SV arriving tomorrow...couple of questions

[SherryT]

So thanks to all you ENABLERS (grin), I ordered the Anova Precision SV thing-a-ma-jig and it'll be here tomorrow.

I've been reading and watching a TON of vids on YT (mainly the guy at Serious Eats, Helen Rennie, and Blue Jean Chef), so I think I'm ready to jump in as far as a steak or chops go.

My QUESTION, however, is about quite a few posts I've read here at SMF...when poaching/finishing sausages/etc, I see a lot of posts about putting them in the water "naked" (no bag), but I haven't been able to find anything about if doing that "can" muck up the SV machine ($140 isn't chump change to me!).

BTW, poaching/finishing "is" the primary reason I decided to go ahead and order one...there are a few recipes I wish to try that calls for poaching at a specific time/temp...cooking dinner using it secondary (at least at the moment, anyway).

Thanks!

 

[DougE]

I use my SV cooker regularly for poaching nekkid sausages. Cleanup is no big deal. No more than cleaning up anything else that comes in direct contact with meat. I mainly got it for that purpose, but steaks, chops, even asparagus and carrots find their way into the pot (all bagged). I have zero regrets with getting a SV cooker and it gets a lot of use.

 

[Carbon1960]

I have yet to see a recipe that calls for "naked".

 

[DougE]

I have yet to see a recipe that calls for "naked"

You ever seen a recipe that calls for poaching a sausage on the stovetop in a pot in XX degree water? That's what some of us are doing with our SV cookers. We are able to poach at more precise temps than a stovetop would allow.

 

[DougE]

Also, poaching directly in water in SV gives more of a snap to the casings then if we bagged them.

 

[DRKsmoking]

Great post thanks for posting and the ideas / help from DougE . very helpful for me
Thanks

David

 

[SmokinAl]

I have 3 SV circulators, so I gave this a try with the oldest one. It worked great, and have been doing it that way for a couple of years. It doesn’t hurt the SV & cleanup is easy.
Al

 

[chopsaw]

I see a lot of posts about putting them in the water "naked" (no bag), but I haven't been able to find anything about if doing that "can" muck up the SV machine

Bag or no bag , you'll need to clean it anyway . Especially if you have hard water . Here's how I do mine .
This is from hard water .

I use a small flower vase and go about 50 / 50 water vinegar .

Pick a temp and let it run .

Comes out clean . Easy and hands off for the most part .

As far as sausage goes , it just depends on what I'm doing . Anything that's in a hog casing get poached in a pot of water on the stove .
I have used the SV and when I do I don't bag IF it's a short soak , but have found faster and better results poaching on the stove .

Nothing says you can't bag the sausage and use the SV . Try out the different ways and see which you like best .

 

[tbern]

nice cleaning tip, thanks for sharing!

 

[Brokenhandle]

Good question, thanks for asking.
From a happy enabler here!
Another use we have used it for is reheated a chunk of ham for holiday meal at my parents. We didn't know for sure what time we were eating so after reheating simply took SV out of cooler, shut the lid and off we went...kept the ham perfectly warm till we ate.

Ryan

 

[dr k]

Bag or no bag , you'll need to clean it anyway . Especially if you have hard water . Here's how I do mine .
This is from hard water .
View attachment 647715
I use a small flower vase and go about 50 / 50 water vinegar .
View attachment 647716
Pick a temp and let it run .
View attachment 647717
Comes out clean . Easy and hands off for the most part .
View attachment 647718
As far as sausage goes , it just depends on what I'm doing . Anything that's in a hog casing get poached in a pot of water on the stove .
I have used the SV and when I do I don't bag IF it's a short soak , but have found faster and better results poaching on the stove .

Nothing says you can't bag the sausage and use the SV . Try out the different ways and see which you like best .

Yup me too 50/50 water and vinegar in a qt glass beer mug for ten minutes. You can use tooth paste on harder water stains but everything is clean with the 50/50.

 

[SherryT]

Thanks for the replies!

It's here...currently in it's inaugural cook (liverwurst to IT of 150F). Got it set up in a SS stock pot and am using a ham form/press contraption I got off Amazon for the meat...Madax Ham Maker (but I'm using my own thermometer...the one that came with it was WAY off!).

I'll let you know how it went!

 

[thirdeye]

I use a small flower vase and go about 50 / 50 water vinegar .

I do exactly the same thing only with a 1.5 pint mason jar (same diameter as a pint jar just taller.

 

[Dave in AZ]

Thanks for the replies!

