Sous Vide Techniques & Equipment

[Laurentius]

I'd like to try making a whole pork butt (about 14 pounds) using sous vide per Serious Eats.  My vacuum sealer is a budget unit from FoodSaver, and (a) there are no bags large enough; and (b) the sealing has become undependable, especially over long cooks.

 

After a little research, I've decided to try bathing this monster in its original cryovac packaging.  However, this route seems like it might suffer from not having a rub as it soaks.

 

So here's my question:  Is there a way to inject through the plastic and tape the hole shut without the tape coming off over the 18-24 hours the butt will be under water?

 

I'll rub and then smoke it afterward anyway, but if this would work, why would I not do that?  FYI, I have the requisite needles, syringes and even a "Meat Pump".

 

Has anyone tried this?

 

Thanks 

[AlaMoi]

there are "oven roasting bags" - they will take the temp - squeeze out the air and close as best you can.

the world will not end if it is not a brand name approved SV bag

[gfweb]

There are self sealing tapes that can be pierced and will seal.

 

The older SV threads here mention them.

 

I'll poke around.

 

The alternative is to put it in an unsealed bag that is suspended from the top and just open the bag to add your stuff

Edited Friday at 07:12 PM by gfweb (log)

[KennethT]

Just now, gfweb said:

There are self sealing tapes that can be pierced and will seal.

 

The older SV threads here mention them.

 

I'll poke around.

closed cell foam. I've never used them, but that's what NathanM used to use - but he was using for needle temperature probes which may be thinner than a syringe needle.

[gfweb]

https://www.thermoworks.com/ths-600-470/

 

Here you go

[Laurentius]

30 minutes ago, gfweb said:

https://www.thermoworks.com/ths-600-470/

 

Here you go

Thank you.  I'd seen this product before; I just didn't understand that you apply the tape and then pierce through it and the bag.  Makes sense.

 

Pretty pricey at $27!

Edited Friday at 07:44 PM by Laurentius
More info (log)

[gfweb]

1 hour ago, Laurentius said:

Thank you.  I'd seen this product before; I just didn't understand that you apply the tape and then pierce through it and the bag.  Makes sense.

 

Pretty pricey at $27!

 

Its not being made solely for sous vide.

 

I bet it exists cheaper under another name...like weather stripping?

 

 

Bingo!  https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-e&q=Closed-cell+foam+tape+with+adhesive+backing

Edited Friday at 08:57 PM by gfweb (log)

[Laurentius]

55 minutes ago, gfweb said:

 

Its not being made solely for sous vide.

 

I bet it exists cheaper under another name...like weather stripping?

 

 

Bingo!  https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-e&q=Closed-cell+foam+tape+with+adhesive+backing

 

Yeah, as long as it stays stuck...

[AlaMoi]

 

there's a tetra-gazillion people who do "boil in a bag" without the "SV Hangups"

the one and only 'thing' about SV is maintaining a constant temp.

and oh boy yes there are zillions of options to achieve that . . . .

[gfweb]

2 hours ago, Laurentius said:

 

Yeah, as long as it stays stuck...

Easy enough to test. 

 

Im sure Nathanm bought something already extant. Id be surprised if he hasnt named it somewhere on eG

[Laurentius]

On 3/24/2024 at 10:46 AM, rotuts said:

Im a big fan of SV.

 

once the bag is in the bath , time and temp

 

give you what want , over and over again.

 

I have an inclination to lower temps , longer .

 

thus keeping ' jus ' that might be in the bag 

 

in the meat.

 

at what temp , with of course long enough times 

 

would you get the ' beginning ' of ' pull apart  '

 

w the usual two folks.?

 

probably not @ 145 F.?  

 

so Im thinking , early pull apart , at the lowest possible temp

 

as time is not a variable bye of issue.

 

and Im thinking Pork as the meat.

 

and 145 F might be a good temp to try initially.

