Best Chicken Pot Pie Ever!
Sous Vide Details: Cook Chicken at 145F for 1-2 hours
Ingredients, Serves 8:
- 2 Skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 2 Skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 8 Sprigs of thyme
- 8 Sprigs of rosemary
- 8 Sprigs of sage
- Crust:
- 3 C Flour
- 1 t Salt
- 1 t Baking Powder
- 1 C Unsalted butter (2 sticks) cut into cubes
- 1/4 C Vegetable shortening
- Filling:
- 1 1/2 C Your favorite mushrooms (chanterelle, oyster, shitake)
- 1 C Peeled sliced carrots (you can use baby carrots)
- 1 C Peas (Frozen or fresh)
- 1 C Red pearl onions
- 1 C Chopped celery
- 1/2 C Unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 3/4 C Flour
- 16 Oz Chicken Stock
- 6 Fresh sage leaves
- 4 Sprigs of Thyme
- 2 Sprigs of Rosemary
- 1 C Sliced fingerling potatoes
- 1 Egg beaten
- Salt and pepper to taste
I don't normally love chicken pot pie, but this recipe is incredible! Pre-heat the water bath to 145F. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Place the breasts in one bag and the thighs in another. Add the sprigs of thyme, rosemary and sage evenly to both bags. Seal and drop in water bath. Cooked for 1-2 hours.
Now for the crust. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder in a food processor with a dough blade. Add the cubes of butter and shortening and process until the mixture is coarsely mixed. With the machine running, add 1/2 C ice cold water and continue mixing until a dough is formed. Knead into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
To make the filling, fill a large saucepan about half way with salted water. Bring to a boil and add carrots. Boil for 2 minutes. Using a large ladle strainer or slotted spoon, remove the carrots from the saucepan into a bowl. Add peas and boil for 1 minute. Remove and add to the bowl with carrots. Add celery to saucepan and boil for 1 minute. Remove to the bowl with the other vegetables. Add pearl onions to the saucepan and boil for 2 minutes. Remove onions to chopping board. Cut the bottoms off and slide the insides of the onion out and add to the bowl with all the other vegetables.
In another large saucepan (with high sides), melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 7 minutes, whisking constantly. Add the herbs, chicken broth and 1/2 C of the mushrooms. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring regularly. Using a large strainer, strain the mixture and discard the solids. Return liquid to saucepan and add all vegetables: carrots, celery, onions, peas, potatoes and the rest of the mushrooms. Simmer until chicken is ready.
When the chicken is ready, remove from water bath and bag and shred and add to filling mixture. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep on low simmer.
Pre-heat oven to 400F. Take the dough out of the refrigerator and knead into a malleable ball. Sprinkle liberal amount of flour on a clean counter top. Roll the dough out until it is 1/4" thick and can cover a 11" x 8" x 2" baking pan (pyrex).
Using a slotted spoon, fill an 11" x 8" x 2" baking dish with the filling. Place the dough topping over the filling and trim 1/2" larger than the dish edge. Fold under and crimp onto the edge of the dish. Slice a 1" slot into the crust in the middle of the dish for venting. Brush the crust with the beaten egg mixture and lightly salt and pepper. Place the baking dish on a baking sheet (to catch any overflow) and place in middle of oven and bake for 45 minutes or until crust is a golden brown. Remove and let cool. Then dig into the best chicken pot pie around!
Bay Scallops on Soy Ginger Espuma with Mushrooms and Spinach
Sous Vide Details: Cook scallops at 125F for 30 minutes
Ingredients, Serves 2:- 3/4 lb Large Bay Scallops
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 T Grape seed oil
- Mushroom and Spinach Side:
- 7 Oz of your favorite Mushrooms (Chantrelle, Oyster, Shimeji)
- 1 Large bunch of Spinach leaves
- 2 T EVO
- 4 T Soy sauce
- 1 1/2 t Balsamic vinegar
- 1 1/2 t Sugar
- 1 t Lime juice
- 1 t Wasabi paste (Japanese horseradish)
- 1/2 t Sesame seed oil
- 1/4 C Peanut oil
- Soy Ginger Espuma Sauce:
- 1/4 C Mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
- 1/2 C Dry white wine
- 1 T Chopped ginger
- 1 T Minced Shallots
- 2 T Heavy cream
- 1 Stick unsalted butter (1/2 C)
- 2 1/2 t Soy sauce
- Special Kitchen Tool: Cream Whipper
I love scallops and sous vide fits scallops perfectly. The texture is out of this world! Simply salt and pepper the scallops to taste and place in bag. Cluster next to each other to provide support and if you have the ability to adjust the vacuum pressure, dial it down, otherwise you might squish the scallops. Preheat the bath water to 125F and drop them in for 30 minutes.
