Heston Blumenthal 'Down Under' - and sous-vide cooking in the TMX!

[mcmich]

The steak was OK - not near mouth watering that was promised.

It definitely  was medium. Cooked for 2 1/2 hours 60C.

A bit chewy, but sort of OK - will give chicken a go.

[Andrealphus]

McMich, fascinating to hear about your experiments, but really sorry to hear you were disappointed with your steak - although if it was chewy, that would be more likely to be down to the quality of meat (a good way of verifying the difference between sous vide and pan-cooked or grilled, would have been to cook 2 steaks from the same piece to see the difference) and maybe being medium, rather than m/r? Meat is best if hung for 28 days or a little longer, and from a reputable butcher (not supermarket stuff) and a good breed of cow (OK, I'm not suggesting go for Kobe beef, but you know what I mean!) - dark red, with a nice marbling.

Cooking your 'normal' steak (i.e. fillet/rump/sirloin etc. etc.), which you'd usually cook from 1-3 hours, purely to get it cooked exactly the same all the way through is going to give you a uniform state of cooked-ness all the way through (rather than over-cooked for the outside third etc. if you're exposing it to high heat and turning). I have to say, it is much more juicy and tender cooked medium-rare than medium (which is why I saved for the sous-vide first!), and I think this guy gives some useful information re. steak cooking temperatures:~

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/03/how-to-sous-vide-steak.html

Regarding medium texture, he says "Solid rosy pink, and quite firm to the touch. With over 6% moisture loss, it is still moist, but verging on dry. Prolonged chewing results in the familiar "sawdust" texture of overcooked meat. Fat is fully rendered at this stage, delivering plenty of beefy flavor. This was the second most popular choice."

On the other hand, it is the cheaper cuts of beef cooked for longer that will really give you results - i.e. a (good) chuck roast for 24 hour at 55-60degrees means that the connective tissue (collagen) breaks down, and gives you (once seared) a roast with a deep beefy flavour which is pink from edge to edge and is as tender as a prime rib roast!

I hope you're not dissuaded from further experiments, would love to hear what you try next - and I hope you're more impressed next time!

If you cook chicken breasts at 60degrees for two (maximum three) hours, you pasteurize it, and can either unpack, season (I love cajun, on a lazy day!) and quickly sear, or you can quickly cool in it's vac pack, and freeze for up to a year (still packed) - it then takes 45 minutes to re-heat in the sous vide. I've never had a chicken breast turn out tough, they're amazingly tender, so maybe that's worth a try if you give it another go?? x

[mcmich]

I'm still really interested in this method of cooking. Will try again with the steak and give the chicken a go, when I have time.

Thanks again for the information. 

[mcmich]

Have done some more googling about sous vide cooking and found a Sunbeam machine for $199.00. I'm still hoping to master this in the TMX so will do a chicken breast this evening. Fingers crossed it will work out. Might also try some vegetables as well.

[Yvette]

Mich will be interested to see how you go 

[Alexis]

I'm guessing that as a vego I don't really need this machine?

[Yvette]

I would think no Alexis 

[mcmich]

I would say that's a no Alexis   I'm hoping I don't need the machine either and I can find another use for the TMX.

Sous Vide cooking in TMX - Take Two.

Have vac packed the chicken breast and some carrots this time as well. Will let you know how it turns out. I've got high hopes for the chicken breast and am making a creamy mushroom sauce to go with it.

[cookie1]

I'm interested in this Michele and enjoying your experiments. I'd like to try when I get home.

[mcmich]

I'm truly hoping this turns out Cookie. Andrea's been a big help and have watched several youtube videos and read up a lot in the last 2 days. Saw some good videos on sous vide meets barbeque. 

[obbie]

I am interested in how you go too Michelle.

[Yvette]

Me too good luck Mich

[mcmich]

The chicken has finished cooking and is a big success  It just melts in your mouth. The carrots were not cooked but I think they should have been done on a higher temperature. Looks very ordinary when first out of the water bath and I don't think you necessarily need to sear it if like me you are covering it in sauce.

Will be doing this again - A big Thankyou Andrea  I will give steak another go.

I'm wondering how the chicken breast would go crumbed after cooking for schnitzel?

[Yvette]

Glad you had success Mich 

[Andrealphus]

Hoooorrraayyyy!!!

So glad the chicken turned out well for you! If I'd seen your post about cooking the carrots at the same time, would have replied more promptly, but that's the trouble with UK/Oz time differences!!

Plus this might be useful for the veggie too, as it's great for cooking veg! Unlike boiled/steamed/microwaved veg which lose nutrients through cooking (as the cell walls are damaged and water and nutrients leach out), cooking them sous vide retains almost all of their nutritive value.

BUT, you do have to cook them at a higher temperature (generally 80-90 degrees C)

So carrots, for example need to go into an 85 degree water bath for 30-50 minutes.

You could try the following recipe: 8oz carrots, 2tbsp unsalted butter, 1tbsp honey, seasoning and a very small amount of herb/spice of choice if desired (i.e. 1/4 teaspoon cumin, or small sprig tarragon etc.). Wash, peel and slice carrots, then vacuum seal with all the other ingredients in a large pouch so that they're in a single layer and cook.

Fruit is also very good cooked sous-vide, and you can also cook pulses etc. - happy to share any information I can if anyone wants any temperatures or timings for anything and can't find them on the web, I have a LOT of cookbooks!!!

Andrea