 

 

For pork butt that falls apart, but is not mushy, Kenji recommends 165F for 18-24 hours.

[Laurentius]

2 hours ago, gfweb said:

Easy enough to test. 

 

OK, do a full Prime packer brisket and tell me what tape holds...

[paulraphael]

"Pull-apart" tender happens with tough cuts of meat that are high in connective tissue (collagen) relative to contractile tissue. The tough collagen converts to gelatin, which has pretty much the opposite qualities of its sinewy precursor. This collagen breakdown typically happens at higher temperatures, like in the well-done range.

 

Lower temperatures will tenderize the meat if you cook long enough, but will produce more of a tender steak texture than a pull-apart stew texture.

 

These techniques won't work on tender cuts of meat. The higher temperature treatment will just dry them out. There isn't enough collagen to turn to gelatin. If you go long and low, you'll also dry them out, while at the same time making them mushy. 

[TdeV]

Also, the store plastic packaging is not intended for heat, and might behave poorly. Possibly also imparting undesirable chemicals.

[gfweb]

11 hours ago, Laurentius said:

 

OK, do a full Prime packer brisket and tell me what tape holds...

 

If you thought about it, you'd probably realize that a test of the tape does not require a brisket.

 

You are on your own now, my friend.

 

[dcarch]

I am sure many of you can remember, a famous chef sous vided a whole pig, in a plastic garbage bag.

 

dcarch

[Laurentius]

55 minutes ago, gfweb said:

If you thought about it, you'd probably realize

No need to be snide.  If you thought about it, you'd realize that these subprimals, even cryovac'd, expand over long cooks.  This morning, in fact, I took a 14-pound pork butt out of the bath after 20 hours, and the bag was significantly inflated/pressurized.  I'd just like to know whether Brand X foam tape will hold the seal under these conditions.  Testing the tape on, e.g., a bag of 3 diced carrots cooked for an hour isn't a meaningful test. 

[btbyrd]

I would see if it fits in a 2 gallon freezer zippie. That is my goto for large cuts. ChefSteps used to recommend Glad white garbage bags for cooking suckling pigs, but that was four years ago and I don’t know if the formula has changed.

[gfweb]

55 minutes ago, Laurentius said:

No need to be snide.  If you thought about it, you'd realize that these subprimals, even cryovac'd, expand over long cooks.  This morning, in fact, I took a 14-pound pork butt out of the bath after 20 hours, and the bag was significantly inflated/pressurized.  I'd just like to know whether Brand X foam tape will hold the seal under these conditions.  Testing the tape on, e.g., a bag of 3 diced carrots cooked for an hour isn't a meaningful test. 

 

 

So fill the carrot bag with water.  This is not difficult especially since NathanM has already done the work for you...right here  in this site.  Did you ever look up his posts?

 

I love it when a poster gets an attitude and then says "no need to be snide".

 

 

[AlaMoi]

..."recommend Glad white garbage bags for cooking suckling pigs..."

 

a SV apparatus big enough to do a sucking pig . . . would be a wonder to behold . . .

[KennethT]

14 minutes ago, AlaMoi said:

..."recommend Glad white garbage bags for cooking suckling pigs..."

 

a SV apparatus big enough to do a sucking pig . . . would be a wonder to behold . . .

bathtub

[AlaMoi]

having had SpanFerkel suckling pig at a retirement party in Bavaria . . . yeah, bath tub would be a starting point  . . .

[weinoo]

Back "in the day," when my friends were doing "ghetto" (for want of a better term) sous vide, with repurposed Poly Sci circulators, the Coleman coolers certainly could have handled a smallish suckling pig.

[TdeV]

I thought I read/saw something about Heston Blumenthal using a bathtub for a pig in the early sous vide days . . .

[btbyrd]

You can use a large rotomolded cooler and a Joule with the big clip. Cut a closed cell foam yoga mat to serve as a “lid” and cut down on evaporation (or just use plastic wrap).