To make the mushroom and spinach vinaigrette, whisk the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, line juice, wasabi paste and sesame seed oil into a bowl to blend. Slowly whisk in the peanut oil until fully integrated. Set aside.
To make the Soy Ginger espuma sauce, simmer the mirin, white wine, ginger and minced shallots in a saucepan over medium heat until liquid is almost reduced (4-5 minutes). Add cream and simmer for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and whisk in butter one tablespoon at a time. Finally, whisk in soy sauce. Sauce should be medium thick and smooth. Strain into a bowl and then pour into whipper and charge. Shake and set aside.
Heat EVO in large skillet on medium heat and add mushrooms. Saute until soft and tender, about 5 minutes. In another large pan, heat 1/4 C of the vinaigrette to just starting to boil. Add the spinach and blanch only for about 30 seconds then remove from heat.
When the scallops are done, heat a cast iron skillet with grape seed oil on high. Take out the scallops and pat them dry with a paper towel. Sear them in the hot skillet on one side for about 45 sec or until golden brown and on the other side for only 30 sec (that side will be the bottom).
Now you are ready for plating. Spoon some spinach onto the plate near one side. Spoon some mushrooms on top of the spinach and top with some vinaigrette sauce. Take the whipper and turn it upside down and discharge some soy ginger espuma onto the plate. Take the back of your spoon and create a tail. Place three scallops on top of the espuma sauce. Your ready to serve!
Chicken and Portabello Mushroom Roulade with Mushroom Espuma Sauce
Sous Vide Details: Cook chicken at 145F for 1 to 2 hours
Ingredients, Serves 2:
- 1 Chicken breast with skin on (boneless)
- 1/2 Large cap Portabello mushroom (stem removed)
- 1 T unsalted butter
- 1/2 T Tarragon, chopped
- 2 T EVO
- 1 T Grape seed oil
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Mushroom Espuma Sauce:
- 5 oz mushrooms (you can use shitaki, portobello or any other kind you like)
- 1/3 C White wine
- 1/3 C Chicken stock
- 1/4 C Water
- 2 T EVO
- 1 t Cheyenne pepper
- 1 T Tarragon
- 3 threads saffron
- 1 Egg yoke
- 1 Stick of melted unsalted butter (4 oz or 8 T)
- 1/3 C heavy cream
- Special kitchen tools: Cream whipper (used for the espuma sauce)
Sous vide is a perfect method for making a chicken roulade presentation (roll). It plates really well. Start by taking a chicken breast with the skin on and putting into a heavy duty 1 gallon zip lock bag. Using a cooking mallet, pound the chicken flat.
Thinly slice the portabello mushroom. Heat the butter in a sauce pan on medium heat. Put the mushroom slices in and cook on medium low for 1 min per side until they are soft and slightly brown. Sprinkle with tarragon spice. Set them aside.
Now, you will need a large counter space cleared and clean. Lightly dampen your counter with a towel and then place a sheet of saran wrap on the counter with about 2 inches hanging over the edge. It should be twice the width of the chicken breast's longest dimension. Smooth it down on the counter so there are no bubbles. It should stick to the counter top. Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken breast and then lay it on the saran wrap 2 inches from the counter edge with the longest side parallel to the edge of the counter. Lay the mushroom slices in the center of the breast, again parallel to edge of the counter. Now pick up the saran wrap that is overhanging the edge and wrap it over the chicken. Using your fingers and cupping your hands, pinch the wrap back towards you, essentially rolling the chicken breast onto itself. Slowly roll the saran wrap away from you squeezing the breast into a roll. Make sure there is no air between the saran wrap and the chicken breast. Pinch both ends together as you roll so that the chicken breast is "pressurized" into a tight roll (like a sausage roll). When you've completed the wrap, twist both ends to create an air tight roll. Put the roll in a bag and seal.
Put the chicken breast roulade into the water bath at 145F and cook for 1-2 hours.
Now fro the espuma sauce. Espuma is Spanish for "foam". Espuma sauces are incredibly light and airy as they are infused with N2O in a pressurized cream whipper canister. I have a blog on this topic coming up. First clean and rough chop the mushrooms to a size of your liking. In a large sauce pan, heat up the EVO over medium heat and add minced garlic. Cook until just starts to turn golden brown. Reduce heat and add minced shallots. Cook until soft but not brown. Add mushrooms and cook until softened. Add chicken stock, white wine, water, Tarragon, saffron, and cheyenne pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Empty sauce pan into a stick blender container and puree until smooth. Strain mixture. Slowly whisk the egg yoke into the mixture. Return mixture to stick blender container and slowly blend in melted butter until the mixture is a smooth emulsion.
