Sous Vide Cooking.

[worth1]

I don't have a sous vide apparatus but maybe some of you guys have one, post results and ideas here if you wish.
In my next post I am going to attempt it without one.

[worth1]

The other day I bought an American Wagu boneless chuck roast for 6.99 a pound.
Marbling is very good and want to attempt cooking it souse vide but don't have the apparatus to do so.
What I have done in the past is adjust my burner on the stove to keep a big kettle of water at a constant temperature.
I put kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on the roast and have put it in a vacuum sealed bag.
This experiment will tell me if I want to purchase the apparatus or not.
It will be reverse seared on the charcoal grill when I am ready to eat.
If I get one it will have manual controls.
Not all do and I dont want to be restricted to a phone app to make adjustments.
Here's the roast steak thing.

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[worth1]

Steak sitting on bowl with stainless steel bolt I found in parking lot for weight.
It is at mid level.
Thermometer suspended over steak at same level.
Water heating up.

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[worth1]

The temperature is sitting at a steady 125-6F, set timer for 4 hours.

[pepperhead212]

[mention]worth1[/mention] I don't have a sous vide circulator, but I have considered getting one. And that time and temp you mentioned sounds like what I've seen listed for a med-rare reversed seared steak - tougher cuts, like chuck, usually go for a lot longer, at higher temps, to break down the fibers. Here's one link, with some time and temp tables:
https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/201 ... ecipe.html

[worth1]

[mention]pepperhead212[/mention]
I eat chuck roast all the time as a steak rare.
Most of the time I can look at a cut of meat and tell how I want to cook it or if I even want to buy it.
This thing has been in the water almost 4 hours now.
This is as I said an American Wagu and will be the first time for a large steak.
The boneless chuck ribs were as tender as could be just pan frying them rare.
I will give my honest opinion on this thing when I eat it.

On a side note, I have eaten at Ruth's Chris steak house, that the thing was as tough as a boot over cooked and high as a cats back.
Wasn't my idea and never went back.

[worth1]

This thing not only is flavorful but very tender considering the cut.
Very tender indeed.
Had it with gold potatoes with butter.
Cooked one minute each side.

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[worth1]

Final observations.
Will I do this again, 'no way, it was an experiment to see in I could keep water at a certain temperature for extended periods of time and not ruin a steak.
The only way you can do this with my method is with large volumes of water and the type of kettle I used.
Is it worth the money for me to buy one of these contraptions, maybe.
Years ago they had a steak chart on steak doneness that said rare was red cool center.
Now they have expanded on that with all manner of descriptions including blue rare.
What are they good for when it comes to steaks.
You can cook a steak or meat exactly the same every time and at the doneness the person wants.
No guess work or temperature probes.
You can cook salami and summer sausage to the exact temperature you need for cooked salami without melting the fat out of it.

[farmersteve]

I have had a sous vide heater for several years. I never tried doing it without it. The whole point is keeping the water at a rock solid temperature. Some people are put off by the texture of sous vide meat because it can almost be like it's raw but it's fully cooked. I use it for steaks, chicken but my favorite is pork ribs that you have to sous vide for 12 hours and throw on the grill. They just fall off the bone. One tip if you want to keep doing it this way is to use a large chest cooler, the thicker the better. Fill it up with hot water. The temperature shouldn't drop more than a couple of degrees over the time you need.

[worth1]

I have had a sous vide heater for several years. I never tried doing it without it. The whole point is keeping the water at a rock solid temperature. Some people are put off by the texture of sous vide meat because it can almost be like it's raw but it's fully cooked. I use it for steaks, chicken but my favorite is pork ribs that you have to sous vide for 12 hours and throw on the grill. They just fall off the bone. One tip if you want to keep doing it this way is to use a large chest cooler, the thicker the better. Fill it up with hot water. The temperature shouldn't drop more than a couple of degrees over the time you need.

My kettle stayed on for close to if not over 5 hours.
I checked the gauge all the time and it never wiggled one degree off the temperature.
It could have stayed on for days and never fluctuated.
It is a tri clad stainless Tramontina kettle with a thick bottom.
With the steak sitting horizontal midway in the water the whole steak stayed in that same temperature level plus I had a big lid over it cocked a little off to one side.
The draw back is I need my stove for other stuff it would be impractical to keep it tied up like this.
A good large ice chest costs as much if not more than a sous vide device.
I dont have one because someone stole it out of my truck.
My setting on the stove was a pinch over warn on a small burner and the stove is a glass top.
Water amount, about 3 gallons.
I have used this same method to cook mortadella and other salamis.
Just looking for a more practical way to do it.

[worth1]

Now here is my biggest concern and for good reason.
There will possibly come a time when either your phone and or the device will no longer support each other.
In other words out dated by new devices.
If you can't manually program that machine you may be stuck with a 200 or more dollar boat anchor.
As of right now I have a 500 dollar irrigation controller I cant program anymore and I am ticked off big time about it.
They no longer support the controller past windows 7.
Now I have to buy another controller, rewire everything and rest assured It will be one I can manually program.
I have been in this businesses for years with other technology and knew it happened but it went right over my head.
Big mistake.

