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Sous Vide Q - What's the bid deal?

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    #31
    Got an Anova Sous-Vide and tried it out for the first time tonight. Did chicken breasts at 155 degrees for 2+ hours. Was very disappointed at how dry and overcooked it was. Used the higher temperature suggested in the article on the free site here instead of the lower temperature suggested by Anova via their app. Will go with the lower temp suggested by Anova next time.

    Trying pork chops tomorrow, optimistic of a better outcome (I never get anything right on the first try ).

    Comment


    • JimLinebarger
      JimLinebarger commented
      Editing a comment
      We just did sous vide fried chicken and it was great. Put the dark meat in @155 for 2 hours and then added the breasts for 1 hour. Total 3 hours for the dark meat and 1 hour for the breasts. They came out tender and a little juicy. 2 hours @155 is probably too long. Try 1 hour for the breasts. Some do it @148 for 1 hour.

    #32
    I recently made Clint Cantwell's SVQ Pork Loin: https://amazingribs.com/tested-recip...rk-loin-recipe

    It was the juiciest, best pork loin I've ever done. Sous Vide is a good tool, but is only a part of the cooking equation. One of my best prime rib roasts was done with the sous vide, 16 hours then seasoned and reverse seared on the Kamado at 550 degrees for 20 minutes. It is also now my favorite way to cook fish.

    However, I still prefer simple grilling for steaks and I am being a little hard headed in that I am reluctant to SV a brisket, I just love the tedious process of smoking - usually with friends while drinking beer - its the ambience and camaraderie that I like I guess. But, I'll SVQ one someday...

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    • 58limited
      58limited commented
      Editing a comment
      I home brew and I have a 5 tap keggerator, and I usually have some non-alcoholic root beer on tap. We don't drink the entire time, we bum around doin' random yard work, watching sports, and such.

    • pkadare
      pkadare commented
      Editing a comment
      I just took an SVQ pork loin out of the freezer. Going on the PBC for dinner tomorrow. Can't wait!

    • 58limited
      58limited commented
      Editing a comment
      Its the only way I plan to do pork loin from now on. Although my new Maverick XR-50 really helps me keep from overcooking it using the traditional cooking method on the kamado, its not as juicy as the SVQ method.

    #33
    After the disappointment with the Sous-Vide boneless-skinless chicken breasts on Saturday (dried out and overcooked), I tried 1” thick bone-in pork chops yesterday. 140° for 1 hour. While they were perfectly "done" (as in not over or under cooked) and had some juice, they were tough and chewy. Another disappointment after reading here how so many others achieved the "juiciest and tenderest" ever. I’ve made juicier and more tender on the grill, the oven and the stovetop.

    With all the accolades about the Sous-Vide method, I was hoping for "professional level" cooking that would be juicy and tender even if I left it cook longer than the minimum suggested time. So far it has not worked out that way.

    Maybe I need to move on to beef.

    Comment


    • MarkN
      MarkN commented
      Editing a comment
      For my next attempt, I will give it more time. Thanks.

    • Potkettleblack
      Potkettleblack commented
      Editing a comment
      Allow me to convert you to the school of 140* is a bad temp for pork. 135* is the correct pork chop temp for most people's preference.

      Long sous vide will not generally provide a benefit to lean meats, like pork chops from commercial pork. There is no connective tissue to break down.

      Search this site for @fzxdoc's thread on SV pork chop help. We got her squared, we can get you squared.

    • JimLinebarger
      JimLinebarger commented
      Editing a comment
      Potkettleblack I wish I read this post before last night. Did thin cut chops @140 for 1:15 and then breaded and fried each side for about 30-45 seconds. They were dry. I was going to adjust the time back to 50mins. Next time I hope I remember this post.

    #34
    After a number of attempts now, I have to say I am underwhelmed with my Sous-Vide.

    I made a number of attempts at boneless-skinless chicken breasts and have never had a result that I couldn't do better on the grill or stovetop sans Sous-Vide. I'm guessing SV is for bone-in skin-on chicken breasts. Tonight I tried a couple of 1-1/2" thick ribeyes that I did by following the Amazingribs.com recipe exactly and step-by-step. Disappointing. Again, I can do better sans Sous-Vide.

    That being said, a couple of weeks ago I tried cutting up a chuck roast into steaks, did the SV thing and had outstanding results. In fact, it was better than the ribeyes we had tonight.

    Although I will keep experimenting, my feeling at this point is that the Sous-Vide is best at making tough cuts of red meat tender.

