Question Regarding Cooking Sous Vide and Comparative Moistness

[Porthos]

I have not followed the sous vide threads because this style of preparing food has not interested me. Until now.

 

My DW had gastric bypass surgery 7 years ago and it has been very successful. It has brought about 2 changes in how she eats. The first is with regard to heat from spiciness. She is very sensitive to any kind of chili peppers or even chili powder and such. That is easily dealt with. The second, however, has become the tough one. If meat hints towards dryness, dryness that others may note but not enough to be a problem, has become more and more of a problem for her.

 

How does the sous vide method compare to more traditional methods, such as roasting, to more reliably producing meat that is still moist? Or does this method not affect the moistness?

[nickrey]

It does affect the moistness. Poultry in particular is far more moist than if it is done traditionally. I normally dislike Turkey as a dry and unappetising meal but if it is cooked sous vide, particularly with a milk and apple juice injected brine, it is deliciously moist. Try cooking chicken breast sous vide at 60-62C and you (and, more importantly, your wife) will see the difference.

[Anna N]

24 minutes ago, nickrey said:

It does affect the moistness. Poultry in particular is far more moist than if it is done traditionally. I normally dislike Turkey as a dry and unappetising meal but if it is cooked sous vide, particularly with a milk and apple juice injected brine, it is deliciously moist. Try cooking chicken breast sous vide at 60-62C and you (and, more importantly, your wife) will see the difference.

I  absolutely agree on the chicken breast.   Never have been a fan of turkey nor could I see the appeal of a chicken breast  until I started cooking them as above. 

[gfweb]

SV really shines on meat that is easily dried out (like chicken or turkey breast) or meat that is inherently tough and needs long cooking which dries it out (like pork loin).

 

My wife won't eat a roast pork loin...too dry, but loves a SV loin which is both tender and moist

 

Edited February 14, 2016 by gfweb (log)

[weinoo]

9 minutes ago, gfweb said:

SV really shines on meat that is easily dried out (like chicken or turkey breast) or meat that is inherently tough and needs long cooking which dries it out (like pork loin).

 

My wife won't eat a roast pork loin...too dry, but loves a SV loin which is both tender and moist

 

 

I agree with the chicken/turkey thing.  But why does a pork loin need long cooking to make it tender?

[gfweb]

Pork loin roast (not tenderloin) dries out by the time the center is cooked...at least in my oven.

Edited February 14, 2016 by gfweb (log)

[JoNorvelleWalker]

A bit late to the party @Porthos to respond, but I agree with the posters above about moisture.  Planning sous vide chicken breast chicken tetrazzini for tomorrow.

[Simon Lewinson]

I have had some experience with similar procedures and have found that sous vide meats are far better. Pork belly, beef cheeks and all sorts of poultry are much better tolerated because they are more moist and the collagen transforms into slippery gelatin for the tougher cuts.

 

simon

[Barrytm]

Agree with the others about sous vide retaining moisture.  Due to your wife's concerns, you should also consider equilibrium brining of poultry.  Together with sous vide, that would be the ultimate in moistness.

[rotuts]

I agree with all of the above

 

once you try SV  you will never go back to other types of cooking for the above mentioned items.  Ill add corned beef

 

it does not of course 'brown' the surface

 

remember :  temp of the bath determines 'doneness'   it rare, med-rare etc  ( at center temp equilibrium )

 

time determined tenderness

 

a P.S. of sorts :

 

as you increase the temp of the bath, say from a starting point of 130, eventually the muscle fibers will contract as they do in say

 

a traditional braise, them squeezing out moisture and perhaps fat.

 

there is a way around this but its time consuming  etc

 

you can tell when you are 'done' with a SV by how much liquid there is in the bad

 

it had to come from some ware , unless you have a leaky bag.

 

when you start with SV, start with lower temps and longer time that you initially think are correct then gradually move up

 

a notebook is nice to keep track of things you might otherwise forget.

Edited February 21, 2016 by rotuts (log)

[Porthos]

2 hours ago, rotuts said:

Ill add corned beef

 

it does not of course 'brown' the surface

My corned beef is never browned anyway. On a rack in a closed vessel with a bottle of Guinniess, 8 hours at 235 F. I have several friend who "don't like corned beff" who really like mine.

[gfweb]

An advantage to SV corned beef is that you can do leaner and cheaper cuts eg flank steak or round and they will still come out tender and moist. Got one going right now.

[rotuts]

Soooo

 

Porth

 

do what you do

 

but but try CB's  SV

 

therfe is actually a thread about thid

 

yours was MightyFine ?

 

Much more Mighty SV

 

give it a look !