SV Why are the 'die hards' so afraid of Sous Vide?

[chopsaw]

Have never done veggies. Curious how long and what temps would you need to soften up something like say, baby carrots seasoned up ? Potatoes ?

Works great for vegetables . The corn is fantastic . Just watch what bags you use at higher temps . I've had cheap freezer bags fail . So I only use vac bags at higher temps .

 

[Bearcarver]

Have never done veggies. Curious how long and what temps would you need to soften up something like say, baby carrots seasoned up ? Potatoes ?

Here's an Index for all kinds of SV Veggie Cooks:
https://blog.sousvidesupreme.com/category/all-recipes/vegetables/

And if you look on the Left side you'll see all the other categories of all the other things to SV. I got this with my Sous Vide Supreme---Very User Friendly.

Bear

 

[Winterrider]

Thank you SGMan, Chop, and Bear. Appreciate it...
I do use vac bags 90% of the time.

 

[smokebuzz]

Not that I'm opposed to it, the only thing i like cooked in water is pasta. I'm sure boiled ribs will be a thing again some day. Until then, i'll continue to burn wood.

 

[johnmeyer]

Not that I'm opposed to it, the only thing i like cooked in water is pasta. I'm sure boiled ribs will be a thing again some day. Until then, i'll continue to burn wood.

Just to be clear, the food never touches the water, and the water is way below 212° F, so nothing gets boiled, and the effect on the food is quite different than my English mother-in-law produced when she cooked (everything was boiled).

And to the person cooking chicken at 160° F, I recommend doing it again, but at 142°. That is what is recommended by the "SeriousEats" site, which has a really good sous vide section:

Sous Vide Recipes

 

[Bearcarver]

Just to be clear, the food never touches the water, and the water is way below 212° F, so nothing gets boiled, and the effect on the food is quite different than my English mother-in-law produced when she cooked (everything was boiled).

And to the person cooking chicken at 160° F, I recommend doing it again, but at 142°. That is what is recommended by the "SeriousEats" site, which has a really good sous vide section:

Sous Vide Recipes

Just to clarify:
142° SV is Fine for White Meat, but not for Dark Meat.
Dark Meat is normally between 160° and 167°.

Bear

 

[atomicsmoke]

I jumped late on the SV bandwagon, thougjt it was just another kitchen gadget like those advertised on late night infomecials.

I was wrong ofcourse.

Having said that, not everything is what is cracked up to be. I was very excited st the beginning with the SV steaks (followed by a quicl grill sear). Then i found it was not as good as old school grilling. Especially for dry aged cooked rare.

 

[SGMan]

I jumped late on the SV bandwagon, thougjt it was just another kitchen gadget like those advertised on late night infomecials.

I was wrong ofcourse.

Having said that, not everything is what is cracked up to be. I was very excited st the beginning with the SV steaks (followed by a quicl grill sear). Then i found it was not as good as old school grilling. Especially for dry aged cooked rare.

And again, its not exactly a one size fits all tool. But it does some things on a level (consistently) that I can on a hit and miss basis. Im definitely a better home cooking artist with it in my arsenal. (Along with my smoker, airfryer, InstantPot, blowtorch...) Please don't tempt me with new toys, I got yelled at more than once for what I have now LOL

But always remember its a wand. A wand that does magical things to tougher cuts of meat.
Its a magic wand. Just let it happen

 

[johnmeyer]

Just to clarify:
142° SV is Fine for White Meat, but not for Dark Meat.
Dark Meat is normally between 160° and 167°.

Bear

Thanks for that. It is a very important clarification. More on this can be found here:

https://www.seriouseats.com/2015/07/the-food-lab-complete-guide-to-sous-vide-chicken-thigh.html#temp

 

[sigmo]

It is also fantastic for the most tender cuts as well.

What I use it for the most is tenderloin steaks. As I mentioned above, tenderloins seasoned, vacuum packed, then frozen can be pulled out of the freezer, cooked in the sous vide at 131F for between 3 and 5 hours, then quickly pan-seared in butter. The result is the best steak I've ever eaten, bar none.

And the ease of cooking is fantastic. They come out exactly the same every time. This is perfect for my wife and I because we both work, and are still able to enjoy a fantastic meal regardless of whether or not one of us gets home late.

