First order received

[Brian]

I received my first order of drybags today. Looking forward to use a chamber vac to attempt to seal my first primal rib eye tomorrow! Will try and post pics soon.

[Scott Mark]

Morgan,

Congrats on having a chamber vac available. It is _so_ much easier. Bad news is that my chamber vac (vacmaster VP-112) is only big enough for whole sirloin, not strip loin nor ribeye,

What are you using for a chamber sealer?

[Brian]

It’s actually a commercial Laco vac; however I don’t think it’s large enough to accomodate an entire strip or rib either. The back wall to sealer bar is only 16″. It primal fits but will not allow the head room at the front of the bag. Wonder if I could use a brisket bag and turn it sideways after doing a couple of corner seals?

[Scott Mark]

Um, why YES, you can!

I’m a little mirthful because I posted an article on the subject, in the “tips and tricks” section, titled Success using 12″ chamber sealer with 16″x 28″ bag

I did that exact thing – put a sirloin sub-primal sideways into a brisket bag. Sealed the corners, then used the chamber sealer to evacuate and seal the center.

Post #1545.

And we had the sirloin for New Year’s Eve, after sous-vide and then flash-sear. It was awesome. All the flavor of sirloin, amplified by dry-aging, and none of the rubbery texture. Dunno if dry-aging, or sous vide cooking, or both should get credit for changing the texture to very tender.

I need to do an article on that one.

[Brian]

Is the sous vide really that good? Thinking about purchasing a bath. What model / vendor do you use?

[Charlie]

I have the sous vide supreme. The full stainless one and its about 100 bucks more than then powder coated one and a little larger.

You know when you cook shrimp or scallops how they shrink to half size. If you SV them then sear they hardly shrink at all so you wind up with less loss and end up eating less to be satisfied. Also the shrimp has a nice snap to them when you bite in. And a whole lot more flavor.

You will not overcook anymore. You cook the food in a vac bag in its own juices or add seasoning to the bag with the food.

Sometimes I throw chicken in before work and when I return… wallah! One minute sear each side and perfect chicken or whatever you cook.

Same excitement with ceramic cookers and aged beef.

B) Charlie

[Scott Mark]

I do the roll-your-own thing. I get my controllers from freshmealssolutions.com, and I pair them with one of two larger rice cookers, or my Rival roaster oven, or a 6-qt electric deep-fryer for small runs. I currently have two setups in place but they’re both off at the moment. I think I’ve got four controllers.

And I’ve got one aquarium air pump for when I need to be picky about active circulation.

[Charlie]

This vid explains the process.

B) Charlie

[Charlie]

Here is a great video that you should watch.

You can cook sous vide with your own pots of water.

Not automatic but still very awesome!

B) Charlie

[Brian]

Overall are you pleased with your freshmeals solutions controller? Trying to decide between that and a sous vide supreme. Also need to determine what “cooker” I would use. I have several rival roasters but no rice cooker. thoughts?

[Scott Mark]

Morgan wrote:

quote :

Overall are you pleased with your freshmeals solutions controller? Trying to decide between that and a sous vide supreme. Also need to determine what “cooker” I would use. I have several rival roasters but no rice cooker. thoughts?

Morgan,

I assume you were addressing me.

I’m very pleased with the freshmeals solutions, but I’m not sure the pricing is competitive anymore. They want $160 for the controller. If you have a good cooker already, that might be the way to go. A large rice cooker like mine is about $100. The solution from freshmeals is probably more versatile, but runs about $150. There might be a package deal.

Last I looked, the Sous Vide Supreme is $400, and the demi is $300. At that point you might decide that the Supreme is less hassle to haul around and get started, you don’t have to worry about the sensor touching cold food, or the heating element, etc.

I’m pleased with the rice cooker, but not with the rival roaster. The roaster has too much temperature swing, unless I preheat with a large amount of water compared to the amount of food I’ll be using. It’s OK for vegetables, and as a backup for smaller meals.

Especially in the winter, when no heat is wasted, I keep ’em going all the time.

[Author]

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