Following your whipper's instructions, pour mixture into the whipper, tighten cap and charge whipper with N2O cartridge. Shake whipper prior to plating.
When chicken is done, heat a cast iron skillet on high with the grade seed oil. Take it out of the water bath and bag. Using a paper towel, pat dry the chicken roulade. Place roulade into the skillet and sear the outside on all sides. When completed, slice the roulade with a sharp knife into 3/4" slices. You can cut square or at a slight angle, whichever you want.
Now for plating, take the whipper and turn it upside down. Pointing directly at the plate, press the release lever and create a medium sized espuma landing for the roulade. It should be foamy and delicate. Now place the chicken roulade in a row slightly overlapping one another. Add whatever sides you wish and serve!
Stacked Halibut, Beet Wafers and Edamame with Persian Cucumber Base
Sous Vide Details: Cook Halibut at 135F for 40 minutes
Ingredients, Serves 2:- 2 Small Halibut Steaks (or one cut in half)
- 2-4 Twigs of fresh dill
- 1 Large Red beet (should be at least 3 1/2" in diameter)
- 1 T Unsalted butter
- 1/4 C Water
- 1 1/2 C Shelled Edamame (you can get them at an asian market, use regular soybeans if necessary)
- 1 Persian Cucumber (you can use America or English too)
- Salt and Pepper
- Special tool: 3" mold ring
This is another variation of the sea food stack. Here we stack Halibut on top of some red beet wafers and edamame soybeans on a base of Persian cucumber coins. Yummie!
First, cut your halibut steaks so that they will fit nicely on top of the stack. You don't want them hanging over the edge! Season them with the dill, salt and pepper on both sides and put them both in a single bag and seal. Pre-heat the water bath to 135F and put the steaks in. Cook for 40-45 minutes.
Slice the beets into thin (1/4") wafers. Take the largest slices and using your ring mold, cut out 6 perfect circular beet wafers. Melt the better into a sauce pan under medium heat. Put beet wafers in, stir to coat and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook on one side for 1 minute and then flip and cook on other side for 1 minute. Add the water and simmer until reduced to a glaze (about 5 minutes). Set aside.
Boil a pot of water and blanch the edamame beans for 3-4 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
Using a mandoline set at the thinnest setting, make cucumber coins. Be very careful not to slice your fingers! Lightly salt the coins.
When the steaks are done, remove them from the water bath and bag.
To assemble the plate, arrange the cucumber coins on the plate in a circular spiral, overlaying the previous one until you have built a 5" diameter base. Build it as high as you like, but I wouldn't go more than 3-4 high. Put the ring mold in the center and add a beet wafer. Add some edamame and then another beet wafer. Add another layer of edamame and then a final beet wafer. Carefully remove the ring mold and carefully place the halibut steak on the top. Present and enjoy!
Duck Breast with Tourne Vegetables
Sous Vide Details: Cook Duck Breast at 135F for 1 Hour
Ingredients, Serves 2:
- 1 Duck breast with skin on
- 3 T Salt
- 1 t Lemon zest
- 1 T Orange zest
- 1 t White pepper
- 1 T Sugar
- 1 T Grapeseed oil
- 2 Yukon gold potatoes
- 1 Whole beet
- 1 T Sugar
- 1 T Butter
- 1/3 C Water
- 1 Whole carrot
- La' Orange Gastrique Sauce:
- 2/3 C Sugar
- 2/3 C Balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 C Orange juice
- 2 C Duck stock (you can substitute chicken or turkey stock)
- 1 T Chopped Tarragon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Long strands of orange zest for garnish (you can mix with a little sugar if desired)
So I am a huge duck fan although I haven't had it since I went on my health diet! Well, I decided to cook it sous vide and separate the breast from the skin so that it was a much healthier rendition. No oil, no skin, but duck breast none the less!
First, take the duck breast and with a sharp knife, remove the skin whole and save. Now mix the orange zest, lemon zest, salt, sugar and white pepper in a bowl. Rub the duck breast with the marinade and then seal in bag. Drop in water bath at 135F for 1 - 2 hours.
For the gastrigue, lightly
carmelize sugar and slowly mix in the basamic vinegar. When fully mixed, add the orange juice and duck stock. Simmer until reduced enough to coat a spoon. Salt and pepper to taste.
While the gastrique is simmering, you need to tackle the vegetables. Now if you're like me, I had no idea what tourne was! Well
click here to see a video on how to tourne the vegetables. It's a labor of love so make sure you're making this meal for someone you love! In this case, it's for my lovely wife so that was easy. Tourne all the potatoes, beets and carrots. Using a vegetable steamer (or pot with water and a pot steamer), steam the potatoes and carrots to your desired doneness (usually 15-20 minutes for carrots and potatoes). For the beets, I melted 1 T butter and 1 T sugar in a sauce pan and then coated the beets for 2 minutes. Add the water and boil with a cover slightly ajar until most of water evaporated and the beets are glazed, roughly 10 minutes.
