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Hello fellow Sous Vide cooks... Looking for thoughts since.. I got one now.

Renae

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My son, without prompt, got me a Sous Vide cooker. I promptly cooked the easiest thing I could find. Eggs, and it was a bad experience. Then I tried "STEAK!" And that was not good. Chicken, has been much success. I broke down and got me a vacuum sealer because... it's the happening thing.

So has anyone here got experience with the Sous Vide? I'm about to try Steak: Take 2. I got two thick filet's sealed with some spicing and one fat ribeye for me. Quality meats. They will go in at 129F for 2hr and then I'll throw them on the BBQ about 60-90 seconds a side over grey glowing coals. Just to put the sear on them. I want to try not pan searing them, haven't BBQ'd a steak in a while, so I got a hankering.
 
My son, without prompt, got me a Sous Vide cooker. I promptly cooked the easiest thing I could find. Eggs, and it was a bad experience. Then I tried "STEAK!" And that was not good. Chicken, has been much success. I broke down and got me a vacuum sealer because... it's the happening thing.

So has anyone here got experience with the Sous Vide? I'm about to try Steak: Take 2. I got two thick filet's sealed with some spicing and one fat ribeye for me. Quality meats. They will go in at 129F for 2hr and then I'll throw them on the BBQ about 60-90 seconds a side over grey glowing coals. Just to put the sear on them. I want to try not pan searing them, haven't BBQ'd a steak in a while, so I got a hankering.

And this following your "salt steak" disasters....you sure do seem to have a lot of adventures in the kitchen.

I dont know anything here except I recently had the best short ribs ever that were done this way, at one of Ethan Stowells places...Goldfinch Tavern. Sadly I have no information on how it was done.
 
I can see why restaurants embrace it. But for the home cook, its not really necessary nor practical given the total time involved and what you get out of it. My wife experimented with it last year after we got a gift of the equipment and she now gave it up.
 
I can see why restaurants embrace it. But for the home cook, its not really necessary nor practical given the total time involved and what you get out of it. My wife experimented with it last year after we got a gift of the equipment and she now gave it up.

This might however be better than the cooking on salt block fad....I tried that, not a single thing was better than tried and true alternate methods.

I am currently busting them up and using them as salt in the food.
 
This might however be better than the cooking on salt block fad....I tried that, not a single thing was better than tried and true alternate methods.

I am currently busting them up and using them as salt in the food.

We have two salt blocks given to us as gifts.... never used them and they take up space. You might have the right idea.
 
And this following your "salt steak" disasters....you sure do seem to have a lot of adventures in the kitchen.

I dont know anything here except I recently had the best short ribs ever that were done this way, at one of Ethan Stowells places...Goldfinch Tavern. Sadly I have no information on how it was done.

HEY... I am being honest when it works or doesn't. You can't learn if you don't make mistakes, and I am very adventurous in the kitchen. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it isn't.
 
I can see why restaurants embrace it. But for the home cook, its not really necessary nor practical given the total time involved and what you get out of it. My wife experimented with it last year after we got a gift of the equipment and she now gave it up.

I work from home, so I got all the time in the world.
 
My son, without prompt, got me a Sous Vide cooker. I promptly cooked the easiest thing I could find. Eggs, and it was a bad experience. Then I tried "STEAK!" And that was not good. Chicken, has been much success. I broke down and got me a vacuum sealer because... it's the happening thing.

So has anyone here got experience with the Sous Vide? I'm about to try Steak: Take 2. I got two thick filet's sealed with some spicing and one fat ribeye for me. Quality meats. They will go in at 129F for 2hr and then I'll throw them on the BBQ about 60-90 seconds a side over grey glowing coals. Just to put the sear on them. I want to try not pan searing them, haven't BBQ'd a steak in a while, so I got a hankering.

Red:
Yes. It's brilliant, and since I buy thick steaks (1.5 - 2 inches), it's a "sure thing" way of making sure I cook to the right temperature. Sous vide is a method I use when I'm making a fancy meal. For everyday eating, I wouldn't even think of doing it because for routine nourishment meals, it takes too long; when I decide what I want to eat, I want to eat not more than 30 minutes after deciding.

Having said that, I've discovered that microwaving (like sous vide, it's something of a precision cooking technique) thick steaks works equally well, and like sous vide, it gets the protein cook started and gives one time to prepare other things while the protein cooks in "set it and forget it" mode. More importantly, however, m-waving is a hell of a lot faster.

