Steaks and chicken breasts are, in my opinion the two easiest places to start. Steak is less exciting if you can already nail a good steak, but cooking chicken breasts at temperatures you really can't otherwise is eye-opening. Thick hamburgers are really nice too, just make sure you look up "water displacement method" first since a vacuum sealer will squish them. Pork tenderloin is another favorite around here.
Most of the other places where sous-vide really shines takes a lot of time if you want to do really interesting stuff. For instance, I've got a couple chuck roasts cooking at 131ºF right now that, when done, will have spent at least 60 hours in the bath. You can replicate the effects of BBQ-style low'n slow cooks without also overcooking the meat. This leads to medium rare chuck roasts and brisket that are practically fork tender. (Then into an ice bath and into the smoker for a little while.)
While I have no specific data on the matter, I'm going to guess the electricity used to cook the meat with a water circulator—particularly if the basin is insulated—even if it's from a coal-burning source is probably has less environmental impact than burning charcoal, gas, or pellets. The plastic bags are a factor, but I've even got some reusable silicon bags that work okay.
There are certain things you just can't do without sous-vide, unless you can show me another way to produce tender medium-rare brisket. There's no other close to sure-fire food safe way to make medium rare steakhouse burgers either. Same goes for chicken breasts. Breasts that are cooked safely at 145ºF can't be cooked safely in any other way that I'm aware of.
Lots of us sous-vide in conjunction with smoking—before and after. It's just another tool. Heck, using the techniques around here without a grill, I've made some pretty darn good ribs using my oven. At the end of the day, cooking is about temperature control. From sous-vide to open fires, it's very much the same. And most sous-vide cooks require finishing via another method anyway.
Most of the other places where sous-vide really shines takes a lot of time if you want to do really interesting stuff. For instance, I've got a couple chuck roasts cooking at 131ºF right now that, when done, will have spent at least 60 hours in the bath. You can replicate the effects of BBQ-style low'n slow cooks without also overcooking the meat. This leads to medium rare chuck roasts and brisket that are practically fork tender. (Then into an ice bath and into the smoker for a little while.)
Originally posted by mountainsmoker
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There are certain things you just can't do without sous-vide, unless you can show me another way to produce tender medium-rare brisket. There's no other close to sure-fire food safe way to make medium rare steakhouse burgers either. Same goes for chicken breasts. Breasts that are cooked safely at 145ºF can't be cooked safely in any other way that I'm aware of.
Lots of us sous-vide in conjunction with smoking—before and after. It's just another tool. Heck, using the techniques around here without a grill, I've made some pretty darn good ribs using my oven. At the end of the day, cooking is about temperature control. From sous-vide to open fires, it's very much the same. And most sous-vide cooks require finishing via another method anyway.
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