Cooking from frozen and dry brining

[bmillin]

So I have a freezer full of cryovaced beef. I have done a few pieces sous vide in the bag straight from the butcher, seasoned and seared when ready. OK but not great.

I have a tri-tip in the SV now, plan is to take it out after 2 hours then SPG and an ice bath to let that soak in, then finish on the Weber kettle with SNS for some smoke and sear.

What are you all doing along these lines? I'm thinking about thawing just enough to get it out of the cryovac, season it up and rebag for a while when time permits.

[DaveD]

I have wondered this exact thing, and for that reason have not yet attempted SV from frozen. Will be keen to see the responses.

[CaptainMike]

The available moisture is the key to dry brining so thawing or partially thawing will yield the best results. For steaks (tri tip is just a big steak) and chops I'll cut the bag, salt and season the meat, then reseal and dunk it in the hot tub. But that's assuming there's enough of the bag end to do that. Otherwise, just treat it like you're treating your TT, then serve with a nice flaked salt.

[bmillin]

Another question along the same lines - What happens if you buy some meat and salt it before vac/freezing? Is there a downside to that? If not then you could just SV it in the bag straight out of the freezer.

[RonB]

I often salt then freeze. Works well for me. I wouldn't hurt to leave it in the refrigerator for an hour or to to give the salt time to dissolve and start to penetrate.

[mnavarre]

I buy rib roasts when they're on sale around Easter/Christmas, cut into steaks, dry brine over night, then vac pack and freeze. Then they're just grab 'n' go. SV, reverse sear, whatever.

[rickgregory]

This is what I do sometimes. You can do this with steak, chicken breasts etc. Keep in mind that if you salt for dry brining, you want to let it sit in the fridge for a little time so the salt can penetrate. Then vacuum seal and freeze. To SV, cook as you would a non-frozen steak, adding 30 mins to the time.

[Troutman]

All I can say is thaw, partially thaw, or whatever but get salt on the meat for as many hours as you can if not overnight. The benefits cannot be overly stressed. If you learn anything on this site, it’s the proper use of salt. That’s the mantra.

[DaveD]

Exactly what has stopped me from trying SV from frozen (or anything else, come to that). Doesn't seem surmountable.

[rickgregory]

DaveD see above. Salt/season, then refrigerate, then freeze. Boom, done.

[Bruce Z]

I use sous vide for most of my inch and a half to 2 inch steaks. Some frozen, some thawed, some salted some not. Usually seared in a red hot cast iron skillet for about a minute and a half on all exposed sides. With that said the steaks are a perfect 137 degrees. But I do not think I get the real deep beefy taste I'm looking for. Suggestions?

[Bogy]

I'm different than everyone else. I buy a side at a time, and it comes frozen. I let the chosen piece sit in the fridge as long as possible, a couple of days if possible, with salt. Then, when the meat is still under 30 F in the center, I put it on the smoker.