[worth1]

Been looking at the darn things for some time and pulled the trigger.
Just ordered the Nise Wave V1.0 on sale for 139.57 on clearance and discount code.
Normal price $199.
The only thing I can see different from the V2.0 is voice control.
If it croaks I get the 2.0.
The thing will heat water up to 210F and has 1200 watts power.
Plus manual controls.

[worth1]

If anyone is interested here is the link to the Nise wave V1.0.
I have no idea how I found it I think it was a pop up on the site.
I did get an email from the people confirming my order.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q ... XT7Q1SFXzZ

[worth1]

Continuing the experiments I did some stuff with hotdog wieners.
Some of you know I like to put this sort of thing like sausage in 160F water to cook them and then grill or griddle them to get the outer crust.
This time I used wieners in a plastic zipper bag and put them in a water bath at 155 degrees.
They stayed that way for a good while while I got ready with the rest of the stuff.
While doing this I thought why not melt some easy melt cheese, so I put some in a sandwich bag and set it in the water with the cheese at the corner.
I used it like a piping bag for cake decorations and squeezed out what I wanted.
After I got what I wanted I simply put a potato chip bag clip on the end and put it back in the water.
I used a small kettle to do this not the giant one.

[farmersteve]

I only have an Anova sous vide stick and it's served me well for many years. I don't use bluetooth on it just the manual controls. The Nise Wave is 1200 watts which is better than my Anova. I would probably get something like this next time because 400 more watts would definitely heat things up quicker. I also use it for heating my homebrewing water in a large Igloo cooler. It takes hours to get up to temperature but it's worth it to have the exact temperature I need to make beer.

[JRinPA]

I just saw this type of cooker for the first time this summer. Hmmm maybe I need something like this for finishing big rolls of sweet or lebanon balogna. I haven't done anything approaching a 10 lb roll because...well, how? No room on the stove. No pot big enough. I have do use a big pot at times to finish rings after after the smoker.

Would this work in a big plastic igloo cooler, like a 125 qt or so? I never considered adding heat into a plastic cooler?

How about a big thin aluminum pot? Would it have trouble holding temp at 170 or so do to lack of insulation?

What sort of tub could I use this in to finish big rolls of meat?

btw if I try that link it says "hold tight while the form loads" but it never loads....

[JRinPA]

Hey worth I also found a bolt like that a few years ago. Christmas Eve morning, 5 am, on my way out for ducks. I was cruising right down the middle of a back road, and Boom rumble rumble. Tire blew out. Not kidding here, there is a clan of what I consider travelers/white gypsies that live right near there. An old tow truck with two guys in it just happened to creep by a few minutes later when I already had the donut out. At 530 am... They kept going. I figure they saw my camo and maybe my shotgun on the front seat and decided against it. I know I had a shell palmed. Later, shaking the tire, I could hear something in there. Took the tire to get fixed later that day and the mechanic took a big bolt out of it, 1/2"diameter x 5 or 6". He was shocked. He said he'd only ever found one bigger piece of metal in a tire, a chunk of rebar. I asked, how could I have hit that in the middle of the road and have it stick in the tire? He had no explanation.
Funny thing is, I remember talking to a guy in the lounge area/waiting room. Discussing Tom Clancy and his fall from greatness as a writer. But I can't remember if they repaired that tire or I had to get a new one? I know it was done by 330 on Christmas Eve and I was happy about that! I think it must have pro rated road hazard replacement, since the tires were bought there.

[FarmerShawn]

I use my Anova sous vide regularly. Chicken, especially breast meat, comes out juicy, never dry. All kinds of pork cuts, same thing. I just started doing ribs, overnight sous vide, a couple of hours in the smoker for flavor, then to the grill for a glaze with a maple syrup based bbq sauce. Perfect every time. One of the best things is the ability to hold the meat perfectly cooked, sometimes for hours, with no loss of quality, great for entertaining when you're not sure when meal time will be. I use zip top freezer bags, and the nice thing is the ability to put a marinade right in the bag with the meat, then use it to make a sauce to go with the meat at service. I usually cook the meat a couple of degrees lower than the doneness I'm looking for, so I can sear it on the grill quickly, without over cooking it. If you use a metal pot and want to conserve heat, just wrap a towel around the pot. The temps are not high enough for there to be any danger of combustion.

[worth1]

Links working now.
You can even use a clear plastic tote with hole cut out on one end of lid.
I see no need for a fancy sous vide container but to each their own.
GFCI wall outlet in order for sure.

Been watching this guys videos ever since Rajun told me about him.
Guy has over one million viewers.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpFuax ... lFR3gWhrMw

[JRinPA]

Well I took the plunge. I don't need it for deer steaks, but it would open up some options. Not much of a warranty. I'm not sure how it will handle our hard water.