Chicken Breasts

[Mark-B]

I’m new to Sous Vide. I recently purchased the Anova Precision 3.0. I have done flat iron steaks and they turned out great after searing them on my Infared burner.
Today I tried chicken breast (Greek seasoning). After reading several sites, posts, etc, it seemed the consensus was to cook at 145 degrees for 2 hrs. I did just that. Once the two hours was over I seared them on my Infared burner. They were a bit dry. Not bad, but not overly juicy either. Does anyone cook it at different temp and time with better results? Let me know as I’m still learning this device. Note, I haven’t purchased a true container and lid yet as I didn’t want to invest a lot in it if I don’t end up keeping in the end, so far I like it though.

[DaveD]

Question: did you let the chicken rest and cool down a bit before searing? What was the IT after searing? One handy feature of SV is you can take the bag out of the bath and let it sit on the counter before opening to let the meat cool a little, so that you have some headroom for the sear step, to not let the IT exceed that 145F but still sear long enough to get a nice exterior.

[Mark-B]

I let the chicken sit for a few minutes but I did not take temp. I only seared it for a little over a minute each side. When I took the breasts out of the bag they already appeared a bit dry. Lots of moisture at the bottom of the bag too.

[shify]

My guess is you overcooked on the sear (or just had bad chicken).

Chicken breast generally doesn’t need more than an hour or so to cook but 2 hours vs 1 shouldn’t have any impact one way or another.

As far as temperature, I generally go around 150. I don’t really like the texture you get at lower temps.

and I only cook SV in a stock pot. Longer cooks I just cover the pot with Saran Wrap to prevent evaporation.

[MBMorgan]

Maybe this will help: https://www.seriouseats.com/sous-vid...-breast-recipe

[Mark-B]

Pretty much exactly what I did, but longer time. I may try the 70 minutes. I had boneless breasts. I was hoping I found a fool proof method for juicy breasts. Apparently, I can screw it up no matter what method I use. 😂

[Jerod Broussard]

140 is good for "pulled chicken" texture. I always seared in clarified butter afterwards. The ladies prefer that texture for salads.

155-160 is a more "normal" texture.

[MsTwiggy]

How much salt did you use? Dry brine or brine in SV bag before cooking helps retain moisture after searing. Asking because the recipe doesn’t specify qty. 🔥🔥🐿️

[Mark-B]

I used a light coating of kosher salt mixed in my other spices.

[Davek8282]

I just did some boneless chicken breasts today. I used the 2nd generation Anova Pro @ 150 for 2 hours. I removed from the bag, patted dry with paper towel and then let them rest a few minutes. Seared a nice golden brown and they turned out great. When I bought the chicken breasts bulk I seasoned with Lemon Pepper and then vacuum sealed and froze in meal friendly portions.

[Rocinante]

I always wonder about all that liquid left in the bag after SV. Been wanting to do a weight comparison between SV and grilling to see if liquid loss is similar. However, as long as I don't heavily salt/season the meat beforehand, I will save the liquid in a deli container and freeze it. Makes for a quick and convenient broth to have on hand.

[Huskee]

I've never been impressed with SV chicken breasts, I tried and tried and they were always lackluster and not worth the time to me. I thought I just didn't know what I was doing. That's still likely the case .

[Mark-B]

Yup, I was disappointed to say the least cuz chicken breast have always been my nemesis along with turkey. I’ll give it another run for a shorter amount of time. I was surprised one can even dry food out with Sous Vide. 😂 The different sizes of breast seem to make a huge difference too. Smaller one was much dryer than the other larger ones.

[Huskee]

Mark-B I'm with you. I would have always thought that chicken breast, like pork loin, were best suited to hot & fast cooks so as not to dry them out. SV is of course the opposite, granted not air. But reading others' fondness for SV w/ them I tried but I haven't been able to nail it and I personally don't care enough to keep trying. I'm kinda there with SV steaks as well. Good, but not worth it to me, currently anyway. Thoughts and opinions are known to change...

[Old Glory]

I have a Joule. The "Basic" chicken breast instructions are 149 deg for 45 minutes for breasts 1 inch thick or less and 90 minutes if thicker.

I sear in a CI pan or on the grill. Always comes out great for me.

[Mark-B]

I’m gonna try shorter time for sure. The smaller one was the driest of the bunch.

[Troutman]

Switch to chicken thighs

[johnec00]

+1

[Alan Brice]

I just make it a point to pick up a whole roasted bird at $4.99 at Costco. Rotisserie and delish! Just cannot beat that with a club.

[Mark-B]

Haha, they are good! Heck even Walmart makes decent ones but they are getting smaller!

[Troutman]

We do that for mid-week for chicken tacos. Huge family favorite and about as easy-peasy as it gets.

[Oak Smoke]

Evidently some people don’t learn to like SV. I bought a lightly used Anova on eBay for $35.00. So far I love it. I haven’t tried it on chicken yet. It will take a good sirloin steak to the tenderness level of a ribeye.

[Mark-B]

Yeah, like I said in the OG post, I loved the results with flat iron steaks. Try the chicken and report back. Also, I am still learning. I’m going to give chicken another shot but different temp and time.