Searing - What Do You Use?

(Central Florida Bob ) #1

I’m finding myself in a puzzle I didn’t expect.

I bought my sous vide (cooker?) to prepare things for the smoker. I did a steak on Saturday and pork chops on Sunday and we both loved both meals. No smoker involved.

I kinda don’t like the idea of piling up charcoal in a grill, get the coals to the optimum color and all that just to sear for a minute or two. Aside from being between grills right now, it seems like a lot of hassle and clean up. I used the cast iron frying pan for the steak and another pan for the pork chops and that worked fine, although a bit messy indoors.

Is anybody using one of the searing torches? I read mixed reviews about aftertaste from the torches, but I don’t see why that wouldn’t happen with a propane grill.

Any input or advice on the searing tools?

(Brian) #2

It’s not quite an answer to your question but sometimes, I don’t bother.

Last weekend, I got a nice piece of chuck that I covered in a rub and stuck in the refrigerator overnight. Put in the sous vide for 48 hours at 139 degrees. Got it out this morning and just made some thin slices (only part of it) and had “steak & eggs” for breakfast, with a little of that good juice poured over just like it came out of the bag. Super moist, even on the inside. Super flavorful. And the rub had left enough color behind that it didn’t look “naked” or unappealing at all. Dang, that was good. And we have a little more than half of it left over for another meal.

If I am searing something, I tend to just put it in the frying pan for just long enough to get a little brown from a little butter in the pan. Haven’t tried it on a hot grill yet or used a torch of any kind.

Probably not real helpful, just sharing. :slight_smile:

(Bob M) #3

I’ve done it on the grill, but it’s a lot of work for little effect. I’ve even tried to add some wood chips, but things like steak and chops aren’t on there long enough to get any smoky flavor.

(Central Florida Bob ) #4

Thanks Brian, Bob M. I hadn’t thought of trying what you did with the chuck roast I cooked, but it went into the smoker for a few hours, enough to soak in the smoke flavor - to the extent it soaks in.

I know there’s almost a “cult of the cast iron skillet”, certainly a lot of fandom, but I did the pork chops in an aluminum pan with some sort of polymer coating. (Not sure what it is, very slick like Teflon or T-Fal but seems very resistant to scratching). I don’t think the meat cares. Temperature plus oil and butter mixed matters more. I think.

(Brian) #5

CFLBob, I’ve been hoping to find a smoker to add to the mix at some point as I love smoky stuff… smoky cheddar, smoky gouda, smoky steak, smoky chiken… just love the smoke flavor.

I did try putting a little liquid smoke in with the chuck when I sous vide it but the smoke flavor doesn’t seem to make it through the process.

I’m not sure where the smoking process fits in best… sous vide and then smoker? Or smoker then sous vide? … not that I have a smoker… yet! :slight_smile:

(Jason Barden) #6

This is what I use: https://www.harborfreight.com/propane-torch-with-push-button-igniter-91037.html

Connects to a standard propane tank and is far more powerful than a Searzall. Takes all of about 15 seconds to sear. To be honest, I didn’t buy it intending to sear meat but to start my charcoal smokers. But it works great and is cheap. Definitely not an indoor tool though!

(Central Florida Bob ) #7

Generally, sous vide then smoker.

There’s a technique called reverse searing done with a smoker that they call “Redneck sous vide” at Amazing Ribs.


What you do is put cold meat into the smoker and smoke it until the Internal temp is what you want (rare, medium, and so on), that puts a smoke flavor in but I don’t think it builds up the smoked food bark. Once you reach your temp, you pull it and sear it. It’s like using the smoker as the sous vide to get the internal temp where you want it.

If you sous vide a roast and then smoke 2-3 hours, you generally do get a bark.

A heads up that to smoke cheese, you need cold smoke. Smokers with an internal heat source (electric, charcoal, whatever) get hot enough to melt the cheese into a puddle. You need to keep the chamber temperature under about 80F, but cooler is better. I use a Masterbuilt electric smoker and to smoke cheese, I use their external smoke generator. That pipes cool smoke into the smoker’s box, and I put the cheese on a rack just above a large pan full of ice. There are guys who put a smoking box outside the smoker and run it through a long, metal dryer duct to cool the smoke.