When the duck almost done, heat a cast iron skillet with 1 T grapeseed oil and sear the duck skin (both sides) until it is crispy brown.
Now you are ready to plate. Remove the duck from the water bath and flash sear the breast on both sides in the cast iron skillet for about 30 sec to 1min each side. Slice the breast straight down into medium thin slices. Pour some gastrique on the plate and fan the duck breast on the plate over the gastrique. Add the tourne vegetables in a random pattern, sprinkle with some chopped tarragon. Slice the duck breast skin thinly and place in a small pile next to the duck breast. Garnish with long strings of orange zest. Voila! Serve with love!
Quintessential Sous Vide Poached Eggs
Sous Vide Details: Cook egg at 148F for 1 hour
Ingredients, Serves 2:- 2 Eggs
- 2 Pieces of toast (I used whole grain)
- 1 T Thinly sliced Basil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Special tool: 3" ring mold
Well, you can't be a sous vide chef without doing the "sous vide poached egg" meal. It is quintessential sous vide! So let's get to it.
Heat your water bath to 148F. You can vary this temperature by 1 degree or two up or down to suit your doneness level. I like mine velvety, like liquid custard. Of course my wife doesn't like it that way at all! She likes it done, done, done as in virtually hard boiled. Oh well, I guess I can use both my water baths to get them to come out together! That's another story though.
Drop the eggs in the water bath and cook for 1 hour. That's it, just "drop it in and forget it!". When there's roughly 5 minutes left on the egg, toast your bread and thinly slice the basil. When the toast is done, place them on a cutting board and using the ring mold, make two round "toastlets".
When the eggs are done, you're ready to plate. Put the toastlets on a white plate. Take the egg and carefully crack and peel roughly half of the egg shell away, holding the egg in your hand. Gently turn egg over onto the toast and it should slide right out whole. You can leave it this way or take a spoon and cut it open to expose the yoke. Season with salt and sprinkle pepper and basil over and around the eggs. Visually enjoy before eating!
Stacked Sea Bass, Brown Rice Pilaf, Seaweed with Cilantro Sauce
Sous Vide Details: Cook Sea Bass at 135F for 45 minutes
Ingredients, Serves 2:
- 2 Sea Bass steaks (smaller is better to fit nicely on the top of the stack)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1/2 T Dill to taste
- Rice Pilaf:
- 1 C Long grain brown rice
- 1/2 C Chopped parsley
- 1/2 C Thinly sliced (cross-wise) scallions (green section)
- 1 C Fresh seaweed salad (you can get this from your favorite Asian/Japanese market. Get the ready to eat salad version, not the freeze-dried kind
- Cilantro sauce:
- 1 C Cilantro (don't use the stems)
- 1/4 C EVO
- 1/4 C Grapeseed oil
- 1 Chopped garlic clove
- 1/4 t Lemon zest
- 1 T Fresh lemon juice
- Special tool: 3" ring mold and tapper
By now, you can tell that I LOVE sea bass. I know it's not too politically correct, but I don't get Chilean at least :-) Since I got some new ring molds, I decided to create this "stacked" dish. Stacking is a relatively new food plating style. I decided in keeping with a "seafood" plate to integrate seaweed, a simple brown rice pilaf and a very nice "sea green" cilantro sauce.
For the sea bass, salt and pepper the steaks to taste. Add the dill to each steak on both sides. Put the steaks in separate bags and seal. Drop them into the water bath set to 135F and cook for 45 minutes.
I used a rice cooker for the rice. Put the rice in the rice cooker with 2 cups of water and start the rice cooker. It should take roughly 30 minutes so you can start say 15 minutes after starting the fish. Meanwhile, chop up the parsley and scallions and set aside.
To make the cilantro sauce, put the cilantro, garlic, lemon zest and lemon juice into a food processor. Turn it on and while it's on, pour in the EVO and grapeseed oil. Continue mixing until it emulsifies.
When the rice is done, mix it with the parsley and scallions.
When the fish is done, take it out of the bag. You can optionally sear the skin if you want. Pat it dry first. A kitchen torch works best. I actually like my skin o'natural, so I skipped this step.
Now you're now ready to plate. Use a white plate and set your ring mold in the middle. Spoon in enough seaweed to make roughly a 1/2" high stack. Use a tapper to compress the seaweed into a nice compressed ring. Don't smash it, just gently compress it. Next, spoon in enough brown rice pilaf to make a 1" stack. Again, use the tapper to compress the rice into a nice ring. Clean up any ingredients that might have fallen outside of the rings and then gently remove the ring mold. Gently set the fish on top of the stack. Take a spoon and spoon the cilantro sauce over and around the stack. Visually enjoy before eating!