It's here...currently in it's inaugural cook (liverwurst to IT of 150F). Got it set up in a SS stock pot and am using a ham form/press contraption I got off Amazon for the meat...Madax Ham Maker (but I'm using my own thermometer...the one that came with it was WAY off!).

I'll let you know how it went!

Sounds great, Sherry!
Say, I just looked at the reviews on that ham press... I hope you know to put the meat into a foodbag first, like a Reynolds oven bag, press all air out, and THEN put the bag into press? Most of the 1,2,3star reviews were from people who put meat directly into metal, so of course it stuck.

Also, spring isnt strong enough to compact meat. Depending on your meat amount... stick some wood blocks between it and lid to ensure really hard strong pressure. Really needs to be a screw though.
Couple people complained center not done... at 175f sous vide temp, it takes 1.5 or more minutes per mm diameter for things over 60mm. That thing is 100mm, I'd 150min , 2hrs 30 min, and be sure center is > 150f.

Lol reading all those angry reviews from folks who made basic errors with 30 seconds of research made me want to reply, I figured better to post here for you or future readers ;)
Can't wait to hear what you think of the press and your new SV!

 

[DougE]

If you like carrots, SV carrots are da bomb. I absolutely love them. Cooked in their own juices, a little butter, little bit of brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Since they are cooked in a sealed bag, there is no loss of nutrients or flavor into the boil water. These are fixing to go into the soak as soon as it finishes heating.

 

[SherryT]

Sounds great, Sherry!
Say, I just looked at the reviews on that ham press... I hope you know to put the meat into a foodbag first, like a Reynolds oven bag, press all air out, and THEN put the bag into press? Most of the 1,2,3star reviews were from people who put meat directly into metal, so of course it stuck.

Also, spring isnt strong enough to compact meat. Depending on your meat amount... stick some wood blocks between it and lid to ensure really hard strong pressure. Really needs to be a screw though.
Couple people complained center not done... at 175f sous vide temp, it takes 1.5 or more minutes per mm diameter for things over 60mm. That thing is 100mm, I'd 150min , 2hrs 30 min, and be sure center is > 150f.

Lol reading all those angry reviews from folks who made basic errors with 30 seconds of research made me want to reply, I figured better to post here for you or future readers ;)
Can't wait to hear what you think of the press and your new SV!

HA! I hear you about some of the negative reviews!

I cooked it at 165F for a scad less than 3 hours and it got done all the way through. As for removing it, I sprayed the inside with cooking spray before I filled it and it slid right out, but I had to put some muscle behind it (suction was holding it).

As for the flavor, it tastes good, but the texture leaves something to be desired. I'm quite sure it's totally my fault...I thought if I ground it once and then ran it through my food processor, it would emulsify better than it did (which is probably because I tried to emulsify too much at a time AND my FP is VERY old and VERY "broken in").

It's in the fridge now and when it gets cold and I slice it, I'll post a pic.

S

 

[SherryT]

About that liverwurst...it SMELLED good and the TASTE was "ok", but the TEXTURE was AWFUL! I mean jaw-locking awful!

All I can figure is a) I should have ground it at least twice (I ground only once), b) I tried to run too much at a time through my FP, and c) it simply wasn't powerful enough to get the consistency needed (only 400W AND she's old!).

So, I have a new FP sitting on my kitchen table...a Ninja Pro BN606, 850W, "peak" 1000W (whatever that means!)...and the chopping blade has TWO blades on the spindle instead of one.

So the batch I made is now dog food (with dogs, texture ain't a thing!). Gonna try it again during the week and I'm going straight over to Poli's site and use one of his recipes.

Sigh...

 

[Brokenhandle]

About that liverwurst...it SMELLED good and the TASTE was "ok", but the TEXTURE was AWFUL! I mean jaw-locking awful!

All I can figure is a) I should have ground it at least twice (I ground only once), b) I tried to run too much at a time through my FP, and c) it simply wasn't powerful enough to get the consistency needed (only 400W AND she's old!).

So, I have a new FP sitting on my kitchen table...a Ninja Pro BN606, 850W, "peak" 1000W (whatever that means!)...and the chopping blade has TWO blades on the spindle instead of one.

So the batch I made is now dog food (with dogs, texture ain't a thing!). Gonna try it again during the week and I'm going straight over to Poli's site and use one of his recipes.

Sigh...

Your dog thanks you so much!

Ryan

 

[SherryT]

Your dog thanks you so much!

Ryan

They love me bunches!