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

Porthos · February 26, 2017

Sincere question. Which came first, SV as a tool for things like steaks in restaurants or for the Modernist Cuisine uses?

paulraphael · February 26, 2017

54 minutes ago, Porthos said:

Sincere question. Which came first, SV as a tool for things like steaks in restaurants or for the Modernist Cuisine uses?

Well, "modernist cuisine" is a made-up name that covers all kinds of things, and I'd argue it's a lousy description for most of them. Many people would consider SV a modernist technique no matter what you're doing with it.

Here are the origins, according to the Oracle of Wikipedia:

The method was first described by Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford in 1799 (although he used air as the heat transfer medium).[2][3] It was re-discovered by American and French engineers in the mid-1960s and developed into an industrial food preservation method.[4] The method was adopted by Georges Pralus in 1974 for the Restaurant Troisgros (of Pierre and Michel Troisgros) in Roanne, France. He discovered that when foie gras was cooked in this manner, it kept its original appearance, did not lose excess amounts of fat, and had better texture.[4] Another pioneer in sous-vide is Bruno Goussault, who further researched the effects of temperature on various foods and became well known for training top chefs in the method. As chief scientist of Alexandria, Virginia-based food manufacturer Cuisine Solutions, Goussault developed the parameters of cooking times and temperatures for various foods.[4]

I wonder if the industrial food preservation method from the 60s is boil-in-bag.

The Modernist Cuisine books don't make a claim about the first restaurant use, but offer this as a conspicuous early story:

On a September evening in 1985, a privileged group of diners sat down to enjoy the cuisine of Joel Robuchon, a legendary French chef whose Jamin restaurant in Paris had earned three Michelin stars and a reputation as one of the best in the world. It was in many respects a typical Thursday dinner scene, with business executives and politicians on expense accounts settling into plush leather chairs before tables set with the very best linens, china, and silver. Michel Cliche, Chef Robuchon's trusted aide of many years, was overseeing the cooking and presentation to ensure that the food met Robuchon's renowned standards.

It did not disappoint, and as the guests ate they were also treated to a remarkable accompaniment to their meal: a view of the French countryside whizzing by in a blur. For this evening they were dining not in Jam in but in the Nouvelle Premiere car of an eastbound bullet train streaking from Paris to Strasbourg. Even more amazing, the entire meal had been cooked days before in an experimental kitchen in the depths of the Gare de l'Est train station. Mr. Cliche had been able to reheat the food in the cramped galley of the dining car without diminishing its quality.

Edited February 26, 2017 by paulraphael (log)

Porthos · February 26, 2017

@paulraphael Thank you.

Porthos · February 28, 2017

No pictures. But then again a bowl of stew isn't all that photogenic.

Experiment. Cooking the stew meat SV, steaming the vegetables, then combining and thickening just before serving. 1 1/2 pound unknown cut of boneless beef out of the freezer. Cubed to a little smaller than an inch, then into the bag with a cup of beef broth, a can of mushrooms chopped up and the last of a bottle of Shiraz. 2 1/2 hours at 145 F. Steamed cubed carrots and potatoes. Everything went into a chef's pan, brought it to a gentle boil and adjusted the seasoning. Finally I stirred in a flour/water slurry.

Overall it made a decent stew but my DW and I agreed that 2 /12 hours wasn't long enough to get the meat really tender. It was acceptable as is, but just.

**Shelby** · February 28, 2017

9 hours ago, Porthos said:

No pictures. But then again a bowl of stew isn't all that photogenic.

Experiment. Cooking the stew meat SV, steaming the vegetables, then combining and thickening just before serving. 1 1/2 pound unknown cut of boneless beef out of the freezer. Cubed to a little smaller than an inch, then into the bag with a cup of beef broth, a can of mushrooms chopped up and the last of a bottle of Shiraz. 2 1/2 hours at 145 F. Steamed cubed carrots and potatoes. Everything went into a chef's pan, brought it to a gentle boil and adjusted the seasoning. Finally I stirred in a flour/water slurry.

Overall it made a decent stew but my DW and I agreed that 2 /12 hours wasn't long enough to get the meat really tender. It was acceptable as is, but just.

Throw it in your IP for 5 or 10 mins

Porthos · February 28, 2017

@Shelby That would mean another pot to wash. I'm too lazy. :blush: More time in the SV bath should do the trick.