    Comment


    • Huskee
      Huskee commented
      Editing a comment
      I wasn't impressed with chicken breast either, and I followed Clint's recipes at a couple different temperature levels. I thought the same as you, in my opinion just not worth all the effort

    #35
    I QVQ, SVQ, PDQ. and most of the other permutations combining sous vide and something else. For me, reverse sear is hands down the best way to make steaks, but if the only guess I can make for when I want dinner to be done is "later", then the steaks will hit the water bath and get seared off when "later" comes. Same goes for chicken, pork. and any other lean and tender cut of meat. As long as it's not in the bath more than 3-4 hours, it will be ready to finish when you are.
    The two places that sous vide really shines is making any tough cut of meat tender, and mashed potatoes. if you have a sous vide and haven't tried these, you're missing out.

    Mashed potatoes receive a much-needed upgrade with this sous vide variation. Rather than boiling potatoes in water, this recipe calls for butter and milk, making the flavor rich and intense. A few cloves of smashed garlic and sprigs of rosemary infuse the potatoes as they're cooking. At about 25% butter, these mashed potatoes are not an everyday kind of recipe, but perfect for special occasions, like Thanksgiving (when calories don’t count)!


    There are so many opinions and ideas for how to SVQ things like brisket, pork shoulder, and any other tough cut, that I won't bore you with details, I'll just state how I do it. This is not to be confused with the "best", or "right" way, it's just how I do things, so there is actually a fair to middlin chance it is in fact the "wrong" way to do things.

    Step 1) Smoke meat to an internal temp that is equal to what you water bath will be set to, or 3 hours.

    Step 2) Bag, and soak.

    Step 3) De-bag...umm... make that un-bag, carve, and eat.

    We can argue flavor profiles, and "best" ways until the cows evolve to the point the are raising us for meat, but for simply making a tough cut of meat tender, sous vide is a stupid easy way to get it done.

    Comment


      #36
      MarkN If you're still up to experimenting, I really like Joule's Grilled Chicken Leg Recipe. I marinade with Meathead Hula-hula teriyaki, sous vide at 158 for 5 hours, then put it in an ice bath. While the grill is warming up, I throw an oak or hickory chunk on the fire to get some smoke on the chicken. Then, when the grill is ready, I crisp up the skin brushing the chicken with the sauce. Some of the best chicken I've had.

      And then sometimes I just throw dried herbs and spices on some chicken legs (after dry brining for 24-48 hours), get my WSM as hot as I can (around 450), throw the legs on, and pull when the IT is 165. Also great, just different than the SV'd ones. Experimenting is the fun part, and I hope you keep at it!

      Comment


        #37
        We are putting the finishing touches on a digital book on Sous Vide Que with some good insights. Here is an excerpt, almost finished. A little hard to read. I'll post a pdf somewhere for you when it is finished.

        Click image for larger version  Name:	sv-magnet_11_inch_v1.0.jpg Views:	0 Size:	6.90 MB ID:	758739

        Comment


        • Potkettleblack
          Potkettleblack commented
          Editing a comment
          A comment from experience:
          Pork loin at 135 is divine.
          Pork loin at 140 is not an improvement over traditional cooking.
          Pork loin at 145 is not worth eating.

          I note this because the chart considers 135 (Heaven) and 145 (Hell) to be the same thing. And they really are not. Not even close.

        • Potkettleblack
          Potkettleblack commented
          Editing a comment
          On the poultry section, white meat at 155 is not that great. At 145, amazing. Dark meat at 145 is dodgy, imho.

        • fzxdoc
          fzxdoc commented
          Editing a comment
          Potkettleblack , I want to "like" your comments, but the new software update had taken away the like button for comments. Anyway, I like your approach.

          Kathryn

        #38
        Collagen can break down below 160 it just takes a lot longer. One of the ways to do SVQ or QVQ at medium rare but still as tender as traditional BBQ.

        Comment


          #39
          This weekend I continued my SV education by delving into St. Louis Cut Pork Spare Ribs.

          I did one rack at 145o F for 36 hours and a second rack at 165o F for 12 hours (from Serious Eats). I did half of each rack with dry rub only and sauced the other half of each. After the SV I submerged them into an ice bath for 30 minutes and then into the fridge. Then I invited a friend who has tasted my version of "Last Meal Ribs" in the past to give me his opinion. I reheated the ribs in a 300o F for 40 minutes. The real reason for the test was that he is having a party at his house next Sunday and wanted me to bring/make ribs. He lives over an hour away and time does not permit me to do them the usual way, so I offered this as an alternative. We both agreed:

          1st Place: Still my "Last Meal Ribs"
          2nd Place: Dry Rub at 165 degrees for 12 hours
          3rd Place: Sauced Ribs at 165 degrees for 12 hours

          The 36 hour ribs were OK (we ate them rather than throw them away ) but they were a bit too "mealy" (?) for our tastes. Time and weather permitting, I will still go to the grill. For this occasion, he wants the 2nd Place ribs and I'll have sauce on the side. I can put them in the SV at 9PM on Saturday and pull them out at 9AM on Sunday. Ice bath, fridge, cooler, transport, reheat and eat.

