Sous vide for a newbie?

[Chris Hennes]

39 minutes ago, gfweb said:

Chris, what are the strengths of the Oliso? That it doubles as an induction burner?

Yep. The Kickstarter was designed to get them the funds necessary to develop a griddle top for the hob, but that hasn't shipped yet. They are also developing an external temperature probe that will let you use the devices controller with arbitrary induction-compatible cookware (in theory).

[KennethT]

I'd also recommend downloading Sous Vide Dash if you have an iOS product (iPad or iPhone).  The last time I checked, it was $10, and worth every penny.  It is a huge help to make sure you are cooking things safely, and is really good if you like to do gradient cooking.  I do this with salmon - I prefer my salmon with a bit of a gradient, so I set my bath to 115F, but shoot for a core temp of 102F - then sear with the propane torch.  This makes the salmon perfectly rare throughout most of it, and just a bit more done on the outside edge for a bit more bite.  It also significantly decreases the cooking time.

[IndyRob]

This may not be what you're looking for, but I think it fits the topic....

 

A while back someone on this board (I wish I could find the post) mentioned doing (pork) ribs SV for 12 hours at 165F.  At the time I was playing with cooking carnitas in lard in the oven, so I decided to substitute ribs for chopped up pork shoulder.  This worked quite well, but then I thought "Why not just do it sous vide with the same method?"

 

Just season some ribs and vacuum seal them and leave them in the refrigerator overnight.  Early the next morning, place the unopened bag (bone side up) in a roasting pan and cover with hot tap water.  I've found that my oven set at 220 will keep the water at 165.  Check the temp after a couple of hours to see if yours will require an adjustment.

 

For those without a vacuum sealer, I've also done this successfully right in the cryovac package from the store.  Of course, it's better with the seasoning inside the bag, but it's still quite good..  I also keep meaning to seal in some lard to restore that aspect of my previous trials.

 

After 10 to 12 hours (I've been backing off from 12 lately), remove the ribs and add a dry rub.  Optimally, they will be finished on a grill, but a broiler or hot oven will work as well.

 

[kayb]

5 hours ago, Shelby said:

I pushed the buy button.  It says it'll be here the 6th.  

 

You're gonna have FUN!

 

(Amazon is the present-world incarnation of Satan, I'm convinced. It gets more of my money that just about anywhere.)

[Shelby]

10 minutes ago, kayb said:

 

You're gonna have FUN!

 

(Amazon is the present-world incarnation of Satan, I'm convinced. It gets more of my money that just about anywhere.)

Yes.  Satan.  Totally.  Except in a good way lol.  

 

I'm seriously scared to look and see how much I spent there in 2015.  In all fairness, I don't grocery shop but a few times a year so a lot gets bought in bulk there, but still........not gonna do it.

 

I can't wait until it gets here.  I really never thought I would buy one because it seemed so foreign and complicated, but, so did pressure cooking so.........

[PedroG]

Hi KitchenQueen, welcome to the sous vide community!

In The Sous vide page from wikiGullet you will find basic information and an extensive chapter on egg cookery as well as a link to Douglas Baldwin's Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking which contains the important tables for cooking times and temperatures. 

You will have a lot of satisfaction with sous vide cooking.

[lesliec]

On 02/01/2016 at 7:38 AM, Shelby said:

I pushed the buy button.  It says it'll be here the 6th.  

 

That's great, Shelby.  I have you on record in my 2011 foodblog as saying my Beef Wellington had got you over being scared of SV.  It's only taken another five years 

[Shelby]

38 minutes ago, lesliec said:

 

That's great, Shelby.  I have you on record in my 2011 foodblog as saying my Beef Wellington had got you over being scared of SV.  It's only taken another five years 

I was waiting on a good sale 

[rotuts]

nice

 

Shelby

 

keep track with all the details in a notebook

 

a red cover is nice, but its what's inside that counts

[NathanD]

Hello,

I'm also a newbie, but recently got the Anova and am loving it.  Couldn't be simplier to use and stores easily when not in use.  I've played around with different containers (most of my pots seem small), but I think I've hit upon a solution for when I do a big batch or need 24 hour+.  I was lucky enough to receive a gift basket from Omaha Steaks that arrived in a large syrofoam cooler.  The walls are just thin enough to attach the Anova, so I cut a whole in the top and voila! This has been going now for 2 hours at 185 degrees and the outside is cool to the touch...

