What Are You Cooking Sous Vide Today? (Part 3)

[FrogPrincesse]

2 hours ago, Shelby said:

I cut it in half and bagged each half up.  They are generously rubbed with black pepper and salt and I put a few dashes of liquid smoke in.  Going to SV first and then smoke.  I've seen your temp and then Serious Eats says 155F for fall apart brisket.  I'm torn about which temp.  

I am about to do the same here. I am going for 155F/24 hours because I want the fall apart texture. 

[Shelby]

2 hours ago, rotuts said:

I prefer lower temps for longer in the belief that more ' jus ' stays in the meat at those lower temps.

 

Baldwin suggests for medium-rare brisket  130 for 2 - 3 days.

 

Ive never had rare , but tender brisket .

 

but I think its possible w SV and not possible otherwise.

 

might be good , or not.   hard to say.

 

I do think brisket has always been overcooked as methods to get it tender related to temps 

 

not to time alone.

 

next time you see a similar deal on brisket , try 130 x 3 days ,  135 , 140 , 145 and report your results !

 

as the temp increases you probably then cut down the time accordingly.

I'm going to take notes ...I only did one half so I have the other to do a different way next time.  I always like my beef rare but in this instance I want to harken back to the BBQ I remember.

30 minutes ago, FrogPrincesse said:

I am about to do the same here. I am going for 155F/24 hours because I want the fall apart texture. 

This is what I'm doing too.  I hope to get in on the smoker early tomorrow afternoon.

[FrogPrincesse]

It’s in the bath! It’s a 4-pound point-cut brisket. I went with salt, pepper, a small tablespoon of pink salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of liquid smoke since I may finish it in the oven (I haven’t decided for sure how to finish it).

 

 

 

 

[weedy]

That 130-135 for 72hrs brisket gives you an almost roast beef like result. Which you may or may not WANT from a brisket depending on your personal expectations. 

 

Personally i I love that for short ribs (having them that weird mix of rare and tender with soft and braised texture) but not as much ch for brisket which I prefer a little more ‘done’. 

 

 

[Fernwood]

On 5/26/2018 at 3:37 PM, Shelby said:

Looking for suggestions

 

I have this 5.56 lb Choice beef brisket point that I want to make--maybe just half of it and freeze the other half for later because it's a lot of meat.  

 

Should I sous vide it and then smoke it?  Time and temp for both?  Should I smoke it first and then sous vide?

 

Or skip the sous vide and just smoke it?

 

 

Forgot to add...I'm going for just a lovely, tender, smoked brisket--like at a great BBQ place.

 

Should I rub it with just some salt and pepper and let it marinate in that while I decide what to do?

 

 

I spent some time on this question when I found a better-than-usual-looking brisket a few weeks ago.  (Most that I see in my supermarket are so lean that I despair of getting an appetizing result, no matter what the approach.)  Leaned on the Serious Eats article, for the most part.  I divided in three pieces and started with 135; after they were pasteurized I put two away.  The texture of the 135 piece was too firm for my taste.  I ended up cooking the others some more at 155 and I much preferred that result.  

 

[Formatting weirdness apparently due to phone posting—no emphasis intended.]

Edited May 28, 2018 by Fernwood
Unintended formatting (log)

[kayb]

Must be brisket day. I have one I'm about to coat in pastrami rub and smoke, then SV. Got sliced tomatoes and cole slaw. Probably will make some potato salad. Done and done.

 

[Shelby]

Ok, Mr. Brisket is soaking in a nice ice water bath for a bit and then on to the smoker he will go.

[Shelby]

Next time this is going to go a little more smoothly I think, but for my first try, I am pretty happy with how this brisket turned out.

 

I sous vide it for about 27 hours at 155.

 

 

Mr.  Brisket getting ready to have his ice bath.

 

 

After cooling

 

 

There was a lot of "jus" --it tastes really good.  I saved it for gravy making.  By no means was this brisket dry, though.  

 

We had the best intentions of putting this on the new grill and finishing it on there, but it was so hot that it was just easier to throw it in the electric smoker for 3 hours.  It turned out very smokey but I wasn't happy with the doneness so after the 3 hours I put it in the CSO on 275F for about an hour.  'Twas perfect after that.  Like I said, next time I will do it on the grill and that way I know it will be done and I won't have to use the CSO.

 

 

[rotuts]

if you didn't care for the done-ness

 

was the problem toughness ?

 

try 145 for 3 days , then smoke next time.

 

you won't get as much jus , so moisture would stay in the meat.

 

just a thought.

[Shelby]

3 minutes ago, rotuts said:

if you didn't care for the done-ness

 

was the problem toughness ?

 

try 145 for 3 days , then smoke next time.

 

you won't get as much jus , so moisture would stay in the meat.

 

just a thought.

The fat wasn't melty enough--the meat itself was nice and tender.

 

Good idea on keeping more of the jus in.