To m-wave a steak:
  1. Fully thaw your steaks.
  2. Prepare the mise en place, including putting oil in a cast iron, copper or stainless steel skillet.
  3. Make sure you know the weight of the meat you're about to cook.
    • I generally buy my steaks in packs of two and m-wave them together. That's only because I'm too lazy to break out my scales and weight one steak. Be aware that the "tilt" you'll do when searing will necessitate a large enough pan for you fit two steaks int the pan and have an area from which you can spoon the melted butter. If your saute pan isn't large enough for that, when you remove the steaks from the m-wave, sit one of the steaks on a heated plate and cover it with a pie dish, foil or something to minimize the heat loss while you sear the first steak.
  4. Season both sides of the meat with S&P and put them on a plate.
  5. M-wave (assuming a 1000 watt oven; you'll need to "trial and error" these instructions if your m-wave is a different wattage) at 50% power for 10.5 minutes per pound if you're going for medium rare. (Use a calculator to determine the correct cook time.)
    • The chart to which I've linked indicates a time range. The reason I've noted the minimum in the m-wave than noted in the chart is because I generally sear my steaks after the m-wave has done the majority of the cooking. The searing process will continue the cook a bit more. If you're not of a mind to sear your steak, go with the middle of the time range specified for the doneness you want.
  6. Before the steaks are done, preheat the skillet with the oil. You'll want it hot enough that the oil starts to smoke. Ideally, the oil starts smoking five seconds or less after the m-wave beeps.
  7. Put a "glop" of butter (a tablespoon or two, give or take) in the skillet.
  8. Put the steaks in the skillet.
  9. Toss in a sprig of rosemary (or some other herbal aromatic) and two smashed whole cloves of garlic.
    • I put a sprig on top of the steak and one in the pan. I toss one of the garlic cloves on top of the steak somewhere in the basting process.
  10. Tilt the skillet at a low angle over the flame and use a spoon to baste the steak.
  11. Flip once the sear is done -- usually about 30 seconds.
  12. Repeat the "tilt" maneuver on this side.
  13. Sear the edges of the steak. (Or don't. Lord knows sometimes I'm only in the mood to sear the two main sides.)
  14. Let the steak rest for a couple minutes.
  15. While the steak is resting, make a simple fond sauce.

Notes:
  • If I wave two steaks but only eat one, I put the extra steak in the freezer. I've found that using the same cook times shown in the chart (~12 minutes per pound at 50% power) will bring a fully cooked steak from frozen to table-ready without materially changing the cook on the steak. Thus whatever was the time for two, I wave a fully cooked and frozen steak at half that time on 50% power.
  • If I'm just cooking for my own purely functional eating purposes, I often enough don't bother with searing. I just toss a pat of butter and fresh cracked pepper on the steak when it's done and resting. Some Lea & Perrins or A1 or other bottled sauce on the side for "fork dipping" will do just fine if I want a bit of basic pizzazz.
 
I can see why restaurants embrace it. But for the home cook, its not really necessary nor practical given the total time involved and what you get out of it. My wife experimented with it last year after we got a gift of the equipment and she now gave it up.

Red:
That.

There's no way in hell I'm going to sous vide a steak just to cook one for myself. If I'm having company for a "dining room" dinner that has a lot of other stuff going on in the meal preparation and cooking process, I'll sous vide steaks (or other protein) because then the error-free precision sous vide provides is worth it. To cook one or two steaks for dinner with my lady (or just myself) or when my kids are home, hell no, I'm not going to sous vide the things. There's a reason to learn how to pan sear, grill, pan + grill, oven broil, or microwave steaks.

"Sophisticated" and time intensive techniques like sous vide have their time and place, but, IMO, basic, "everyday"/functional eating isn't it. That said, if it works with one's lifestyle to sous vide, by all means, then go on do it. To be sure, sous vide makes it hard to mess up cooking things because all the moisture stays in the protein....inside that vacuum-sealed bag, the moisture doesn't have anywhere to go.
 
My son, without prompt, got me a Sous Vide cooker. I promptly cooked the easiest thing I could find. Eggs, and it was a bad experience. Then I tried "STEAK!" And that was not good. Chicken, has been much success. I broke down and got me a vacuum sealer because... it's the happening thing.

So has anyone here got experience with the Sous Vide? I'm about to try Steak: Take 2. I got two thick filet's sealed with some spicing and one fat ribeye for me. Quality meats. They will go in at 129F for 2hr and then I'll throw them on the BBQ about 60-90 seconds a side over grey glowing coals. Just to put the sear on them. I want to try not pan searing them, haven't BBQ'd a steak in a while, so I got a hankering.

Red:
You don't have to use a vacuum sealer. Ziploc bags are just fine so long as your diligent about compressing the air out of it. Whatever type of bag you use, make sure little to no air is in the bag. Too much air in the bag is the only thing I know of (other than the bag having a hole in it or coming open in the cooking process) that will fail the sous vide cooking process.

How do you know if you've gotten enough air out of the bag? The bag with the meat in it will sink when you put it in the water.
 
I got one of those FoodSaver things a few years ago, and they work great - when I remember to use them. :lol:

I've thought of using them for sous vide, but haven't yet. I just can't get past how everything will taste boiled. *Blech*

I like a little sear on all my food.
 
I got one of those FoodSaver things a few years ago, and they work great - when I remember to use them. :lol:

I've thought of using them for sous vide, but haven't yet. I just can't get past how everything will taste boiled. *Blech*

I like a little sear on all my food.

