Sous Vide New User Question

(Sophie) #1

I finally bit the bullet on an Anova Sous Vide. I’m getting all twitchy here because I know it’s going to be a game changer and I’m really excited!!! :grinning:

So, I’ve been gorging on Youtube videos… I know that I can vac seal my meats and freeze them and then Sous Vide them from frozen. I know that what I don’t finish off, I can keep in the fridge and use when I’m ready in a day or two…I’m wondering if I don’t use it can I put it back in the freezer…then take out at a later date, thaw and finish? It stands to reason that once it’s cooked it can be frozen. I wondered about it for doing precooked meals for hubby when I go on vacation and he can just take stuff out and heat it up or finish in a pan or whatever.

What's your favorite kitchen tool?
(Mike) #2

I have had no issue doing just that. If the meat is sliced I use it for snacks, if it is unsliced then I re-sear it a little bit after the sous vide is done reheating it. One thing I don’t like is to pre-freeze it in a vac seal bag because I want it to be seasoned and it changes the texture of the meat when it is salted then frozen for a long time.

(Mike Glasbrener) #3

I love my Sous vide! I personally vacuum seal and freeze meats. My freezer is 75% frozen meat!

I will finish meat in broiler or with a food map torch. Or in the case of pulled pork in a pot on the stove. Comes out excellent every time.

(Sophie) #4

Thank you I did not know that. I was hoping to do the seasoning then freeze. I vac seal all my meat anyway but I don’t wash anything before I freeze my stuff. I do that after I’ve thawed it and get ready to cook it.

@Mglasbrener I have a torch for a regular propane canister. I haven’t heard of a food map torch. I saw the one that Brazillian guy at SousVideEverything on Youtube uses and it looks kinda scary.

(Brian) #5

Thanks for posting, Sophie! I didn’t know the answer to your question so am enjoying the replies as well. I’m still pretty new, too.

Hope you enjoy your new sous vide! It can’t be all bad when it made a tough cut like a chuck roast fork tender and juicy for me. :slight_smile: (And it only took a whole day to do it…) It does take some planning but it’s definitely worth it.

(Sophie) #6

I’ve got no problems pre-planning! As to the chuck roast, I can make it fork tender in my crock pot from cooking all day, or my pressure cooker within 45mins. I’m just curious about quality. I wonder if it’ll make me want to retire my CP & Pressure cooker to the garage one day! I already feel a cooler hack in my near future… :smile:

eta: chuck roast not chuck steak ffs

(Brian) #7

I’ll definitely be interested in your take of how it compares to the pressure cooker or the crock pot. :slight_smile:

(Sophie) #8

I wish it would get here already, but it’s due to be delivered on the 23rd. :persevere: I guess my corned beef for St. Paddy’s will have to go into the oven tomorrow as per usual. Still lookin forward to a Reuben though!

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #9

You really don’t need to season in sous vide. Seasoning post-sous vide, pre-finish provides roughly the same benefit.

http://sousvideresources.com/2017/05/15/the-nose-rules-the-tongue-and-why-that-matters/

Sous vide is extractive. All that jus in the bag. That doesn’t come out of the meat and then things go back in. That’s not how sponges work and it’s generally not how protein works either. Fish is an exception, due to very loose protein structures. Vegetables, by shape and porousness, are also exceptions that allow something like infusion.

The short is: Freeze, sous - shock - season - sear. Or Sous-shock-freeze-season-reheat/sear.

100% of the time, it works every time.

(Mike Glasbrener) #10

I’ll have to look when I get home. Mine takes a standard propane canister also. It’s like a creamer brûlée torch on steroids!

(Mike Glasbrener) #11

This is the one my wife purchased for me

https://sansaire.com/product/searing-kit/

It’s lots of fire/heat for searing finished meat!

(Missy) #12

I also read that pre-seasoning with salt can change the texture of the meat. Have you discovered if there’s any truth to this?

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #13

Yes. I usually use about half the salt that I might otherwise use.

It’s different on long cooks versus short cooks. 8 hours would be about the dividing line.

You can season in the bag. Some folks do. It’s unnecessary, but some folks find it adheres rubs better. But at no point should anyone get confused and think they are cooking the herbs, garlic (dangerous) or olive oil at 130*F.

(Missy) #14

I read something about this too. Why is it dangerous to cook garlic sous vide? This scares me because I love garlic and often use it in my salmon marinades and it would be a bummer if I couldn’t use it when cooking salmon.

(Sophie) #15

NICE! :+1:

Here’s mine lol :smile: … I guess it’ll get the job done! And it reminds me to make a Keto Brulee.

FirePower
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(Mike) #16

I have one almost exactly like that but I find I get better results with a smoking hot cast iron pan. That is probably due to my lack of torch skills. I guess I should have bought one of Elon’s flamethrowers for practice!!!

(Missy) #17

You might want to be careful using that on food.

Hardware Torch, Yay! Wait, Causes Cancer?
MAZTEC
Question: Is a hardware store propane torch safe to use on food? What do health inspectors think of kitchens that use them?

Problem: I have wanted a kitchen torch for years. After innumerable recommendations from pros and hobbyists alike, I put a hardware torch (Berzomatic) on my Christmas list. Surprise, I got one! A nice Berzomatic Propane (not MAPP!) with a brass nozzle.

Surprise! “This product may cause cancer in the State of California.” (paraphrase). Also, “This product may cause birth defects.”

Uhoh. I have a pregnant wife, who read the back of my new torch, and promptly told me I have to return it and cannot use it because it’ll kill or seriously deform the baby, her, me, and anyone else that eats my food.

Theory? My theory is that I’m not sticking the brass torch (which may contain lead) into the food, in fact it’s not even in direct line of the flame, all it does is focus and mix the gas. Plus, the temperature the torch metal gets to isn’t high enough to melt it. And anything that burns causes cancer in California, because combustion causes cancer.

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #18

Botulism spores. Raw garlic has them, they love to grow in anaerobic environments at sous vide temperatures.

Use garlic powder, granulated garlic, roasted garlic, or pre sear your garlic.

Or don’t put it in the bag and add it to a pan sauce made with the filtered purge.

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #19

Also, you don’t need a torch to finish sous vide items.

Shock them in ice-water until the surface is cool… five minutes, then sear in a hot pan with a wee bit of oil, or shallow fry, or deep fry. Deep fry produces the best sear. But frequently not worth the effort of heating a bunch of oil.

(matt ) #20

Chuck roast in the Sous vide is awesome but its nothing like the typical post roast preparation. Its more like a huge tender steak…I posted a pic somewhere…let me find it.