Turkey Breast with Red Wine Mushroom Sauce
Sous Vide Details: Cook Turkey Breast at 140F for 2 hours
Ingredients - Serves 2-4:- 2 turkey breasts (skin on)
- Poultry seasoning
- Sprigs of thyme and rosemary (you can also use savory or oregano or your favorite herb)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Red Wine Mushroom Sauce:
- 1 1/2 cups of Shimeji mushrooms (you can use Chanterelle or Oyster)
- 2 T butter
- 1 Cup good red wine (the kind you would drink!)
- 1 T Chopped Thyme
I decided to pre-test Thanksgiving Sous Vide Turkey before Thanksgiving! That way, if something went wrong I wouldn't have an angry mob waiting at the dinner table! So I brought home a pair of nice "skin on" Turkey breasts. Seasoned with with poultry seasoning and salt and pepper and popped them into separate bags. I added a few sprigs of Thyme and Rosemary, but you can add your favorite aromatic herbs. Just remember to be sparing as sous vide magnifies the aromatics. Seal the bags and heat the water bath to 140F and pop them in for 2 hours.
When the Turkey is done, turn on your oven broiler. Take the Turkey out of the bag and save the liquid in the bag! Put the Turkey (skin side up) on an oven pan and place in the oven under the broiler. Sear the Turkey until the skin "brown".
While the Turkey is browning, heat a large sauce pan to medium high heat. Melt 1T butter and add the mushrooms. Stir to coat and cook for 5 minutes to soften. Pour the liquid in the Turkey bag into the sauce pan. Stir for another 2-3 minutes. Add the wine and Thyme and lower to simmer. Simmer until the liquid is reduced in half, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the other 1T of butter whisking to integrate.
Pull out the Turkey breast. If you have a kitchen torch, you can use that to sear any areas that didn't brown evenly. Cut the Turkey breast into 3/4" slices. Plate the mushrooms and some sauce on the plate first. Then add slices of the Turkey in a stack. Drizzle some of the sauce around the Turkey. Add any sides to the plate you like and present!
Halibut with Shimeji Mushrooms and Baby Bok Choi
Sous Vide Details: Cook fish at 132F for 35 minutes
Ingredients - Serves 2:- 2 Halibut steaks
- 1 1/2 T chopped Cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Mushroom topping:
- 1 cup Shimeji mushrooms
- 1 T butter
- 1/2 cup fish stock
- 1 T minced shallots
- 1 T chopped parsley
- 1 T chopped dill
- Baby Bok Choi
- 8 heads of baby bok choi
- 1/2 cup EVO
- 1/3 cup oyster sauce (found at Chinese grocery stores)
- 1 t sesame seed oil
So I'm in love with the little shimeji "button" mushrooms and always look for opportunities to shower a meal with them. Adding them to a nice Halibut steak is a light and healthy meal and when you add some baby bok choi, it makes for a great summer outdoor dinner.
The fish is simple. Just salt and pepper the fish steaks to taste (remember, in sous vide, a little goes a long way!) and sprinkle a little chopped cilantro on them as well. Pop them in a bag and seal. Heat the sous vide water bath to 132F and pop the fish steaks in. Cook for about 35 minutes.
While the fish steaks are cooking, you can prep the bok choi. Cut the base ends off so that the outer leaves separate. Cut the inner "core" in half length-wise. Wash all the leaves. Now prep the sauce. Put the EVO, oyster sauce, and sesame seed oil in a sealable container and shake well until mixed. Set aside. When there is 15 minutes left on the fish, in a large wok or pan, heat roughly 1 cup of water on high heat until it comes to a full boil. Add all the bok choi and cover. Cook for about 4 minutes, rotating every couple minutes to get an even blanch. You just want to see them start to soften. Strain the water out of the wok (I just put the top on and hold it over the sink at an angle to let the water strain out. Shake the sauce one more time to make sure it's mixed well and then add it to the wok and thoroughly coat the baby bok choi. Heat on high for 30 seconds, mix well and then turn off the heat and put the lid on to keep the bok choi warm.
Add butter to a sauce pan and heat on medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and stir until the mushrooms soften and take on a golden brown color, roughly 2 minutes. Add the fish stock and herbs and reduce heat to simmer and simmer until it reduces by 1/2, roughly 10 minutes.
When the fish is done, pull it out and open the bags. Plate the fish, top with the shimeji mushrooms and plate the baby bok choi in a nice mound next to your fish. Dig in!