We use the food saver to marinate as we see fit. You should try it. It also works great for leftovers. I.e, leftover mashed potatoes are easily reheated in boiling water and they taste like the day you made them.
 
Red:
You don't have to use a vacuum sealer. Ziploc bags are just fine so long as your diligent about compressing the air out of it. Whatever type of bag you use, make sure little to no air is in the bag. Too much air in the bag is the only thing I know of (other than the bag having a hole in it or coming open in the cooking process) that will fail the sous vide cooking process.

How do you know if you've gotten enough air out of the bag? The bag with the meat in it will sink when you put it in the water.

I know how that works, but I just wanted one. It's got other uses so now I have a new reason :)
 
Red:
That.

There's no way in hell I'm going to sous vide a steak just to cook one for myself. If I'm having company for a "dining room" dinner that has a lot of other stuff going on in the meal preparation and cooking process, I'll sous vide steaks (or other protein) because then the error-free precision sous vide provides is worth it. To cook one or two steaks for dinner with my lady (or just myself) or when my kids are home, hell no, I'm not going to sous vide the things. There's a reason to learn how to pan sear, grill, pan + grill, oven broil, or microwave steaks.

"Sophisticated" and time intensive techniques like sous vide have their time and place, but, IMO, basic, "everyday"/functional eating isn't it. That said, if it works with one's lifestyle to sous vide, by all means, then go on do it. To be sure, sous vide makes it hard to mess up cooking things because all the moisture stays in the protein....inside that vacuum-sealed bag, the moisture doesn't have anywhere to go.

Well I got the meat cooked, but the fat.. was meh. I think 129 for 2 hours was not right for me. I will try higher at a shorter period, and grill it. The MEAT was good, teh fat was jelly.
 
Red:
That.

There's no way in hell I'm going to sous vide a steak just to cook one for myself. If I'm having company for a "dining room" dinner that has a lot of other stuff going on in the meal preparation and cooking process, I'll sous vide steaks (or other protein) because then the error-free precision sous vide provides is worth it. To cook one or two steaks for dinner with my lady (or just myself) or when my kids are home, hell no, I'm not going to sous vide the things. There's a reason to learn how to pan sear, grill, pan + grill, oven broil, or microwave steaks.

"Sophisticated" and time intensive techniques like sous vide have their time and place, but, IMO, basic, "everyday"/functional eating isn't it. That said, if it works with one's lifestyle to sous vide, by all means, then go on do it. To be sure, sous vide makes it hard to mess up cooking things because all the moisture stays in the protein....inside that vacuum-sealed bag, the moisture doesn't have anywhere to go.

I would never.





I've had sous vide steak. Meh. Done right it can be quite good. But pan sear/grill (or both) has always been better, imo.
 
I got one of those FoodSaver things a few years ago, and they work great - when I remember to use them. :lol:

I've thought of using them for sous vide, but haven't yet. I just can't get past how everything will taste boiled. *Blech*

I like a little sear on all my food.

Same. The caramelization- whether its meat or veggies, really adds to the taste. Its the reason why I stopped using my slow cooker.

I would never ever sous vide a steak- its either grilled or pan fried.
 
I would never.


I've had sous vide steak. Meh. Done right it can be quite good. But pan sear/grill (or both) has always been better, imo.
Red:
Sous vide doesn't preclude grilling or pan searing. Sous vide, grilling and pan searing all cook (increase the internal temperature) food. Pan searing and grilling do so while imparting a char on the outer surface. That char can be obtained simply by searing or grilling at maximum flame/heat. Rapidly obtaining the char is the point of adding the butter to the sillet in which one pan sears after having sous vide the meat. Butter and sugars burn at a relatively low temperatures; thus adding butter (brushed on the meat if grilling or to the pan if searing) greatly hastens the Maillard reaction by adding to the food something that burns quickly....and voila, Maillard reaction, char, achieved.

 
Same. The caramelization- whether its meat or veggies, really adds to the taste. Its the reason why I stopped using my slow cooker.

I would never ever sous vide a steak- its either grilled or pan fried.

Yup. I pan fried a couple of ribeyes tonight in my iron skillet. Perfect sear, perfect medium rare.
 
Red:
Sous vide doesn't preclude grilling or pan searing. Sous vide, grilling and pan searing all cook (increase the internal temperature) food. Pan searing and grilling do so while imparting a char on the outer surface. That char can be obtained simply by searing or grilling at maximum flame/heat. Rapidly obtaining the char is the point of adding the butter to the sillet in which one pan sears after having sous vide the meat. Butter and sugars burn at a relatively low temperatures; thus adding butter (brushed on the meat if grilling or to the pan if searing) greatly hastens the Maillard reaction by adding to the food something that burns quickly....and voila, Maillard reaction, char, achieved.



I spoke a little quickly/too soon. We've definitely started things in sous vide after a sear.
 
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