw this first ( revelation ) on a Canadian Cooking Show a long time ago: Burt somebody was on a trans canadian RR trip it was about the Train Food and the various places they stopped at.

the Canadian RR did it outside the bird as did some massive massive hotel somewhere in the Rockies.

the SV is in that sense fairly new 2 years or so ..

added bonus: plenty of bags get used for breakfast : microwave an aliquot out side the bag of course, then top with SV eggs

Yum !

Edited December 29, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Kerry Beal]

That was part of it for sure - I've made good outside stuffing once or twice.

[gfweb]

I suspect if you tried the sous vide for a regular steamed pudding that the vacuum step might just knock all the air out of it and make it rather stodgy. Pressure cooker pudding suggests 20 minutes at simple boiling temperature before applying the pressure to prevent just that.

I think that this is right. The thing wouldn't rise at all.

But the essence of steaming a pudding (and the pain in the ass of it) is controlling the heat by having a constant level of steam. For constant, don't worry about it heat; SV is the thing. Why not just plop your vessel into the SV so it is ~ 50% immersed and cover with the traditional towel. I'd pick a higher temp...90C? so as to get close to steam and keep your times the same.

I'm very interested in your expt. This year we abandoned the steamed persimmon pud because of the PITA factor and made individual sticky toffee puddings (which were great BTW).

[rotuts]

The above is absolutely brilliant.

a new way to use the SV system.

Brilliant !

the perfect water bath. Set it, and do something else ...

examine your Cork Collection, for one

Edited December 29, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Atomizer]

I suspect if you tried the sous vide for a regular steamed pudding that the vacuum step might just knock all the air out of it and make it rather stodgy. Pressure cooker pudding suggests 20 minutes at simple boiling temperature before applying the pressure to prevent just that.

I think that this is right. The thing wouldn't rise at all.

But the essence of steaming a pudding (and the pain in the ass of it) is controlling the heat by having a constant level of steam. For constant, don't worry about it heat; SV is the thing. Why not just plop your vessel into the SV so it is ~ 50% immersed and cover with the traditional towel. I'd pick a higher temp...90C? so as to get close to steam and keep your times the same.

I'm very interested in your expt. This year we abandoned the steamed persimmon pud because of the PITA factor and made individual sticky toffee puddings (which were great BTW).

Yes you are probably correct, but I was looking for the 12 hours time to make the meat really tender, which I don't think I would get with conventional timings ????

[Kerry Beal]

I suspect if you tried the sous vide for a regular steamed pudding that the vacuum step might just knock all the air out of it and make it rather stodgy. Pressure cooker pudding suggests 20 minutes at simple boiling temperature before applying the pressure to prevent just that.

I think that this is right. The thing wouldn't rise at all.

But the essence of steaming a pudding (and the pain in the ass of it) is controlling the heat by having a constant level of steam. For constant, don't worry about it heat; SV is the thing. Why not just plop your vessel into the SV so it is ~ 50% immersed and cover with the traditional towel. I'd pick a higher temp...90C? so as to get close to steam and keep your times the same.

I'm very interested in your expt. This year we abandoned the steamed persimmon pud because of the PITA factor and made individual sticky toffee puddings (which were great BTW).

Yes you are probably correct, but I was looking for the 12 hours time to make the meat really tender, which I don't think I would get with conventional timings ????

Indeed - I think 12 hours or even longer would make nice tender meat.

[gfweb]

Good point, maybe a pre-SV for the meat, then again with everything in the basin for a second time? Looking at Nigella's recipe, I think this might work well

Edited December 29, 2013 by gfweb (log)