[gfweb]

Keep a notebook, NathanD, as Rotuts suggests.

 

But a black cover...not red.

 

And always do sous vide in Fahrenheit.

 

Centigrade just doesn't taste as good.

[NathanD]

After 3 hours, there was a small amount of water outside the bottom of the styrofoam cooler.  Probably not enough to indicate a leak, I'm thinking condensation.  Looks like I might be investing in a beer cooler instead...and thanks gfweb, already have a black covered moleskine to catalog my failures....uh...teachable moments...

[KennethT]

In my experience, the EPS (expanded polystyrene) foam coolers tend to leak a little bit - I don't think they're meant to hold a volume of water.

Edited January 5, 2016 by KennethT
spelling (log)

[rotuts]

beer cooler(s) of various sizes are a wise investment.  med - large for 'bulk'

 

and a smaller one for reheating previous Experiments

 

and indeed  Fahrenheit taste better

 

but Red is always Best.

[Shelby]

 

[kayb]

Looks like it has a built-in clamp that attaches it to the side of the container. Is that right? How wide does the clamp open?

 

 

[KennethT]

And so the addiction starts!!!!

[Shelby]

4 minutes ago, kayb said:

Looks like it has a built-in clamp that attaches it to the side of the container. Is that right? How wide does the clamp open?

 

 

Yes, it's like a giant curling iron lol.  

 

 

The clamp opens to 1" at the widest point.

 

 

 

[weedy]

On January 5, 2016 at 11:31 PM, gfweb said:

K...

 

Centigrade just doesn't taste as good.

 

that's probably why it's been called Celsius, instead, for 50 years now  <g> 

[Shelby]

Ok, now I'm going to irritate a lot of people.  Yes, I know I should read through all of the threads .....but it's a lot to go through as you all know.  I've done a quick search here and found a whole loin, but not steaks.  Anyone done venison steaks that are cut about 1 1/2" thick?  I will be doing two and we like them rare...well, I like mine very rare and Ronnie likes his medium rare...more on the rare side.

[rotuts]

what cut du venison ?

 

from bvaldwin :

 

loin ?  rare, unpasteurized :  125 1 - 1.5 H pasteurized : Med-rare 130 for the same

 

has this been frozen ? then go with 125.

 

Hip ? leg ? rack ? Chuck ?

 

let us know

 

 

PS  be prepared to go Nuts-O.

 

 

 

Edited January 6, 2016 by rotuts (log)

[Shelby]

Sorry, I forgot to include the exact cut.  It's the backstrap/loin.  Yes, they have been frozen.  So 125 F for 1 1/2 hrs.  130 for med rare.  Got it.

 

Thank you so much!

 

 

P.S.  I'm so very new to this.  I was perusing the sous vide index here and --maybe I'm missing something, but hardly any of the links work to go to the topics?  Or....am I just dense?

[rotuts]

for your first adventure, I would not worry about browning.

 

a sauce of some sort ?  what you might usually eat with the the V ?

 

searing you will sort out later once you get the meat(s) to you likiing

 

pics might be nice

 

.

[rotuts]

also remember, 125 is not particularly 'hot'

 

so hot plates, etc and move fast.

 

the details you can work out later after your fist taste.

[blue_dolphin]

34 minutes ago, Shelby said:

P.S.  I'm so very new to this.  I was perusing the sous vide index here and --maybe I'm missing something, but hardly any of the links work to go to the topics?  Or....am I just dense?

 

I don't think you are dense!  Over in the forum upgrade thread, someone asked about this and Chris responded that he had reported the bug.  Sounds like there hasn't been any resolution yet.

 

Edited to add that in reading over that earlier query, I'm not sure if it's the same issue you've noted or not. Or maybe I'm dense, too!  

Edited January 6, 2016 by blue_dolphin (log)