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

[rotuts]

thank you

 

@Dave the Cook

 

that quite an insightful analysis

 

cheers

[weedy]

Doing some nice Berkshire pork chops on the bone from D’Artagnan. 

Made a roasted tomatillo salsa, guacamole, and a green bean salad to go with. 

 

 

[weedy]

139 for 2.5 hrs (from frozen)

torch finish.

The rest in Dinner thread

 

 

[rotuts]

@Dave the Cook

 

is very correct.  having 

 

" a good relationship with the meat dude "

 

is worthwhile

[TdeV]

@weedy, I see you use a cooking rack (like this).

 

I also note that you place the rack so that it is open at the top. (I have the open part on the side).

 

How do you keep the meat packets under water?

[weedy]

If the bag doesn't sink naturally I use small stainless steel clips to the top of the rack to hold the bags in place

 

like these:

ANDRIMAX Chip Bag Clips, 8PCS Premium Stainless Steel Chip Clips with 3 Inch Wide, All-Purpose Heavy-Duty Seal Grip Clips 

[BetD]

Bumped into some interesting Red Boat reading today...

 

https://www.davidlebovitz.com/a-visit-to-red-boat-fish-sauce-vietnam-phu-quoc/

 

https://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2019/02/how-to-use-red-boat-salt.html

 

Edited March 4, 2019 by BetD
Am an idiot about posting, apparently... sorry (log)

[Shelby]

I finally have achieved the beef brisket that I've been aiming for.  155F for 24 hours then 150F in the smoker for about 4 hours.  Fat all melty and perfect.  

 

I used @rotuts snow method to cool

 

 

 

[rotuts]

@Shelby

 

that really does look nice.

 

have you tried lower temps , but for longer ?  both SV and Smoking ?

 

I can't say much about Melty Fat, as it might not appeal to me

 

I do think Lower / Longer   might give you a tenderness you like

 

and at the same time , keep more Jus in the meat , for extra meat flavor.

 

that's just my quirk .

[Okanagancook]

Very nice @Shelby.  It looks to be very moist.   Also looks like 1/2 a brisket.

[Shelby]

2 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@Shelby

 

that really does look nice.

 

have you tried lower temps , but for longer ?  both SV and Smoking ?

 

I can't say much about Melty Fat, as it might not appeal to me

 

I do think Lower / Longer   might give you a tenderness you like

 

and at the same time , keep more Jus in the meat , for extra meat flavor.

 

that's just my quirk .

Thank you!

 

I have tried lower and slower.....it's good, but not the "brisket" that I was looking for, you know?

1 minute ago, Okanagancook said:

Very nice @Shelby.  It looks to be very moist.   Also looks like 1/2 a brisket.

Thank you!  It's actually probably a third of a brisket lol.  

[Smithy]

I know some of you have had success with sous vide pork tenderloin. I'm looking for advice. I bought a pork tenderloin (the pair, actually) and pan-cooked one today to great success. Pork tenderloin can be dry if overcooked, but thanks to a dandy marinade, attentive pan work and probably dumb luck I made one of those dishes that I'd be proud to produce again.

 

All that said, I'm considering doing a sous vide treatment for the other tenderloin to see how well that works. Right now it's been rubbed with vegetable oil and a light dusting of @rancho_gordo's smoked pimentón paprika. The silverskin has been removed. The tail has been tucked under so that the meat is a fairly uniform 2" thickness x 4" width in the vacuum bag. The total weight is about 1¹/₄ pounds. 

 

I don't want to dry this out, and of course having blundered into something wonderful once I have a standard to meet for the next experiment. What do y'all recommend for time, temperature and finishing? Yes, I know I can look at Anova and Chefsteps, but I'm in a roomful of experts here. For those of you who like pork tenderloin done sous vide, what's your favorite treatment?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

To return to my "chuck filet" experiment, recall the package had two twin steaks.  The other day I simply grilled one steak ten minutes or so on the Philips:

 

 

 

Tonight I cooked one steak sous vide 56C for two hours and a half, then dried and seared in a pan with smoking oil:

 

 

 

Both steaks were consumed in their entirety.  As my be seen the sous vide seared steak had considerable crust.  However this steak dissociated at the muscle boundaries so it was not as pretty.

 

What is most remarkable:  the grilled steak filled the whole apartment with the scent of steak.  The meat tasted like steak, in a good way I don't oft experience.  In contrast the sous vide steak didn't taste like of much of anything.

 

[ElsieD]

9 hours ago, Smithy said:

I know some of you have had success with sous vide pork tenderloin. I'm looking for advice. I bought a pork tenderloin (the pair, actually) and pan-cooked one today to great success. Pork tenderloin can be dry if overcooked, but thanks to a dandy marinade, attentive pan work and probably dumb luck I made one of those dishes that I'd be proud to produce again.

