Recommended 2017 Sous Vide Cookbook?

[boilsover]

Solid intermediate cook, here.  Not especially intimidated by elaborate preps.  But I'm new to SV, and would like a recommendation for a cookbook for guidance and exploration.

 

I was thinking of Tom Keller's Under Pressure, but I'm wondering if the preps he includes may not be the most generally useful.  What do you all like, and why?

 

Thanks!

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Under Pressure must be the least useful SV book ever published...in my opinion.

 

I suggest:

http://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html

 

Of course one of the greatest sous vide resources on the planet is right here:

https://forums.egullet.org/

 

[ElsieD]

23 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

Under Pressure must be the least useful SV book ever published...in my opinion.

 

I suggest:

http://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html

 

Of course one of the greatest sous vide resources on the planet is right here:

https://forums.egullet.org/

 

 

 

I wholeheartedly agree.

[mgaretz]

29 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

Under Pressure must be the least useful SV book ever published...in my opinion.

 

I suggest:

http://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html

 

Of course one of the greatest sous vide resources on the planet is right here:

https://forums.egullet.org/

 

 

I agree as well.  The ChefSteps site is also filled with great info (and Douglas Baldwin works with them too). 

[btbyrd]

MC@H, fo' sho.

 

 

 

 

That's "Modernist Cuisine At Home," if you're not hip to the lingo.

[gfweb]

All of the above. Chef steps, serious eats, and above all eGullet. 

 

Kellers book is pretty worthless. 

 

Really , all one needs are time and temp charts

 

Edited October 17, 2017 by gfweb (log)

[Chris Hennes]

If you haven't already looked through our Sous Vide Index, it's a great resource, with a lot of the original discussion that turned into Modernist Cuisine. And I'll also agree that Under Pressure is not a very good learning resource. These days sites like eGullet and ChefSteps are better places to get started than any single book, with the very expensive exception of Modernist Cuisine.

[Anna N]

8 hours ago, Chris Hennes said:

These days sites like eGullet and ChefSteps are better places to get started than any single book, with the very expensive exception of Modernist Cuisine.

I agree and in time if one keeps careful notes, one will have the best reference of all. 

[rotuts]

Yes , your notes over time make all the difference.

 

far more often than not , the SV method cook's a single item , w or w/o seasoning.

 

Ive enjoyed SousVide Everything YOuTube vids

 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpFuaxD-0PKLolFR3gWhrMw/videos

 

please remember these guys are Brazilian Meat-Eaters , but they do some interesting things w fish

 

they also have compared  butter or no butter  etc  and have a decent review of circulators where you can see them in action.

 

if you wanted a book that has Rx's in it , w pictures to inspire you, consider :

 

 

Edited October 17, 2017 by rotuts (log)

[btbyrd]

When I started out with SV, there was only MC and Doug Baldwin's website. Chefsteps was just starting up, and soon became the best online resource for learning about cooking sous vide (and cooking in general, to be honest). Nowadays, you can buy a Joule that comes partnered with a smartphone app that has a ton of recipes and a "visual doneness" feature that's second-to-none. That's what I recommend to people who are new to SV -- or even who are looking for their second (or third) circulator. You can use the recipes as much or as little as you want. For my part, I almost never use the in-app recipes, but that's mostly because I already spent a few years cooking SV by following ChefSteps videos and recipes. But if you're new to SV, it's an excellent tool -- both as a circulator and as an excellent learning tool (in the app).

 

I'm pretty sure you can DL the Joule app for free and use it without a Joule. Or just use their website, which is excellent. But Joule is my favorite circulator out of all the circulators, so if you haven't struck out yet -- it may be the one to get. 

[boilsover]

12 minutes ago, btbyrd said:

When I started out with SV, there was only MC and Doug Baldwin's website. Chefsteps was just starting up, and soon became the best online resource for learning about cooking sous vide (and cooking in general, to be honest). Nowadays, you can buy a Joule that comes partnered with a smartphone app that has a ton of recipes and a "visual doneness" feature that's second-to-none. That's what I recommend to people who are new to SV -- or even who are looking for their second (or third) circulator. You can use the recipes as much or as little as you want. For my part, I almost never use the in-app recipes, but that's mostly because I already spent a few years cooking SV by following ChefSteps videos and recipes. But if you're new to SV, it's an excellent tool -- both as a circulator and as an excellent learning tool (in the app).