Martin Fisher · February 28, 2017

On 2/3/2017 at 3:19 PM, FrogPrincesse said:

Does anybody have experience with sous vide pickles? Are they as nice & crunchy as the video suggests?

Yes, it's how I prepared my pickled green beans this past season — they turned out very crunchy!

weedy · March 1, 2017

Pork chops (from D'Artagnan)

138 F.

Glazed with a vaguely Asian sauce I threw together and under the broiler for 2 mins.

Anson Mills heritage grits.

Charred green onions.

And a Manhattan. (Not Sous Vide)

Anna N · March 3, 2017

A pork tenderloin (57°C for 90 minutes). I trimmed it of silver skin, cut it into two pieces, tied the thinner end with some string so that it was about the same diameter all the way through and bagged the 2 halves separately with just a smidge of oil. I am sure @rotuts will encourage me to go lower temperature-wise and I may do so another time but I'd like to see this first. There is only one of me and half of a pork tenderloin is plenty of protein for a meal which explains why I made two pkgs. I am making an onion maple cream sauce for the half that I will eat today.

**Shelby** · March 3, 2017

2 minutes ago, Anna N said:

A pork tenderloin (57°C for 90 minutes). I trimmed it of silver skin, cut it into two pieces, tied the thinner end with some string so that it was about the same diameter all the way through and bagged the 2 halves separately with just a smidge of oil. I am sure @rotuts will encourage me to go lower temperature-wise and I may do so another time but I'd like to see this first. There is only one of me and half of a pork tenderloin is plenty of protein for a meal which explains why I made two pkgs. I am making an onion maple cream sauce for the half that I will eat today.

57c/135F is my perfect temp for pork t-loin. So you're spot on in my book I think rotuts likes it at that temp too but I could be mistaken.

Anna N · March 5, 2017

The other pork tenderloin is now taking a swim at 57°C for one and a half hours. Once again I split it into two after trimming it. These two packages will be chilled down and frozen for future dinners. Not sure why I didn't do everything at once. Have not yet jumped on @rotuts bulk SV band wagon. But it would make a lot of sense.

**FrogPrincesse** · March 7, 2017

Chicken drumsticks, 4 hours @ 74C with some garlic, parsley, thyme & a bay leaf. Very tender, but they could have been a bit more juicy.

Chicken drumsticks sous vide with potatoes sarladaises

**FrogPrincesse** · March 8, 2017

Chicken breasts (bought without the skin unfortunately; that's all I could find at TJ's at the time). 66C for 2 hours with lemon zest, rosemary and garlic.

They were tender and perfectly cooked throughout, but in an almost too perfect way where the meat didn't really look like real meat to me anymore!

I didn't care very much for them on their own, but I repurposed the leftovers to make fresh salad rolls which were terrific (and super fun to make with my 10-year old daughter).

Fresh salad rolls with romaine, mint, sous-vide chicken breast, red carrots, radishes

JoNorvelleWalker · March 8, 2017

Last night was third and last of a package of small (probably rib end) filet mignon steaks. The first I pan cooked conventionally. It was very good but somewhat overdone to my taste except in the very middle. The second I cooked sous vide at 55 deg C. and briefly seared. This was excellent.

For the third I tried to replicate the second. Sadly the result was dry and mealy. I am incompetent or there are variables I have not identified. Possibly I got carried away with the searing, though I can't see how that would result in a mealy texture. (Though still pink.)

These steaks looked like three cuts from the very same psoas major from the same cow.

Now I understand how some say sous vide steak is wonderful and some say sous vide steak is dry and inedible.

**Smithy** · March 8, 2017

12 hours ago, FrogPrincesse said:

Chicken breasts (bought without the skin unfortunately; that's all I could find at TJ's at the time). 66C for 2 hours with lemon zest, rosemary and garlic.

They were tender and perfectly cooked throughout, but in an almost too perfect way where the meat didn't really look like real meat to me anymore!

I didn't care very much for them on their own, but I repurposed the leftovers to make fresh salad rolls which were terrific (and super fun to make with my 10-year old daughter).

<photos removed to shorten the quote>

The rolls look like a nice use of that meat, FP. In my limited experience (so far) with sous vide chicken breasts I've had similar experiences. I very much like the texture, moisture and flavor of that meat for things like chicken salads, but it seems...wrong, somehow...straight up, even though it looks good. I think the texture may be too tight for my tastes, if that makes any sense.