 

All that said, I'm considering doing a sous vide treatment for the other tenderloin to see how well that works. Right now it's been rubbed with vegetable oil and a light dusting of @rancho_gordo's smoked pimentón paprika. The silverskin has been removed. The tail has been tucked under so that the meat is a fairly uniform 2" thickness x 4" width in the vacuum bag. The total weight is about 1¹/₄ pounds. 

 

I don't want to dry this out, and of course having blundered into something wonderful once I have a standard to meet for the next experiment. What do y'all recommend for time, temperature and finishing? Yes, I know I can look at Anova and Chefsteps, but I'm in a roomful of experts here. For those of you who like pork tenderloin done sous vide, what's your favorite treatment?

 

I do mine at 140F for 3 hours followed by a fast sear.  Pink all the way through.

[Shelby]

9 hours ago, Smithy said:

I know some of you have had success with sous vide pork tenderloin. I'm looking for advice. I bought a pork tenderloin (the pair, actually) and pan-cooked one today to great success. Pork tenderloin can be dry if overcooked, but thanks to a dandy marinade, attentive pan work and probably dumb luck I made one of those dishes that I'd be proud to produce again.

 

All that said, I'm considering doing a sous vide treatment for the other tenderloin to see how well that works. Right now it's been rubbed with vegetable oil and a light dusting of @rancho_gordo's smoked pimentón paprika. The silverskin has been removed. The tail has been tucked under so that the meat is a fairly uniform 2" thickness x 4" width in the vacuum bag. The total weight is about 1¹/₄ pounds. 

 

I don't want to dry this out, and of course having blundered into something wonderful once I have a standard to meet for the next experiment. What do y'all recommend for time, temperature and finishing? Yes, I know I can look at Anova and Chefsteps, but I'm in a roomful of experts here. For those of you who like pork tenderloin done sous vide, what's your favorite treatment?

2 1/2 hours at 135F and then a quick sear  

[rotuts]

@Smithy

 

Im a fan of rare pork.    w SV its a snap , and there are no issues w pork @ 130.

 

I don't buy tenderloin as for me it doenst have a lot of flavor , just bland tenderness

 

Baldwin recommends 130 F 3-4 hours.    SV will not dry out meat , unless you go to a temp that causes the muscle to contract :

 

that's your Bag Jus.

 

 

[Smithy]

55 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

 

I do mine at 140F for 3 hours followed by a fast sear.  Pink all the way through.

 

42 minutes ago, Shelby said:

2 1/2 hours at 135F and then a quick sear  

 

What do you do about seasonings, either during the sous vide bath or during the sear stage? As @rotuts points out there may be an issue of blandness that needs to be overcome. 

[rotuts]

Id just coat you PT before you bag and cook w the seasonings of your choice.

 

I can't say if salt will draw out moisture from the meat. for a 3 hour cook.

 

I learned some things recently from Thomas Keller and Gordon Ramsay on their 

 

Master Class videos :    use pepper after you sear , as it will burn during the searing.

 

and don't reflexively use pepper , as in  " S & P "

 

 

[Shelby]

18 minutes ago, Smithy said:

 

 

What do you do about seasonings, either during the sous vide bath or during the sear stage? As @rotuts points out there may be an issue of blandness that needs to be overcome. 

I salt and pepper before putting it in the bag and that's it.  Salt and pepper are on the table if Ronnie wants more, which he usually does but he's a salt-a-holic lol.

[rotuts]

@JoNorvelleWalker

 

thanks you for your analysis of those two steaks.

 

you have pointed out something that a SV system cannot provide :

 

Tantalizing Aromas that linger and affect us when we eat.

 

The Roast Beef done in the Oven.  the Thanksgiving Turkey roasting for hours 

 

the SV steak ' char '  didn't help the steak at all ?

 

my thoughts are this :

 

If KFC  can make a limited edition KFC Candle , that fills you kitchen and home w the

 

#$R^#$)R%^@#^R#%^   scent of KFC   :    $%(Y$(%  Oil , etc all those fried herbs and spices   ...

 

some one can make a Bazillion Units of currency perfecting a

 

SV Candle   

 

ALL I ask for this Outstanding Idea is :

 

20 % for me ,  30 % for eG , and and the maker will get 50 % of a Bazillion Currency Units !

 

the aroma of Fine Cooking really do matter.

 

Ill leave the whole idea to anyone   ( 40 % to eG , please ) who does this w an aerosol .

 

hand pump or compressed can 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Just now, rotuts said:

@JoNorvelleWalker

 

thanks you for your analysis of those two steaks.

 

you have pointed out something that a SV system cannot provide :

 

Tantalizing Aromas that linger and affect us when we eat.

 

The Roast Beef done in the Oven.  the Thanksgiving Turkey roasting for hours 

 

the SV steak ' char '  didn't help the steak at all ?

