I don't get the Sous-vide thing

WildmanWilson

So, what am I missing here? It seems simmering something in hot water for a day is all the rage now. I know people have been cooking in water for hundreds of years but is this little stick heater really a game changer?

JohnInCarolina

WildmanWilson said:

So, what am I missing here? It seems simmering something in hot water for a day is all the rage now. I know people have been cooking in water for hundreds of years but is this little stick heater really a game changer?

It’s another tool in the tool chest.  Not the best for everything, but fun to play with and occasionally hard to beat.

And it’s not like simmering something in hot water, because the water isn’t coming into direct contact with the food, typically.  Think of it instead as the ultimate low and slow cook, and you’ll start to get it.

kjs

Yes it is a game changer. 

WildmanWilson

kjs said:

Yes it is a game changer. 

How so?

milesvdustin

Makes an awesome steak, edge to edge perfection with no gray layers 

FanOfFanboys

I like so much I own two

no better way to reheat, thaw, make mashed potatoes, perfectly do large chunks of meat, etc

Bear 007

I said the same thing, after playing with the unit for a couple of months now I'm really liking it. Some things come out really really good, chuck roast, pastrami, last night some 1"1/2 ribeyes. Some things are very convenient, like chicken breast, I do up a few when they are on sale and use them for the week when I don't feel like cooking.

This is the second time I've tried it, the first time I really didn't give it much of a shot, the key is to play around with time and temps til its the way you like it.

kjs

@WildmanWilson think chicken breast is dry and rubbery? SV some, totally different. Best steak. And yes as someone else said, killer mashed potatoes.

rekameohs

WildmanWilson said:

is this little stick heater really a game changer?

It is for me, at least when cooking 1"+ thick steaks.  I always worried about under cooking the middle without burning the outside.  With S-V, I can cook the whole thing to ~129, then finish with a few minutes on the grill (or a hot cast iron pan).  Perfect steak every time.

SciAggie

Last night is an example of how I use mine. My wife decided she wanted a pork chop for supper. I had a nice 2” frozen chop in the freezer. I set up my sous vide at 140 degrees and threw the frozen pork chop in around 1:00 PM. 
We worked in the yard, I rode my bike, I split firewood - puttered all afternoon. I had my wood oven fired up to cook my sides. When we were ready to eat I slid a CI skillet in the wood oven until it was hot, added some butter, and put my pork chop in to sear on both sides (dried off and seasoned). Is it better than reverse sear or direct cooking? No. For this cook though it was convenient. I didn’t need to worry about timing. Also it was tender because it had enough time to render some collagen in the long bath.
I like it for the convenience. I don’t use it all the time though. 

Jupiter Jim

So can you share the killer mashed potatoes process?

lkapigian

Game changer for crowd cooking for me...crank out a couple hundred chicken wings with very little effort prep, seal. Bath , sear 

RockyTopDW

I don’t mean any offense, but it seems like lame stuff to post on a site about cooking with fire & smoke on a BGE.  I got a buddy that swears by it, but it seems like another way to boil.  Overrated French bs.  You want it tender??? Go low & slow.  

jtcBoynton

Yes it is a game changer.  It allows you to heat a food item up to a precise temp and keep it there. 

Like all methods, there are times it is appropriate and the optimal way to heat food. Like other cooking fads, it has become popular and people try to use it for everything including less than sub optimal methods.  Appropriately used it is a game changer.  

kjs

Ahh yes those Frenchies know nothing about culinary. 

kjs

@Jupiter Jim 3 lbs of potatoes peeled and cut into half moons, teaspoon or so of salt, 1 cup of whole milk or heavy cream, cook at 194 F for one hour. Mash however you like, I use stand mixer and fold butter and perhaps more salt.

JohnInCarolina

RockyTopDW said:

I don’t mean any offense, but it seems like lame stuff to post on a site about cooking with fire & smoke on a BGE.  I got a buddy that swears by it, but it seems like another way to boil.  Overrated French bs.  You want it tender??? Go low & slow.  

One of the best things about this site is actually how people feel comfortable about talking about other cooking methods and tools.  That’s how many people learn about them in the first place.  Not to mention that many people combine a SV start with an Egg finish.  I don’t mean any offense, but try to have a more open mind.

Acn

JohnInCarolina said:

RockyTopDW said:

I don’t mean any offense, but it seems like lame stuff to post on a site about cooking with fire & smoke on a BGE.  I got a buddy that swears by it, but it seems like another way to boil.  Overrated French bs.  You want it tender??? Go low & slow.  

One of the best things about this site is actually how people feel comfortable about talking about other cooking methods and tools.  That’s how many people learn about them in the first place.  Not to mention that many people combine a SV start with an Egg finish.  I don’t mean any offense, but try to have a more open mind.

Plus, if it was only egged food, the front page would be entirely pulled pork and spatchcocked chicken, each with 6 views, and this place would be a ghost town.