Edited March 8, 2017 by Smithy
Shortened the quote (log)

blue_dolphin · March 8, 2017

I don't mind having some sous vide chicken breast on hand for making salads, sandwiches or something like those tasty looking salad rolls but I think the best SV thing to do with a boneless, skinless chicken breast is to pound it out and roll it up with something tasty - prosciutto, cheese, pesto, spinach and mushrooms....- plastic wrap or string to secure the rolls, bag them up and SV away!

Edited March 8, 2017 by blue_dolphin
to add photos (log)

**Smithy** · March 8, 2017

19 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

I don't mind having some sous vide chicken breast on hand for making salads, sandwiches or something like those tasty looking salad rolls but I think the best SV thing to do with a boneless, skinless chicken breast is to pound it out and roll it up with something tasty - prosciutto, cheese, pesto, spinach and mushrooms....- plastic wrap or string to secure the rolls, bag them up and SV away!

I hear ya. I've been experimenting with that approach, with mixed success. My biggest problem is pounding the breast thin enough. I may be starting with too-large chicken breasts; my last two attempts resulted in gargantuan rolls that were almost too unwieldy to tie. Pound, try to roll; pound more, roll, tie, SV...then brown before serving, and slice. We have liked the results - that is, thought the taste was well worthwhile - but presentation has been unimpressive. I seem not to have kept any photos to show what I mean.

When you cook those rollups, then cut them in cross-section, do you have enough overlap on the roll to make a spiral, or is it more like a ring of chicken with a filled center?

blue_dolphin · March 8, 2017

@Smithy, I know what you mean about those enormous chicken breasts that often come in the "value" packages. Where do those mutant birds come from? I think I'd run the other way if I ran into a live chicken that big!

This guy has a video with a nice trick for creating a pocket in the breast to contain the filling. I haven't tried that. I usually cut it the way he shows but cut it all the way open instead of leaving the pocket. Then put it between plastic wrap and go to town pounding on it.

I will try the pocket method next time.

paulraphael · March 8, 2017

9 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

@SmithyI think I'd run the other way if I ran into a live chicken that big!

You could walk away casually. Those mutant birds don't get around so well.

**Smithy** · March 8, 2017

14 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

@Smithy, I know what you mean about those enormous chicken breasts that often come in the "value" packages. Where do those mutant birds come from? I think I'd run the other way if I ran into a live chicken that big!

This guy has a video with a nice trick for creating a pocket in the breast to contain the filling. I haven't tried that. I usually cut it the way he shows but cut it all the way open instead of leaving the pocket. Then put it between plastic wrap and go to town pounding on it.

I will try the pocket method next time.

The pocket method looks worth trying. Thanks for that link!

**FrogPrincesse** · March 9, 2017

I forgot to report on my sous vide steak here. This was a Delmonico (bone-in rib eye), about a pound so not very thick (about 2 cm / 3/4 in). I referred myself to the excellent ChefSteps cooking guide (on my phone there are videos showing meat texture in great detail) and went with 54C / 129F for 1 hour, which is also what is recommended by Serious Eats for medium-rare, and finished the steak on a hot grill. I was concerned that it was going to continue to cook on the grill but it was fine except for a small spot where the grill was apparently hotter.

The first thing I noticed compared to grilling was that there was no need for a resting period, and this was great because the steak tends to cool down a bit during that time. Also I noticed right away when slicing that it wasn't losing the juices that it usually does. Lastly, it was cooked very uniformly which was really nice (except for that one small spot where the grill was hotter).

I really like this technique; I imagine that it would be a fool-proof way to cook a very thick steak perfectly, which is always a bit tricky on the grill.

Porthos · March 9, 2017

A sirloin steak seasoned with Garlic Festival Mesquite grill, 132.5 F for 4 1/2 hours, then patted dry, salted and seared in a CI Pan. I've used this seasoning this way before but today it just didn't work. Fortunately I made risotto so there was something tasty on the plate.

rotuts · March 10, 2017

in the St.Patrick thread :

Dave W · March 11, 2017

Can we talk a little more about the egg bites? I just bought 12 half pint jars to make these for next week. I'm reading that 68F is a desirable temperature. Once pasteurized what's the shelf life for these in sealed mason jars at 35F?