[Modernist Cuisine at Home] Fragrant Sous Vide Salmon

[Anonymous Modernist 18653]

First forum post, my apologies if I missed anything in following forum instruction.

I have a fresh filet of California King Salmon that I will use with the Fragrant Sous Vide application from _Modernist Cuisine at Home_. A couple of quick questions:

1) Should the duration of the brine in the 5% solution be affected if I have filet of uneven thickness? I am used to brining fish in a 10% solution for about 10-15 minutes; I understand this is a 5% solution, but will admit some apprehension at the 3-5 hour duration.

2) During the sous-vide step, is there any harm to exceed the ~30 min recommendation? I know the fish won't overcook obviously, but I'm curious if the fish is as "sturdy" at keeping at temperature for an extended period of time (for example, a couple of hours to leave the fish, then return an finish on the stove at my convenience).

Thanks,

-Nico

[Anonymous Modernist 310]

1) The beauty of equilibrium brining is that there is much less problems with uneven pieces or leaving the piece too long so that shouldn't be a problem. It's actually the recommendation at the beginning of the recipe. (20/15g 24hrs) Also don't forget taht your solution is "dilutted" by the fish so with the amount of fish and water of the recipe it's about 3%.

2) Cooking at these lower temperatures it's not safe to cook long hours because some bacteria still grow under 50-55C. There is also the texture that will be affected negatively by a longer cooking time. So that's probably not a problem if you cook it 45 minutes instead of 25 but I wouldn't try two hours!