I've had the Anova for a few years now and get the science behind it and have had delicious steaks from it! My problem is I don't feel I'm using it enough! I guess I need to be convinced of the benefit of having a freezer full of Sous vide prepared proteins for future use! I just dont see the need , convenience or advantage of taking meats, etc... out of the freezer , re-sous viding them and searing them either on the grill or on the stove for service. Seems like a lot of double work! How many of you sous vide and store vs. sous vide and serve ?? And exactly how convenient is it to do so?? Am I missing something?? Thanks in advance.
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Curious as to why you would “re-sous vide” them? Do you mean vacuum seal first, then SV?
I like the convenience, but I guess if you don’t need that, that is not really a benefit for you. I also like the taste of a perfectly cooked steak wall to wall. -
I like to SV Chicken Breasts, Boneless Pork Chops, Tri Tip, Flank Steak, etc. then sear and serve right away.Last edited by Skip; November 29, 2022, 12:02 PM.Comment
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If I sous vide, it is always for service that day. Preparing things in advance and sealing is the way I have done it in the past - I don't use mine a whole lot anymore. Just got a new vacuum sealer, my old FoodSaver died, so I might have more use for it this winter.Comment
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Every time I sous vide, I’m really impressed with the results. That’s what, maybe once every two years or so? Naw, probably once a year. Somewhere in that range.Comment
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Not sure I'm following your procedure but I take the fresh meat, season then seal in bag and freeze. I can then remove from the freezer and sous vide from frozen, sear when done. Works excellent and I don't have to remember to take tomorrows dinner out of the freezer to thaw today.Comment
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I've become a huge fan of SV but I don't think it's the universal application for all foods I prepare. I actually have two SV cookers in case I need to prepare two foods at different temps at the same time. It's one method in my repertoire that I tend to use only when I think there's a net benefit to the food outcome or for convenience to manipulate time.Comment
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RlsRls to answer your question - no - there is no advantage to sous-vide cooking a protein, then freezing, and then reheating and searing at a future date. In fact, there are probably disadvantages to that approach, as the meat may have been previously frozen, and now you are refreezing it, and freezing always removes moisture.
You would be better served by having ready to go vacuum bags that you can drop in the sous vide and have them cooked to the temp you want, and seared the day you eat them. To me the convenience of sous vide is that I can actually pull something like a prepped and frozen steak, pork loin, etc, drop it in an ice bath with the Anova on the edge, and go to work. Before the ice melts, I can kick on the Anova remotely and have it ready to sear when I come home at 5pm. I use my Anova most in the winter, when I don't feel like cooking outside, to do steaks. I'll drop them in at 131F for an hour, then come back at my convenience and sear them in a hot skillet on the stove.
That said, I've only done the above a few times. I did it for a bunch of steaks which I planned to serve for lunch after church. I had Anova cook them to 131F about an hour before I got home, and all I did was fire up my gas grill on high heat and sear the steaks on the flat side of Grillgrates, to each persons desired doneness - about half medium-rare and the other half medium-well. I've also done a bacon wrapped pork loin that way, and seared it in a hot oven (with the oven programmed to preheat before I got home).
What you are talking about doing with the pre-cooking, freezing, then thawing and searing, is leftovers. That's not the point of sous vide. If you want to do that, I would just take it the whole way, sear and all, before freezing for quick microwave meals down the road.
All that said, I've had an Anova for years - the wifi model - and I only use it 5-6 times a year, mostly in winter. The rest of the year, I prefer to cook my steaks and such on the grill outside. I prefer the flavor from cooking it with smoke and flame...Comment
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If you are talking about quick cooking proteins (steak, chicken breast), I don't know why you would sous vide first, then freeze, then sous vide again to serve. The reheat SV would take nearly as long as the original cook so you are just adding in an necessary step by cooking then freezing.
The benefit to sous vide for those kind of proteins are that you are pretty much guaranteed not to overcook (great for a chicken breast) and its hands off, despite the longer time. You can drop a steak in a sous vide set to 131 and walk away for an hour or four and then finish searing for 2 minutes. Similarly, you can cook a frozen (raw) protein directly from the freezer without defrosting and not have to worry about the inside being undercooked or still frozen
The only time I would cook sous vide and then freeze is if I was doing a longer cook, like a braised short rib type dish or more recently, before thanksgiving I did "confit" turkey thighs in SV and cooked them 24 hours before freezing.
Sous vide is already great at reheating meats from the freezer, regardless of original cooking method. I use it to reheat pastrami, brisket, ribs, etc that I previously smoked before vacuum sealing and freezing. Right from the freezer and drop in the SV at ~140-145 degrees. No overcooking, no drying out, etc.
