Where my fellow cooks at???

[tifosi77]

So I put the new immersion circulators to good work yesterday. While the Colts-Steelers game was on, I cooked three small flatiron steaks, and a 2 1/2-pound pork roast, and butternut squash and celeriac to make purees for side dishes, and pickle brines for Granny Smith apples and red onions. All in, I've got enough food for probably four complete meals that I can assemble ad hoc when I get home after work this week. And Mrs Tif first request for a meal after all this pre-cooking? A dish we call pantry pasta, which is not something to be made ahead of time.

I try.

Anyhoo, this is what I made for dinner last night:

Sous Vide Salmon With Green Pea Mash

[columbia]

So my direct question is: do you feel that salmon is appreciably better cooked, than it would have been otherwise?

[tifosi77]

Yes, without question. I think in future I might try a slightly lower temp; these were cooked to 50°C; and that resulted in a bit more albumin coming to the surface than I normally dig. But overall, super pleased with the result.

[tifosi77]

Meal One from the Sunday batch cook:

Weeknight Sous Vide

Flatiron Steak With Hazelnut Romesco & Chimichurri


A little sloppy on the application of the romesco, but the steak was delicious. Bagged in EVOO with thyme and garlic, cooked at 54°C for two hours to break down the connective tissue. The garlic from the cook was then chopped up and added to the chimichurri.

I can really get into this weeknight home cooking thing.

[columbia]

So did you sear it afterwards?

[tifosi77]

Yes.

You'll see some debate over the merits of pre-searing vs post-searing, or even searing pre- and post-cook. The Maillard flavors that you get from the hard sear can continue to develop during the cooking process, so for larger cuts that require a longer cooking time it makes sense to pre-sear. One other advantage of pre-searing is that it destroys an surface bacteria that may be present on the meat. But for a thin flatiron steak, I didn't want to bother with par-freezing the thing first (to prevent any more than the outermost layer of protein from actually cooking). So I just bagged it raw with the aromatics and oiil, and then hit it in the cast iron skillet for about 60 seconds on each side.

The pork roast that I'll be having later in the week (perhaps tonight...) was pre-seared. It made sense in that context, because you're talking about a pretty big hunk o' meat that spent a total of ~4 hours in the water bath. (2 at the 54°C temp the steak was cooked to, and then the bath was warmed to 60°C and the roast was cooked for another 2.)

[mac5155]

English roast in the crockpot. Doing it "Mississippi style". Hopefully it turns out well but I can't see any way it won't.

[FreeCandy44]

Mississippi Style?

[tifosi77]

White beans in the pot. Black beans get a separate - but equal - pot of their own.

[tifosi77]

Pork 60 C, Celeriac Puree, Granny Smith Pickles

[shmenguin]

fahrenheit or it didn't happen

[tifosi77]

140 F

[shmenguin]

so you set the temp of the water to the final temp of the meat? how do you know when it's done? meat thermometer?

[mac5155]

White beans in the pot. Black beans get a separate - but equal - pot of their own.

hmm, must be two different things.

http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/main- ... roast.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[tifosi77]

so you set the temp of the water to the final temp of the meat? how do you know when it's done? meat thermometer?

If you want to eat it immediately when it's done, then yes, you need to check temp with a thermometer. But this roast was cooked (with steaks in a separate bag) in a 42°C bath for two hours, then the bath was raised to 60°C and the roast left to cook for another 2 hours. A piece of meat the thickness of a pork loin roast would only need about 90 minutes for the core to reach equilibrium temp with the bath. The remaining time is for additional tenderizing and Pasteurization. In retrospect, I think next time I might go for another hour in the bath at 60. There wasn't anything wrong with this particular cook, I just want to experiment to see if it yields an appreciably different result.

[viva la ben]

Mac,Unless you have low sodium packets that recipe seems too salty

[tifosi77]

For those interested in the PBS series 'Mind Of A Chef', the third season is getting underway soon. The presenting chef will be Magnus Nilsson of Fäviken Magasinet, currently ranked as the 19th best restaurant in the world by Restaurant Magazine. (Nilsson has no Michelin stars because Fäviken is way the hell out in the boonies, and the guide does not rate restaurants in Sweden outside of Stockholm.)

He appeared on the 'Cook It Raw' episode of 'No Reservations a couple years ago, and many of the chefs there were most excited to see what he'd cook. By all accounts, he's a grade-A righteous dude.

[youtube][/youtube]

[columbia]

Why You Should Salt (Not Brine) Your Thanksgiving Turkey
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguide ... rss_epilog" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[PensFanInDC]

[tifosi77]

Why You Should Salt (Not Brine) Your Thanksgiving Turkey
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguide ... rss_epilog" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I sorta do both. I'll brine the turkey for 48 hours, then remove it and put it in the fridge uncovered for 24 hours, then getting it out of the fridge and letting it rest on the counter (covered) for at least 4 hours.

Then again, I don't do full turkeys anymore. Turkey breast porchetta style, cooked sous vide, then deep fried to GBD. I also have a second fridge in the garage that we kept especially for storing batch cooked products for parties, Thanksgiving, etc.

[mac5155]

Mac,Unless you have low sodium packets that recipe seems too salty

I use half of each packet, and unsalted butter. Plus the roast is like 5 pounds. It's probably still too salty but doesn't taste it.

[tifosi77]

Pimentón Spiced Pork Loin, Butternut Squash Puree, Brandy-Balsamic Reduction



This marks the first time in about three years that I've cooked on a school night for five consecutive days. (Made a pasta dish Wednesday that I didn't photograph)

[eddysnake]

Tif, would you spontaneously combust if I served you microwaved hot dogs on a paper plate?

[Crankshaft]

Would it help if he wrapped the hot dog in a damp paper towel prior to cooking?

[tifosi77]

Tif, would you spontaneously combust if I served you microwaved hot dogs on a paper plate?

No.

Would it help if he wrapped the hot dog in a damp paper towel prior to cooking?

Yes.