WildmanWilson

The one thing I was thinking it may be useful for is heating jerky to 160 before drying. This is the recommended temp from the USDA.

gdenby

SV is not boiling, and it is usually only used at simmering temps to get pectin in veg broken down. Meats are usually heated at very low temperatures (I've done as low as 128F, and fish 126) for very long times. My 1st was 72 hour beef short ribs. I think the temp was about 135F. Just some salt, and bit of garlic powder. Finished by searing in a CI skillet. Most amazing texture I'd ever experienced.

And its also not about rendering. The reason people like it so much for chix breasts is that the longer lower temp lets the meat fibers break down just enough that most of the moisture is left in the tissue, and the small amount of inter cellular fat there is released for flavor. Same goes for low fat beef and pork.

Another way I use it is to give a light rub to pork country ribs, and smoke them just a little while, 45 - 75 minutes. Seal those so none of the smoke flavor escapes. Then SV a few when I want so they get pullable. The smoke flavor concentrates. Makes a great addition red beans and rice.

Wolfpack

The other use is pasteurization- want a rare burger with no worry.

Perfect soft boiled eggs or try sous vide egg bites- worth the price of admission all on their own. 

As others have said Chicken breasts will be the most moist and tender you have ever eaten. 

I dont use mine frequently enough but it definitely has its benefits. 

unoriginalusername

milesvdustin said:

Makes an awesome steak, edge to edge perfection with no gray layers 

I don’t really see how much different that would be than a reverse sear?  I did this one start to finish on the egg for example 

speed51133

You put the food in a plastic bag then boil it. I can't imagine anything worse. It's as bad as when the connection microwave came out and was marketed to replace the oven and stove. 

NorthPilot06

unoriginalusername said:

milesvdustin said:

Makes an awesome steak, edge to edge perfection with no gray layers 

I don’t really see how much different that would be than a reverse sear?  I did this one start to finish on the egg for example 

That’s a good looking steak. It’s not that much different to be honest (the cooking gradient between 225 degrees and 130 degrees is similar enough), but it’s extremely hands off. If you want a perfect steak... that can even be cooked from frozen... with a large time window for doneness (the texture of the meat doesn’t appreciably change until 4+ hours in the bath), SV is awesome. 

But nobody denies that reverse sear makes awesome steaks :-)

NorthPilot06

speed51133 said:

You put the food in a plastic bag then boil it. I can't imagine anything worse. It's as bad as when the connection microwave came out and was marketed to replace the oven and stove. 

I don’t know any SV device that can take water to 212F....

NorthPilot06

speed51133 said:

You put the food in a plastic bag then boil it. I can't imagine anything worse. It's as bad as when the connection microwave came out and was marketed to replace the oven and stove. 

Said differently, I can’t imagine anything worse than boiled food in a plastic bag either. But that’s also the antithesis of what SV is. It’s actually an interesting pairing of thermodynamics concepts and food safety (pasteurization). 

Retired RailRoader

I understand your questioning the Sous Vide thing. I looked at buying one for a long time but just could not see what it could do that I couldn’t do on my Egg. The thing that pushed me over the edge was sausage making. Now instead of smoking snack sticks, smoked sausage or summer sausage for 12 plus hrs. I smoke them for 3 hrs and then Sous Vide them for a few hrs. to finish them. The sausage get down more quickly, they are more tender and no worries about fat out. 

YukonRon

RockyTopDW said:

I don’t mean any offense, but it seems like lame stuff to post on a site about cooking with fire & smoke on a BGE.  I got a buddy that swears by it, but it seems like another way to boil.  Overrated French bs.  You want it tender??? Go low & slow.  

No offense taken, certainly from those that criticize things of which they have no experience with.

Perhaps you should ask your buddy how often he boils anything with his SV.

Being critical of the french when it comes to culinary expertise is like criticizing Peyton Manning as a college quarterback.

Speaking of college football, how did that home game opener, as 24 point favorites, work out against that team that went 2-10 last year, and picked to finish last in their conference?

Talk about overated bs.

Go Vols.

Cornholio

While I don’t SV myself I don’t get the questioning of it.  As much as some eggheads would like the think the outdoor cooking realm revolves around the BGE, it’s just not the case.  Same goes for cooking in general, lots of variety is not a bad thing.  While we are all on here because of the BGE it doesn’t mean that other ways to cook don’t have their place.

I have multiple bikes in my garage ranging from $600 to over $10k.  Sure my $10k full suspension bike may be the best tool in getting me down a trail as fast as I can and as safely as possible sometimes I like to switch it up and ride a hardtail bike on the same trails that requires a different approach to riding them.  That’s the fun part about hobbies, you get to play around with expensive toys.  

johnnyp

I can’t tell if this is a troll thread. 

JohnInCarolina

speed51133 said:

You put the food in a plastic bag then boil it. I can't imagine anything worse.