I, too, highly recommend the Serious Eats site for excellent and highly scientific instructions on all things Sous Vide.

https://www.seriouseats.com/2015/06/food-lab-complete-guide-to-sous-vide-steak.html

The main point of Sous Vide cooking is that you cook to a perfectly controlled, perfectly uniform, and perfectly repeatable internal temperature as opposed to cooking based on time with the outside of the food exposed to a much higher temperature than the actual target temperature for the food.

Check out the articles at that site for various foods.

Does it do everything well? No.

Is it suitable for or better than anything else for all situations? No.

But it is an incredibly accurate and repeatable way to do certain things. It is highly recommended.

To those of you dismissing it without trying it or even studying it first: I don't understand your reluctance to give it a fair chance. If people gave up on all new ideas without trying them, we wouldn't even have fire, let alone smoking or any other form of cooking.

When I met my wife, she had grown up eating only meat her father had caught or killed, and then cooked by her British "war bride" mother. That meant meat was not easily available, and when it was, it was cooked to the consistency of shoe leather.

I invited her to my place for steaks. She hated steak, and was very reluctant. I prepared them as I'd learned to do, marinating them briefly to get them up to room temperature before grilling them starting over hot coals in my little Smokey Joe, which does a fantastic job for small batches, and is highly and quickly controllable. You can get a super high sear at the start, with incredible radiant heat from the raging coals, then cover the grill and close down the vents to get the longer, slower part of the cooking (still very fast, though).

She was amazed! She'd never had proper medium rare steak. She immediately fell in love with steak, a food she loathed all of her life up to that point.

Maybe that's why she married me! Charcoal grill courtship!

Anyhow, my point is that new ways of cooking something can be a revelation. Keep an open mind. Sous Vide wouldn't have any fans if it was bad. Why would a bunch of smoking and grilling fanatics embrace it if it sucked?

At least study it and appreciate it for the scientific and technical aspects. Read up at the Serious Eats site. Everything is explained well and has been researched extensively.

As has been stated over and over in this thread: It's an excellent tool to add to your arsenal. I promise, you won't sail off the edge of the earth and be eaten by dragons. Really.

 

[Bearcarver]

I jumped late on the SV bandwagon, thougjt it was just another kitchen gadget like those advertised on late night infomecials.

I was wrong ofcourse.

Having said that, not everything is what is cracked up to be. I was very excited st the beginning with the SV steaks (followed by a quicl grill sear). Then i found it was not as good as old school grilling. Especially for dry aged cooked rare.

Yup---So far the things I like the least in my SV, are Ribeyes & Prime Rib, but Ribeyes come out Great on my Grill, and what my Smoker does to Prime Rib shouldn't even be legal.
SV doesn't break down the fat, like high heat does.

Bear

 

[hoity toit]

I have 2 sous vide units, one mounted on an old ice chest, the other is much like a old roaster. The only reason I like them is because you can put multiple foods in at the same time and hold them till ready to serve. Basically a holding or warming oven. I do at times put a steak in and then sear it on the grill right before serving. It works for me, but a steak right on the coals is hard to beat.

HT

 

[johnmeyer]

The last few posts remind me of what it was like when I bought my first microwave oven in 1979. I thought I could use if for everything, and so I made brownies in the microwave (nothing but chocolate goo); biscuits (came out like Italian gnocchi); a roast (tough and tasteless); and, believe it or not, our Thanksgiving turkey.

The moral of the story is the same as for sous vide: it's not for everything.

 

[Inkbirdbbq]

I have 2 sous vide units, one mounted on an old ice chest, the other is much like a old roaster. The only reason I like them is because you can put multiple foods in at the same time and hold them till ready to serve. Basically a holding or warming oven. I do at times put a steak in and then sear it on the grill right before serving. It works for me, but a steak right on the coals is hard to beat.

HT

Yes. Such a great work requires the expenditure of much money and time. With the Sous vide, it's easier to work.