          This was my most successful SV attempt so far.
          Last edited by MarkN; October 28, 2019, 11:08 AM. Reason: Correct a typo

          Comment


          • Potkettleblack
            Potkettleblack commented
            Editing a comment
            Here’s the solution to the trip.

            Smoke the ribs per LMR recipe. Vac seal hot. Shock in ice water, then use SV to reheat at the party. I do it with pulled pork regularly.

          • MarkN
            MarkN commented
            Editing a comment
            I like both comments (and thank you) but they are not practical in this particular situation. I have no opportunity to smoke the ribs before Saturday night. I have to head out Sunday morning. I can either do the LMR recipe at night (Oh, and snow is in the forecast for Saturday) or Sous Vide and sleep at night. And yes, I resorted to Liquid Smoke.

            They will not be as good as "the real thing", which I told the people who will be in attendance, but they insist I give it a try.

          • MarkN
            MarkN commented
            Editing a comment
            After further review (mainly of the weather), the party for this weekend has been canceled. However, I have an opportunity to SV then smoke at a tailgate later this month or possibly to kick things off when the family assembles at the start of Thanksgiving Week.

          #40
          Family began arriving for our Thanksgiving Week festivities so I decided to give the relatively hands-off SV of a small brisket at try. Both the AmazingRibs Smoked Sous-Vide-Que BBQ Brisket Recipe and the J. Kenji Lopez-Alt recipe list the ice bath step. Neither says that you skip the ice bath if you are going directly from the SV to the grill/smoker.

          Is the ice bath for 30 minutes really a mandatory step with some magical powers I don't understand, or if I'm not going to refrigerate/freeze the brisket, am I OK to go straight to the smoking step?

          Comment


          • Red Man
            Red Man commented
            Editing a comment
            Troutman I thought you were an advocate of never letting the IT get above the SV temp for the QVQ or SVQ methods. You can’t do that without an ice bath. I agree with no need for the ice bath before a sear, but seems to me like a necessary step in QVQ/SVQ.

          • Troutman
            Troutman commented
            Editing a comment
            Agreed on never overshooting if the result is to be medium rare for instance, but I’m assuming he’s cooking the brisket to a more traditional higher temp so there’s no point in ice bathing.

          • MarkN
            MarkN commented
            Editing a comment
            As it turned out, I could not have been happier with the results. The smoke ring and crust were not what I've gotten with a more traditional method, but they were there and the juices flowed as I cut into it. I intended to share a picture of it, but by the time I got around to it, there were only a few shards of brisket remaining.

          #41
          Originally posted by Ronaldf123 View Post
          Years ago when I first heard about sous vide I went out and spent an ungodly amount of money on one along with this big fancy vacuum packer. I thought this would improve my cooking skills of which I have none. I think I tried it twice along with a torch burner to char them. I’m not sure what cooking show I got the idea from. Everything I tried to cook in it came out bad and I couldn’t stand to look at the meat when it came out.
          I"m quoting this not so much to pick on Ronald but in case others are lurking who don't have great cooking skills and for some reason are thinking about getting into SV...

          SV is a tool. It won't improve one's cooking skills any more than buying a fancy grill or nice pans will. AS a technique, it has great uses and poor uses. I don't slow cook in my carbon steel skillet and I don't expect my 5qt cast iron dutch oven to make great omelettes.

          Anyone who wants to learn to cook can. There's a ton of information and books out there and there are places like this and others where people are willing to help out. But we can't blame the tools for our mistakes. Those are ours to own.

          Comment


            #42
            Where sous vide shines for me is pulled pork, and chicken breasts. For pulled pork I sous vide at 155 for 8 hours, then on to the kamado to finish it off for about 4-5 hours. Makes awesome pulled pork; my family loves it.
            My kids often request Dad’s homemade chicken nuggets. For some reason, I HATE prepping raw chicken breast for nuggets. So I sous vide those babies first. Cool then down and bread them, and fry them up quick! And no messing about with raw chicken breast.
            Last edited by Thunder77; December 28, 2019, 07:25 PM.

            Comment


              #43
              Getting some more Sous-Vide practice in during these quarantine days. The weather is still its usual unpredictable self here in the upper midwest (it's snowing right now in fact) so I thought I'd try another brisket the SV way for this past Easter weekend.

              Turned out pretty darn good. Actually got a little fatter (?!?). It was not as good as smoking it the full time, but following the Amazingribs Smoked Sous-Vide-Que BBQ Brisket recipe complete with the Big Bad Beef Rub and Mesquite wood smoke turned out a close second.

              Since it was just the two of us, it lasted three days. Sliced on Kaiser rolls for Saturday. With Mashed potatoes and gravy made from the juices in the SV bag for Sunday, and a reprise of the Kaiser rolls for lunch and dinner on Monday.

              Click image for larger version

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              • pjlstrat
                pjlstrat commented
                Editing a comment
                Looks like it came out really good!

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