 

I'm pretty sure you can DL the Joule app for free and use it without a Joule. Or just use their website, which is excellent. But Joule is my favorite circulator out of all the circulators, so if you haven't struck out yet -- it may be the one to get. 

 

Thanks, good advice.

 

I went with the Anova because it has manual control, and that's all I'm likely to use.  The first unit developed a bad display, so I'm waiting for its replacement to arrive.

[rotuts]

also consider your Sv container.

 

regular pots are fine , but various sized ' beer cooler ' are inexpensive , light and might save a little wear and tear on the Anova's heating mechanism

 

that can be covered in various ways for long SV's  keeping the evaporated water in the cooler.

 

and they have a nice handle to move them around after they are emptied and you can SV anywhere and save counter space and cook top space.

[boilsover]

1 minute ago, rotuts said:

also consider your Sv container.

 

regular pots are fine , but various sized ' beer cooler ' are inexpensive , light and might save a little wear and tear on the Anova's heating mechanism

 

that can be covered in various ways for long SV's  keeping the evaporated water in the cooler.

 

and they have a nice handle to move them around after they are emptied and you can SV anywhere and save counter space and cook top space.

 

Thanks.  As I covered in another thread, I went with a medium-sized Igloo cooler, and I made a well-fitted cover out of a scrap piece of plexiglass.  Just cut a 2.5" hole near one edge for the circulator, so it should have very little evaporation.  And the Anova sits high enough that the bath will have a large, stable thermal mass; the water from the first steaks I did was still warm 24 hours after I put the cooler outside.

 

I also just ordered the IKEA SS accordion-type pot lid holder for a rack.

[rotuts]

this ?

 

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70154800/

 

very interesting

 

Ive found that w the extra insulation a cooler give you

 

once the bath reaches equilibrium 

 

there are not going to be hot nor cool spots in the cooler

 

but Il like to see a pic of your system after your get it set up w the IKEA thing-ey

 

always something to learn on eG.

[boilsover]

2 hours ago, rotuts said:

this ?

 

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70154800/

 

very interesting

 

Ive found that w the extra insulation a cooler give you

 

once the bath reaches equilibrium 

 

there are not going to be hot nor cool spots in the cooler

 

but Il like to see a pic of your system after your get it set up w the IKEA thing-ey

 

always something to learn on eG.

 

Yep, that's the one.  At $7, better than $43 for the LIPVAI-- https://www.amazon.com/LIPAVI-Sous-Vide-Rack-Collapsible/dp/B00PKGBMBA

 

Here's a pic of the IKEA rack in a Cambro.

[weedy]

My suggestion is to download the Anova AND the Joule AND the Sous Vide Dash apps

 

subscribe to ChefSteps premium

 

and beyond that, wait for the Dave Arnold low temp cooking book coming probably later in the year.

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 hour ago, weedy said:

My suggestion is to download the Anova AND the Joule AND the Sous Vide Dash apps

 

subscribe to ChefSteps premium

 

and beyond that, wait for the Dave Arnold low temp cooking book coming probably later in the year.

 

 

 

Any more information on the Dave Arnold book?  I might note the year does not have that far to go.

 

 

[weedy]

He's still writing it but he knows his stuff. And I suspect it will be a very useful and no nonsense kind of book. 

If you look at his Liquid Intelligence book I think you'll get an idea as to how informative he can be. 

 

To ME, I've yet to find a Sous Vide oriented book that has "recipes" I'd care about. 

Basically you can find charts all over the internets that tell you the range you can cook a particular food item to. 

 

Chefsteps, seriouseats, and the circulator manufacturers all have info at their sites. 

 

Plus the aforementiined useful apps

 

After that, it's down to how you finish things and what saucing or crusting or other flavouring you want to do. 

But THAT aspect isn't really so much about Sous Vide cooking as just your style and tastes in just COOKING. 

 

I don't need someone's steak sauce or pan sauce recipe  of questionable provenance when I can put whatever sauce I already know I like on a Sous Vide steak etc. 

 

 

 

 

[gfweb]

@weedy exactly. Just the time and temp and I'll rely on other recipes for saucing etc. 

[weedy]

http://www.cookingissues.com/index.html%3Fp=6.html