Sous Vide

I like to cook. A lot. Some people cook so they don't starve, I cook because I love cooking for people and seeing them enjoy what I have made for them. sct4a made mention of sous vide in the 50 best restaurants thread and I had never heard of it before. After spending the weekend reading anything and everything I could find about it, I am fascinated and have decided to give it a try. Tonight I ordered a Sous Vide Supreme with their vacuum sealer system. It's quite an expensive plunge to take blindly on the entry level equipment but I figured I would stay away from the higher end stuff($2100 for a chamber vacuum sealer?!?!?!) until I decide if it's something I really like. That and I don't know if I will ever be able to talk myself into spending $2k on something that sucks air out of plastic bags and another $1500 on something that makes water warm.

All that rambling and back story aside...

Anyone else have one of these or given this method of cooking a shot before? It seems very straight forward and pretty damn easy but I am looking for as much information as I can find and I haven't actually talked to anyone who has tried it yet. What can you tell me?

 

That's what I thought too until I found a lost of some restaurants that use it. Suddenly the odd's that I had eaten a meal prepared that way increased by quite a bit. Here's a list from the place I order my stuff from:

http://www.sousvidesupreme.com/cooking/svs-restaurants

It will be here this week.

I have a water oven on the way that is 1*f accurate.

My understanding is that you set the temperature of the water bath to the final internal temperature of the dish you are preparing. Eggs are at 146*f, steak at 135*f, salmon at 120*f, etc. Where does the 200*f come from?

 

Don't blame me! I believe sct4a is the one who got me to buy one based on the discussion of the technique in the top 50 restaurants thread. But yes, it looks like it will be a lot of fun.

Mine got here today. Going to try some scrambled eggs here in a little bit since they are supposed to be phenomenal. Doing chicken tonight as it is supposed to really show off the difference in cooking techniques well. I'll report in on the eggs in a bit.

 

So made the scrambled eggs per these instructions.

http://www.sousvidesupreme.com/community/2009/11/eggs-scrambled-in-the-french-manner/

Oh. My. God.

I will never make scrambled eggs any other way. They were amazing. The recipe says "You know the ones I mean–those with the delicate consistency of a velvety custard," and they aren't joking. "A velvety custard" is exactly how to describe them. The egg flavor was much more prominent than any other egg's I have ever had. I tasted them plain and then drizzled a little truffle oil over them. Made for a great lunch.

 

For dinner I did Sous Vide chicken breasts with just very simply seasoning. A little garlic, rosemary, pepper and a little bit of butter. They were the most tender chicken breasts I have ever eaten. I am indeed hooked. Tomorrow or Sunday I'm thinking I need to do a steak. Maybe a hanger steak of a flank steak to test the longer cooking of tougher meats.

I need recipes and my copy of Under Pressure won't be here for a couple days so spill it! I'm heading to the store tomorrow to find lots of things to try. I've decided it will be a gluttonous weekend.

 

Will do. I think there will be steaks some time this week and I will be sure and get some pics from here forward.

That's what I have heard as well.

Here is a pretty good guide i found to Sous Vide steaks.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/03/how-to-sous-vide-steak.html

Mainly because I am lazy like toys.

Consistent management of the temperature is the hardest part. Being able to buy something that just works and is consistent day to day should produce better results. With some of the safety issues that already exist with this method of cooking, throwing meat into hot water in a cooler has me raising an eyebrow.

This is a cheaper alternative to the one I got (which is still relatively cheap!). It works with rice cookers, slow cookers, etc.

http://freshmealssolutions.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=15&Itemid=31&TreeId=1&vmcchk=1&Itemid=31

 

Currently heating the SVS to 134 degrees to cook a flank steak for 24 hours and see how well this process lives up to it's reputation for turning tougher cuts of meat into amazing steaks. The steak has been marinating since yesterday. I'll post pictures and commentary tomorrow night.