Beef Sirloin with Onions and Finger Potatoes
Sous Vide Details: 131F for 3-6 hrs for the steaks and 183F for the potatoes (1 hr) and onions (45 min)
Ingredients - Serves 2:
- 2 sirloin steaks (as big or small as you prefer)
- 4 sprigs of thyme and rosemary
- Salt and Pepper
- Onion wine sauce:
- 1 t honey
- 1 t orange or lemon zest
- 1 t sugar
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup red wine
- Salt to taste
- Fingerling potatoes:
- 1 lb fingerling potatoes or any other small potato
- 1 T chopped thyme
- 2 T minced shallots
- 3T unsalted butter
- 2 T EVO
- Salt and pepper to taste
I had to virtually eliminate meat from my diet, doctor's orders :-(. But every once in a while, I can't resist some "red meat"! Luckily my wife enjoys a good steak too! So enjoy this recipe as you won't see many beef ones on this site!
One of the many benefits of sous vide is that it can take less tender, lower quality meats and turn them into mouth watering buttery pieces of "heaven"! Really. For instance, sirloin steak is not considered in the "fillet Minion" class, but when cooked sous vide.... delectable! And at $4/lb, it's even more delicious!
So here's the deal, if you want to do everything sous vide, this recipe really works best if you have TWO sous vide devices (luckily I have two). Other wise, you have to do the potatoes and onion sauce FIRST and then do the steaks. That elongates the cooking time by 1 hour. Alternatively, if you only have one sous vide device, I recommend you simply do the potatoes and onion sauce using your favorite method (stove top or oven). That way you can do them while the steaks are cooking.
If you DON'T have two sous vide devices, the timing is a little longer. You need to actually do the potatoes and onions first, then keep them warm (in aluminum foil). Lower the water bath to 131F using ice cubes then do the steaks.
So the beef prep is a snap. Just salt and pepper the steaks and pop them into separate bags. Add thyme and rosemary sprigs to each bag and seal. Again, remember not to over due it on the aromatics as sous vide magnifies the flavors. Put them in the water bath at 131F (for medium rare) and cook for at least 3 hours and as much as 8 hours.
Now for the potatoes, cut them into bite size pieces (I halved them) and put them in a bowel. Add the EVO, chopped thyme, minced shallots and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and pop into a bag and seal. Set aside.
For the onion sauce, heat a sauce pan to medium. Add the honey, vinegar, orange zest, and sugar. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the red wine and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the butter and stir to mix. Slice the onions thinly (cut thin slices and half the slices) and put into a bowl. Pour the sauce into the bowl and mix with the onions. Pour everything int a bag and seal. This is where the chamber sealer comes in handy. If you don't have a chamber sealer, you can use a zip lock freezer bag and lower the bag (with the onions and sauce) into some water slowly, which will press all the air out of the bag. Then slowly zip the bag shut as you go. This is using "Archimedes principle" for cooking! While this is cool, I prefer a chamber vacuum sealer! It's a lot easier.
If you DO HAVE a second sous vide device, you can cook the potatoes and onions together in the second water bath (at 183F) and have them finish at the same time as the steaks. The potatoes will take about 1 hour while the onion sauce will take about 45 minutes. So time their entry into a water bath accordingly to end at the same time as when the steaks are done. Again, you can be off several minutes with sous vide, so don't sweat it! That's another benefit!
Once the steak is done, fire up a grill as hot as it gets. Pull the steaks out and pat them dry. Sear them on the grill (30 -45 sec per side) quickly then plate them.
Pull the potatoes and onion sauce out. Mix some of the steak juices into the onion sauce and plate onto the steak. Lastly, plate the potatoes, drop some herbs of your choice (rosemary or thyme) and bon apetit!
Sea Bass with Zucchini Ribbons and Tomato Compote
Sous Vide Details: 140F for 18-20 minutes
Ingredients - Serves 4:
- 4 sea bass fillets - boneless ( you can substitute halibut or turbot)
- 2 to 3 T kosher or sea salt, divided use
- 1/3 cup fish (or vegetable) stock
- 3 T butter
- 15 threads Spanish saffron
- 1 T orange zest, chopped well
- 3 T EVO
- 1 T finely chopped garlic
- 2 T finely chopped shallots
- 2 T water
- Tomato Compote:
- 1/2 cup fresh cherry tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
- 3 T fresh chopped basil
- 1/2 t ground black pepper
- 1 T orange zest, chopped well
- Zucchini:
- 2 whole green zucchini
- 1 T chopped mint
- 1 t lemon zest
- 1 T chopped parsley
- 2 T minced chives (for garnish)
This dish is insanely delicious and light! It is a copy of a Chef Jason Wilson recipe on the Sous Vide Supreme's website. First cut the sea bass steaks into nice sized squares. Season them with a little salt, and put a pair of steaks in separate bags. In a saucepan over low heat, simmer the fish stock, butter, saffron, orange zest, and a pinch of salt and whisk for 3 minutes. Pour the mixture over the fish, dividing it evenly between the pouches. Vacuum seal the pouches.