 

[Inkbirdbbq]

The last few posts remind me of what it was like when I bought my first microwave oven in 1979. I thought I could use if for everything, and so I made brownies in the microwave (nothing but chocolate goo); biscuits (came out like Italian gnocchi); a roast (tough and tasteless); and, believe it or not, our Thanksgiving turkey.

The moral of the story is the same as for sous vide: it's not for everything.

What an interesting experience,lol

 

[S-met]

Hot pot and fondue using SV to pre-cook the ingredients. Success, would definitely repeat. Its not a fix-all, but is a great tool when used properly.

 

[Inkbirdbbq]

Hot pot and fondue using SV to pre-cook the ingredients. Success, would definitely repeat. Its not a fix-all, but is a great tool when used properly.
View attachment 403742 View attachment 403743 View attachment 403744

That's awesome

 

[sigmo]

Yup---So far the things I like the least in my SV, are Ribeyes & Prime Rib, but Ribeyes come out Great on my Grill, and what my Smoker does to Prime Rib shouldn't even be legal.
SV doesn't break down the fat, like high heat does.

Bear

Interesting point about the way different heating methods render the fat in a steak.

There's something about the intense infra red radiation from hot charcoal that does the surface of a rib-eye, or T-Bone very nicely!

And the fat does get done differently.

I have yet to try prime rib in a smoker. Sounds interesting!

The last few posts remind me of what it was like when I bought my first microwave oven in 1979. I thought I could use if for everything, and so I made brownies in the microwave (nothing but chocolate goo); biscuits (came out like Italian gnocchi); a roast (tough and tasteless); and, believe it or not, our Thanksgiving turkey.

The moral of the story is the same as for sous vide: it's not for everything.

Microwaving is an interesting thing. I studied microwave theory a little in college, and got quite a bit of RF experience as a ham from the time I was a kid, and where I worked in the late '70s and early '80s. It's good to try to envision what's happening in a microwave oven to better decide how to use it for various cooking.

You need to think about what sort of a "load" different foods present to microwave radiation, and then visualize how the radiation field will expose the food, and how it will absorb (or not) that energy.

And then you need to think about how that energy will transfer into the food.

One of the best things ever was the MicroCrisp elevation rack. Getting the food up away from the bottom of the oven is an excellent idea so the radiation can bounce off the bottom of the oven and illuminate the underside of whatever you're cooking to make the heating a bit more even.

It's a pity they no longer sell those. Off topic, but microwave cooking is an interesting subject, for sure!

 

[Bearcarver]

Interesting point about the way different heating methods render the fat in a steak.

There's something about the intense infra red radiation from hot charcoal that does the surface of a rib-eye, or T-Bone very nicely!

And the fat does get done differently.

I have yet to try prime rib in a smoker. Sounds interesting!

!

Take your Pick:
Prime Rib Calendar (14 Smoked Prime Ribs)
Smoked Prime Rib (Double Birthday Dinner 2017)
Smoked Prime Rib (47th Anniversary Dinner)
Smoked Prime Rib (49th Anniversary Dinner)
Smoked Prime Rib (First of 2017)
Smoked Prime Rib (Apple Smoke)
Smoked Prime Rib (New Best Ever)
Smoked Prime Rib (Another One)
Smoked Prime Rib (Great Stuff)
Smoked Prime Rib (Best Ever)
Smoked PRIME RIB (Multiple Woods)
Smoked Prime Rib (Panned)
Smoked Prime Rib (Panned #3)
Smoked Prime Rib (Easter 2018)
Smoked Prime Rib with Apple Dust (July 2019)

Bear

 

[S-met]

Microwaving is an interesting thing. I studied microwave theory.
...And then you need to think about how that energy will transfer into the food.
...Off topic, but microwave cooking is an interesting subject, for sure!

We can tie this together and keep on topic.

Microwaves are awesome tools, but most people don't have a clue about their use. Most people just turn it on with no regard for power settings or wattage yet complain about poor results. That's like trying to smoke @500f° and wonder why your end results suck. Dial back the power and let it cook a little longer, you just might be surprised. Really helps reduce the molten outside/frozen center issue too.

I see the same thing with the new SV owners to a different extreme. Over and under cooking is a big problem because they don't understand food-theory and temperature/time relationships for the collagens to render. Too little time and its tough, too long and its mush.