 

my thoughts are this :

 

If KFC  can make a limited edition KFC Candle , that fills you kitchen and home w the

 

#$R^#$)R%^@#^R#%^   scent of KFC   :    $%(Y$(%  Oil , etc all those fried herbs and spices   ...

 

some one can make a Bazillion Units of currency perfecting a

 

SV Candle   

 

ALL I ask for this Outstanding Idea is :

 

20 % for me ,  30 % for eG , and and the maker will get 50 % of a Bazillion Currency Units !

 

the aroma of Fine Cooking really do matter.

 

Ill leave the whole idea to anyone   ( 40 % to eG , please ) who does this w an aerosol .

 

hand pump or compressed can 

 

Thing is it was not just the aroma.  The sous vide steak did not taste like much at all.  I really don't understand the difference in results.

 

[rotuts]

@JoNorvelleWalker

 

very interesting.

 

did you season the meat destined for the SV before you bagged it ?

 

which steak did you eat first ?   the PAG'd ?

 

Im happy how beef turns out for me SV.

 

but there were the Grill Days etc .

 

If I could find very fresh fish , fairly priced

 

Id be all over the PAG  for fish

 

Scallops ?  ( pls remove the tendon if it there.  A Cat would love it )

 

Salmon ?  closest to the Head , filet of steak ?

 

I have a friend who has a place in Woods Hole MA

 

a fish monger , Ive been there , very fresh fish, fairly pieced 

 

Ill point out to him he should consider the PAG for that place.

 

Ill have to motor down and visit.

 

he likes Wine , I like Wine 

 

seems like the right thing to consider.

[ElsieD]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

 

 

What do you do about seasonings, either during the sous vide bath or during the sear stage? As @rotuts points out there may be an issue of blandness that needs to be overcome. 

 

Just salt and pepper.

[Bernie]

What does steak taste like

Well...steak...

Well actually what most people think a steak tastes like is DIRECTLY the result of the way its cooked. If you boil steak it will probably taste horrible, just like boiled meat.

When we sear steak we are converting the amino acids and sugars on the surface to lovely tasty "steak" flavors (maillard reaction). Add burnt butter (or olive oil or any other fat) and you add even more "steak" flavor. Add salt before searing and the reaction changes a bit and we get more salty "steak" flavor. Add pepper and we get burned pepper tastes as well which my or may not add to the overall flavor. Also what happens in the searing process is we burn some of the fats to form charcoal which has its own salty flavor.

The lovely aromas of the maillard reaction, the burned butter, the burned fat all add to the aroma which is a major contributor to taste.

 

So what about the SV steak. Well SV is actually doing DIFFERENT things chemically to the steak. Depending on temperature and time it may be converting connective tissue to gelatin like substances and making some chemical changes to some of the fat. It may also change the surface proteins and amino acids so the searing isn't as effective at getting the maillard reaction.

Even the sear itself changes depending on the searing temperature and the time the steak is in contact with the very hot surface.

Remember the steak out of the SV will already be hot and as such the searing needs to be shorter to avoid overcooking the internals of the steak, so less "depth" to the maillard reaction.

 

So yes steak cooked SV should definitely taste different from a well cooked steak on a grill. Its tenderness, color, consistency of color through the steak will all be different.

Consider the flavor of fried chicken and roast chicken. They are both chicken but their flavors are distinctly different primarily because of the flavorings added prior to the cook and the time & temperature used to cook it.

 

So if you want that lovely "steak" flavor we are all used to cook it in the conventional way, but you are unlikely to get that particular flavor with SV. It WILL be a different taste. Its a personal decision on which way you prefer.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

11 hours ago, rotuts said:

@JoNorvelleWalker

 

very interesting.

 

did you season the meat destined for the SV before you bagged it ?

 

which steak did you eat first ?   the PAG'd ?

 

Im happy how beef turns out for me SV.

 

but there were the Grill Days etc .

 

If I could find very fresh fish , fairly priced

 

Id be all over the PAG  for fish

 

Scallops ?  ( pls remove the tendon if it there.  A Cat would love it )

 

Salmon ?  closest to the Head , filet of steak ?

 

I have a friend who has a place in Woods Hole MA

 

a fish monger , Ive been there , very fresh fish, fairly pieced 

 

Ill point out to him he should consider the PAG for that place.

 

Ill have to motor down and visit.

 

he likes Wine , I like Wine 

 

seems like the right thing to consider.

 

The sous vide steak was bagged with a bit of garlic powder and a few drops of liquid smoke.  Then salted for an hour while drying after removal from the bag.  The grilled steak was seasoned only with salt and then rested for an hour.

 

I cooked and ate the grilled steak first, for what it's worth, speaking as a quondam protein chemist.