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There are a ton of SV guides on what to cook sous vide and how, so for inspiration, I'd just look around. But for me, SV is a technique to use in three cases:
One, you want something cooked to a very precise temp. Eggs are a great example. Steak and other meats if you want to be able to cook to a precise doneness and have the meat be that doneness all the way through.
Two, when you have a tough protein that you want to be tender but that you don't want well done (see the various posts here on medium rare brisket where one SVs to 135F, shocks and chills, then smokes back to that temp to get smoke on it) OR when you don't want to or can't do a long traditional cook.
Three, when the flavors are better this way - some veggies, lobster etc.
Things like lobster (or shrimp) combine a couple of the above. A lobster or shrimp roll SV to temp in butter is incredibly tender and tastes amazing but you also get the advantage of precision.
But it's like deep frying. Most people deep fry very rarely at home. But it can be a nice tool to have in your kitchen for the few times you want to use it.Last edited by rickgregory; December 2, 2022, 11:49 AM.Comment
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Steaks? mainly sous vide and serve. (after searing of course) but chicken is a mix. I usually sous vide 6-8 thighs and keep them in the fridge. I pop one or two in the toaster oven on broil (each side) after drying off and adding a rub and they are hot in the middle by the time they are seared (I have worked this out).Comment
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SV is great for frozen leftovers like pulled pork, brisket, ham, soups, stews, chili, and most casserole-like dishes especially lasagna.
I don't see the SV/freeze/SV proteins as gaining anything in time or efficiency. In fact the 2nd SV would tend to draw out more moisture and dilute whatever seasonings you added.Comment
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I don't think I've ever gone the SV/Freeze/SV route. The ONLY time I ever SV/Freeze is when I buy something already frozen (like a turkey breast) that is too large for the two of us to eat in a reasonable amount of time. I'll thaw the breast, cut it into smaller pieces (usually halves), salt, vacuum seal, and allow to dry brine in the refrigerated bags for a day, or so. Because I'm not keen on refreezing a previously frozen raw piece of meat, I'll SV both of them ... then prep/serve one and freeze the other (still in the bag) for future use.
So far, I've never felt the need to thaw the frozen one using SV. Seems silly ...Last edited by MBMorgan; November 29, 2022, 11:24 AM.Comment
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SV/Freeze/SV says one word to me: "leftovers". Why not sous vide and sear and eat the product immediately? I've already got plenty of leftovers in the freezer just from serving meals to my family. I sure wouldn't want to cook leftovers on purpose. And don't get me started on the off-flavors that some leftover meats can have to some people whose palates are sensitive to them. ( jfmorris , just look the other way.
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On a tangential topic: I've never been thoroughly convinced that sous-viding leftover frozen food for immediate serving is the way to go. It seems like giving it a long trip through the food safety danger zone, given normal sous vide temps. I get that it may work well if you've eliminated pathogens by sous vide, flash chilling in 50/50 ice bath, then freezing, but for regular pathogen-replete frozen leftovers, I just can't get on the sous-vide-from-frozen-then-serve bandwagon. I'd rather fridge-thaw the item (I know that takes more planning) and reheat it. But as we always say, to each her/his own.
KathrynComment
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I SV leftovers at 165 and never thought they spent much time in the danger zone. I'm not worried about it, it is food for thought (pun likely intended) -
CaptainMike , a couple of years ago we had a topic about reheating using sous vide. One takeaway from that topic was a quote that Potkettleblack mentioned from one of his SV experts: that, for a given food, the time in the danger zone is cumulative. I had never realized that.
So a leftover has already been through the danger zone twice (up to heat in cooking the meal and cooling off (which can take some time, even in a fridge), so those times contribute to the time spent in reheating it. -
Hahaha, jfmorris , whenever I think of eating leftover meat I remember the story you told of a sister-in-law who won't touch any leftovers. At least I'm only picky about that possibly rancid taste of reheated leftover meat. I'm also envious that you can't taste that leftover flavor. Neither can my husband. You guys are lucky!
Posting here takes my mind off things. I'm still having rough days/nights, but it goes with the territory. That said, I should be turning the corner any day now.
K.
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I have never used the Sous-Vide and then froze. Most of the time I SV and sear/serve. A couple of times I did the SV then refrigerate for timing purposes (St. Louis style Ribs). In those cases it was straight from the fridge to reheat on the grill. I've never SV'd anything twice, so I don't know how that would turn out.Comment
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