Let me tell you if you like smoked cheddar, smoked pepper jack cheese is “da bomb”.

(Central Florida Bob ) #8

OK, I’ve seen those.

Over on Medium, there’s a guy who says the Sansaire torch is basically the Bernzomatic TS8000 torch, but get a MAPP cylinder. It seems he’s talking about using it in the kitchen with a cast iron pan.

I have a gas oven. I should raise the broiling pan up to where the flames ought to touch the steaks and give that a try.

(bulkbiker) #9

We bought an electric paint stripper type heat gun… but being mean got a cheapish one from amazon… don’t bother would be my advice… it kind of works but doesn’t get hot enough to give a decent sear so things darken a bit but no real crust… also tried with a small creme brulee type gas gun but that just seemed to burn everything. Still using the pan on the hob or the oven at the moment…

(Doug) #10

With propane or the hotter-burning MAPP gas, it’s nice to have a flexible hose between the tank and the burner/head as does the Searzall and Jason’s rig, above. That way the tank can stay vertical, rather than having to tilt the cylinder downward, as with a rigid attachment and the meat lying flat. I’ve never done it, but have read accounts of apparenty unburned gas/fluid causing a bad taste on the meat.

I’ve used a copper-core stainless steel fying pan. Works really well. Got it pretty darn hot, then ribeyes 30-45 seconds each side, and with tongs hold the edge of the steaks against the hot surface for 15 seconds or so - to melt some of the fat and char the edge. For pork chops, used some butter - helps make a golden toasty-brown sauce.

Definitely pat the meat dry after sous viding. Don’t want water to be hitting the hot pan - will consume a lot of heat boiling it off.

(Running from stupidity) #11

+10000000000000000

#12

Noted :yum:

#13

Last week I saw a hint from a keto chef somewhere on the interwebs regarding searing after sous-vide-ing >>> Lightly smear both sides of the cooked steak with a good quality mayonnaise, then drop on a hot pan for just a minute or two either side. Develops a nice brown sear very quickly (magic combo of oil and egginess and heat).

(Central Florida Bob ) #14

Not to mention increasing splattering.

Yeah, that’s something I’ve been doing. I’ve used the unscented coconut oil because of the lack of flavor, and then some Kerry Gold butter for the last 10 or 20 seconds. Because butter. Really improves the taste. I’ve never heard of the mayonnaise idea.

So it sounds like one recommendation for torch, but most people still use the frying pan method.

(bulkbiker) #15

https://anovaculinary.com/want-a-wicked-sear-grab-the-mayonnaise/

I hadn’t either but a quick google and voila!

(Central Florida Bob ) #16

HomerDrooling
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(Bob M) #17

In my opinion, this is not a good idea. Even if you use olive oils, you’re talking about 10% PUFAs, and heating PUFAs over high heat is a bad idea, as it causes degradation and potentially cancer-causing chemicals.

Instead, use butter (about 1/3 the amount of PUFAs in olive oil) and ghee. The butter will also brown, leading to increased flavor.

See, eg:

http://butterbeliever.com/what-is-pufa/

(Steve) #18

I had a Searzall previously - definitely does a good job.

Where I am now (temporarily) they have a small propane grill out back - definitely does the best sear on steaks.

A lot of people like using clarified butter in their cast iron pans - higher smoke point.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #19

Bob, you could also run the meat under the broiler for a minute or two on each side.

(Central Florida Bob ) #20

“Yes, but” - there are PUFAs in animal fat itself. More if grain finished than grass fed its entire life, but there’s still some. There was a discussion somewhere around these forums about PUFAs in commercial lard from pork fat, too.

IMO you can never get totally away from PUFAs. The best you can do is minimize the industrial seed oils (like corn, soybean, sunflower or safflower oils) found in just about all commercial mayonnaise and salad dressings. I’m personally a fan of Dr. Ballerstedt in the view that if you want omega 3s, you get a far better source and far larger amount in a few ounces of sardines or slice of salmon compared to a serving of grass fed beef. (BTW - I saw he’s on this forum now)

My wife has become a fan of making our own mayonnaise. She uses a mix of light olive oil (not EVO) and avocado oil. That’s what I’d be trying.