I really enjoy your videos and your online guide, they are both very informative and inspiring! As a culinary school graduate it's very useful to have such a precise guide. I'm curious what your experience has been with cooking starches sous-vide?
@thexbigxgreen Mixed. Starchy vegetables work great but I had trouble adapting grains — they tended to get mushy on me. Others have had much better luck doing risotto-style grains (see Modernist Cuisine). I plan to discuss plant-based sous vide in more detail in my next revision.
@MathematicalChef I would guess that the timing would need to be relatively precise when cooking grains versus cooking something like meat. Even if one is able to figure out the perfect liquid/grain ratio, if the cooking medium is sufficiently hot for the grain to absorb liquid it will never reach a point where the absorption is halted. It would take quite a lot of experimentation to reach the point where someone would know exactly how long to cook a grain for perfect results.
Doug, I love your videos... but now I have to ask - how do you recommend someone start "trying" sous vide? I am really interested in the technique, but for the Sous Vide Supreme, I would have to spend $400 to decide if I even like the cooking technique and results...
Cheapest is to heat a large stock-pot of water to 145°F. Put a chicken breast and a quarter cup broth in a quart Ziploc freezer bag. Add the bag to the pot and check the temp every few minutes to keep it as close to 145°F as you can. [I strongly recommend using a good digital thermometer.] Cook it for at least an hour to pasteurize. Sear as in my chicken video. [I usually do chicken breasts at 140°F for 2 hrs, but that's a long time to mind the stove.]
@MathematicalChef I bit the bullet. I have been dying to try this method, and watching every video I can get my hands on. I just placed my order for a Sous Vide supreme, and your book as well. I do have a question I hope is covered in your book. You mention you cook your chicken to 145 - yet the temperature I have always known was more around 160-170 for poultry. I assume this is pasteurization, and that bacteria at that temperature for a certain period - just dies? Can you shed some light?
It's covered in my book, but I'll try and shed some light here too. The standard recommendation (2009 US Food Code) is to cook all parts to 165°F for at least 15 sec. You can kill the same number of bacteria at lower temperatures, it just takes longer; for example, both 156°F for 1 min and 140°F for 35 min reduce Salmonella by 10 million to one. For more time-temperature combinations, see Table C.2 in my guide.
I"ve been toying with the idea of investing in a Sous Vide setup. After seeing the look of the corn, I'm sold.
fernwood 3 months ago
I really enjoy your videos and your online guide, they are both very informative and inspiring! As a culinary school graduate it's very useful to have such a precise guide. I'm curious what your experience has been with cooking starches sous-vide?
thexbigxgreen 6 months ago
@thexbigxgreen Mixed. Starchy vegetables work great but I had trouble adapting grains — they tended to get mushy on me. Others have had much better luck doing risotto-style grains (see Modernist Cuisine). I plan to discuss plant-based sous vide in more detail in my next revision.
MathematicalChef 6 months ago
@MathematicalChef I would guess that the timing would need to be relatively precise when cooking grains versus cooking something like meat. Even if one is able to figure out the perfect liquid/grain ratio, if the cooking medium is sufficiently hot for the grain to absorb liquid it will never reach a point where the absorption is halted. It would take quite a lot of experimentation to reach the point where someone would know exactly how long to cook a grain for perfect results.
thexbigxgreen 6 months ago
@thexbigxgreen Exactly.
MathematicalChef 6 months ago
Doug, I love your videos... but now I have to ask - how do you recommend someone start "trying" sous vide? I am really interested in the technique, but for the Sous Vide Supreme, I would have to spend $400 to decide if I even like the cooking technique and results...
jbattley 9 months ago
@jbattley Thank you, I'm glad you like it.
Cheapest is to heat a large stock-pot of water to 145°F. Put a chicken breast and a quarter cup broth in a quart Ziploc freezer bag. Add the bag to the pot and check the temp every few minutes to keep it as close to 145°F as you can. [I strongly recommend using a good digital thermometer.] Cook it for at least an hour to pasteurize. Sear as in my chicken video. [I usually do chicken breasts at 140°F for 2 hrs, but that's a long time to mind the stove.]
MathematicalChef 9 months ago
@MathematicalChef I bit the bullet. I have been dying to try this method, and watching every video I can get my hands on. I just placed my order for a Sous Vide supreme, and your book as well. I do have a question I hope is covered in your book. You mention you cook your chicken to 145 - yet the temperature I have always known was more around 160-170 for poultry. I assume this is pasteurization, and that bacteria at that temperature for a certain period - just dies? Can you shed some light?
jbattley 9 months ago
It's covered in my book, but I'll try and shed some light here too. The standard recommendation (2009 US Food Code) is to cook all parts to 165°F for at least 15 sec. You can kill the same number of bacteria at lower temperatures, it just takes longer; for example, both 156°F for 1 min and 140°F for 35 min reduce Salmonella by 10 million to one. For more time-temperature combinations, see Table C.2 in my guide.
MathematicalChef 9 months ago