For the tomato compote, in a saucepan over medium high heat, warm 2 T of the olive oil; toast the garlic in the oil until golden, then add the shallots and water and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes, basil, black pepper and orange zest to the saucepan and stir to combine. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Put the tomato mixture into a bag, vacuum seal, and set aside.
For the zucchini, trim the ends from the zucchini and season with the remaining olive oil, a bit of salt, the lemon zest and parsley. Put the zucchini into a bag vacuum seal.
Submerge all the pouches in 140F and set the timer for 12 minutes. Remove the zucchini and tomato compote bags and reset the timer for 8 minutes to finish cooking the fish.
Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, make ‘ribbons’ of zucchini and toss them with the residual liquid from the cooking pouch. Fold the ribbons and arrange them on the serving plate. Remove the fish and plate it on a bed of zucchini ribbons, topped with the tomato compote and a sprinkling of fresh chives. The dish looks fantastic and the taste is out of this world! My wife's favorite. Enjoy!
Turkey with Portobello Mushrooms
Sous Vide Details: White meat 140F for 3-4 hrs, Dark Meat 176F for 10 hrs
Ingredients - Serves 4-6:
- 2 Turkey breasts, 2 Turkey legs
- Poultry seasoning
- Sprigs of thyme, rosemary and/or savory
- Salt and Pepper
- 4 T butter
- 4 Portobello mushroom caps
- Sauce:
- 1 cups turkey stock (you can use chicken stock too)
- 1 cup good red wine
- 1 T champagne vinegar (you can use sherry vinegar)
- 1 T butter
- 2 T flour (to make roux)
- Salt and pepper
- Your favorite sprinkling herb (basil, oregano, mint, parsley)
One of the benefits of sous viding a turkey is that you cook the white meat and dark meat at two different temperatures and for two different time periods. According to the literature, this is HOW turkey is meant to be cooked. And I've been cooking turkey the old fashion way for so long! So I decided to give it a test and see.
First you simply seasons the turkey legs with some poultry seasoning and salt and pepper and pop them in separate bags. Add 1 T butter to each bag. You can optionally add some aromatics like thyme, rosemary, or savory but not a lot! Sous vide magnifies the aromatics. Cook at 176F for at least 10 hrs. That's a long time, but you basically just "set it and forget it!". The time will break down the collagen and tenderize the dark meat.
Next, need to de-bone the turkey breasts. Use a sharp small knife, just work around the bones scrapping the meat off of them. You should be left with two whole breasts. Season both sides with poultry seasoning, salt and pepper and pop them into separate bags as well. Again, you can optionally add some aromatics. I add thyme and rosemary to mine. I love their flavor. Add 1 T butter to each bag as well. You cook at 140 for 3 hours. You should try to time it so that both the breasts and legs finish at the same time. Again, it's not super critical since you can leave both or either in the water bath longer if necessary.
Pull off the stem of the portobello mushrooms and then slice them into thick pieces. Heat a saucepan on medium heat and toss the mushrooms in with 1/4 cup turkey stock (or water). Cook the mushrooms for about 4 minutes until they soften. Stir them frequently to get an even softening. Add the rest of the stock, the wine and the champagne vinegar and turn heat down to simmer. Simmer until liquid is reduced in 1/2, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the softened butter and flour into a paste (roux) in a small bowl with a fork. Once the sauce has reduced, mix in the roux and stir to integrate. The sauce should thicken (that's what roux does!). You can salt and pepper to taste. You can also add some chopped herbs of you choice (basil, thyme, oregano, parsley).
When the turkey is ready, pull them out of the bags and pat them dry. Now, either heat your oven broiler up and pop the breasts and legs into the oven broiler until golden brown, or pop them on the grill or use a kitchen torch (what I did) and give the turkey its just presentation: a golden brown skin tone! It's funny that the maillard reaction (searing) is purely for presentation and has nothing to do with food doneness! Oh well, we humans are trained from day one to like "burnt charred" food!
Now, we're ready to plate. Arrange the mushrooms on a large plate in a pattern that looks nice. You can slice the breast meat or leave them whole. Arrange the legs and breat meat around the mushrooms or visa versa! It's all up to you! Pour some sauce over the whole dish, sprinkle your favorite herbs and serve it up! Enjoy!
See, we did!