[rotuts]

your fat won't get melty at 145 I think.

 

you will just have juicer meat.

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, rotuts said:

your fat won't get melty at 145 I think.

 

you will just have juicer meat.

Yeah then I'll throw it on the smoker for a few hours and that should get my melty fat going.

[scubadoo97]

@weedy  thanks for posting the vid.  I love carnitas but my wife doesn’t eat pork.   I’ve  used beef but who can resist crispy duck leg carnitas.  

[scubadoo97]

8 chicken thighs and 2 leg quarters went into the bath yesterday @ 165f for ~ 6-8 hrs.  Salted and stuffed with thyme and rosemary under the skin before bagging.  Iced down and in the fridge.  Will make 5 meals in the weeks to come.  

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

3 hours ago, scubadoo97 said:

8 chicken thighs and 2 leg quarters went into the bath yesterday @ 165f for ~ 6-8 hrs.  Salted and stuffed with thyme and rosemary under the skin before bagging.  Iced down and in the fridge.  Will make 5 meals in the weeks to come.  

 

 

 

I have a package of about ten thighs in the refrigerator that need using up.  What sorts of things do you have planed for yours?  Also, why so long?

 

[scubadoo97]

Got busy then dosed on the couch watching Bourdain coverage.  I don't think it caused harm

[scubadoo97]

Probably closer to 6 hrs.  

[rotuts]

just s quick update on my SV - > smoked turkey

 

farther up on this thread I posted about my SV turkey breasts 

 

which I first remove the tendons  then SV , and then cold smoke on my off Weber w hardwood pellets 

 

one of the finest things and easy things I make.  in bulk.

 

8 Fz  TB's , about 9 lbs + in the bone

 

I noticed that the TB-smoked were a bit dry after use dint hem for sandwiches and hot for a turkey dinner

 

not that dry , but dryer than the non-somked.   

 

there was of course a little jus in the bag before smoking , and for some reason I did not put that back in the new bag

 

post smoke , but added it to some Fz stock I made w the iPot from the carcass 

 

I added that back to the new bag , vac's and froze

 

for the last 2 whole TB I did this way

 

much much much juicer than those TBs smoked and bagged w/o the jus.

 

a keeper for me.

 

a bit of a P.S.:

 

after mangling the TB's to get out those tendons , which don't SV well  

 

and outs well worth doing w TB and CB 

 

I tie them up with kitchen twine to get a decent shape for The Bag.

 

don't forget to remove them each time you use a TB or CB.

 

they can get imbedded in the meat.

 

kitchen twine does not SV well to tenderness 

Edited June 23, 2018 by rotuts (log)

[rustwood]

An impulse buy of short short ribs led to a fair amount of effort today.  I cooked them for 24 hours @ 167 and served them with polenta and a red wine reduction.  They were tasty, but I find myself regretting that I bought them (like I always do).   I enjoy eating them, but making any type of beef ribs at home always ends up seeming like a lot of work, mess, and expense for relatively meager yield.  In my book, that makes them an excellent candidate for ordering out instead of cooking at home.  I imagine others will not feel the same though as they seem to be a popular SV cook.

 

[scubadoo97]

Sometimes the journey is half the fun

[gfweb]

3 hours ago, rustwood said:

An impulse buy of short short ribs led to a fair amount of effort today.  I cooked them for 24 hours @ 167 and served them with polenta and a red wine reduction.  They were tasty, but I find myself regretting that I bought them (like I always do).   I enjoy eating them, but making any type of beef ribs at home always ends up seeming like a lot of work, mess, and expense for relatively meager yield.  In my book, that makes them an excellent candidate for ordering out instead of cooking at home.  I imagine others will not feel the same though as they seem to be a popular SV cook.

 

So many supermarket short ribs are meager, mostly bone and a giant rip-off.

But a nice short rib makes a beautiful braise.

I'm kind of off on SV short ribs. I like the braise better

[Okanagancook]

I agree, short ribs are so variable but when you have a nice thick meaty piece of meat they are really, really good sous vide or braised.  I only will buy mine from one place in town...tried others but always disappointed.

[rotuts]

never saw a SR in a supermarket  that was worth anything at all

 

even one w a decent meat service counter.

 

the only ones Ive down are SV from the new Wegmans.

[rustwood]

11 hours ago, scubadoo97 said:

Sometimes the journey is half the fun

I agree - only to a certain point though.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

I agree about the short ribs I have access to being a horrible value. By the time you account for bone weight and shrinkage, I think you need to almost triple the already expensive price per pound. Way out of my league, but I remember my mom being able to buy good short ribs at a butcher we went to in Chula Vista when I was a little girl.

 

If you can find beef cheek it is comparable to short ribs in flavor and texture and a better value around here at the Latino markets. I love both beef cheek and short ribs, but my goodness! I can buy rib eye cheaper than short ribs even before the waste factors.