Sea Bass on Edamame and Endive with Mushrooms
Sous Vide Details: 135F for 30 minutes
Ingredients - Serves 2:
- 1 lb Sea Bass steak (or halibut or turbot)
- 2 cups shelled edamame
- 1 Endive
- 2 cups of shimeji mushrooms (found at Asian stores like Ranch 99)
- 2 T water or fish stock
- 3 T butter
- 2 T Parsley
- Salt and Pepper
- EVO
While it's not PC to love sea bass, I LOVE Sea Bass. My fish store (ranch 99) has incredibly fresh fish every day, including sea bass steaks. I picked some up the other day to sous vide. Sous viding fish is very simple and actually doesn't take that much more time than most other techniques. The textual difference however, is amazing.
First, you pat dry the fish steak and season both sides with salt and pepper. Then pop it into a bag and cooking at 135F for 30 minutes. That's it for the fish!
Bring a pot of water to boil with about 2 T of salt. Add the edamame and cook for 10 minutes. Then strain the edamame into a bowl and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Season with a little salt and some EVO to your taste.
While the edamame are cooking heat a saucepan to medium heat, chop the shimeji mushrooms to separate them and add the shimeji mushrooms to the saucepan. Add 1 1/2 T EVO and cook for 3-4 minutes just to get them soft and heated. Then add 2 T water or fish stock and cook for another 3 minutes. Then add the butter and reduce beat to simmer and stir to mix.
To plate, peel off some endive leaves (I used 4 per plate) and arrange them on a plate. You can brush them with a little EVO as they might be a little pungent. Add half of the Edamame to each plate. Take out the sea bass and add half to each plate. Top it with the shimeji mushrooms, sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve!
Lobster Crostini
Sous Vide Details: 143F for 30-40 minutes
Ingredients - Serves 2-4:- 2 to 3 lb main lobster
- white vinegar and salt for boiling
- Crostini:
- 1 french baguette
- Some EVO
- 1/2 cup chopped oregano
- Sauce:
- 1 1/2 cups white wine
- 1/2 cup minced onion
- 2 T tomato paste
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 4-8 T cold unsalted butter
- Creme Fraiche Topping:
- 1 cup creme fraiche
- 1 t lemon juice
- 2 T chopped chives or scallions
I love lobster. So does my wife, but she always wants to me to take it out of the shell. So I decided that cooking lobster sous vide out of the shell would be a great alternative to the "in shell" style I have been doing. It is a little bit more involved than simply boiling the lobster, but the results are worth it.
To be able to de-shell a lobster, you have to actually boil it, but only for about 2 minutes. You can put some white vinegar and salt in the water, but it's not required. Once the lobster is out, cool it down in an ice bath so that you can handle it. Break the claw and tail off at the base. Pull the main shell off the top and separate each crawler leg. Here's the cool part. To get the meat out of the crawler legs, take a rolling pin and press the leg starting from the claw end and work your way to the top. The meat just shoots right out! Use crackers and/or a kitchen scissor to extract the tail and main claw meat.
Pop the lobster meat in a bag (or two) and add a few pats of butter (either salted or unsalted) and seal. Cook them for 30-40 minutes at 143F. The longer time will result in lobster that is similar to the traditional "boiled" kind. The shorter time results in a softer, more tender lobster.
While the lobster is cooking, you can throw all the shells into a pan with a little EVO and cook on medium heat until the shells release their moisture. You can add a little fish stock if you want. After about 5 minutes, remove all the shells and hard parts so that you're left with the "edible" bits of the lobster. Add 1/2 cup chopped onions and sautéed them until translucent, then deglazed the pan with the 1 1/2 cups of good white wine. Cook on low until it reduces in half then strain the mixture into another pan. Add 2 tablespoons tomato paste and cook for 3 minutes on medium. Then add 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Stir while slowly bring to simmering boil and then turn heat way down/off.
I sliced up a baguette (diagonally), brushed with EVO and topped with fresh chopped oregano ( but you can use dried if you don't have fresh). Pop them in the oven on broil and WATCH THEM! It only takes 30 sec to 1 minute to brown! I had to do this step twice! Now you have "crostini".
When you're ready to plate, we need to "mount" the sauce with cold butter pats. Stir in (one at a time) 4 to 8 pats of butter. This should make the sauce creamy and let's just say not as healthy as before all that butter! Salt and pepper to taste. If you want to add a little kick, you can add a pinch of paprika, piquin or cayenne powder.
Pull the lobster out of the bags, pop individually cut pieces onto your "crostini" and drizzle your sauce on top. You can add some crème fraîche (mixed with teaspoon of lemon juice and chopped chives or scallions) as a topping. And there you have it!
Baby Back Pork Ribs
Sous Vide Details: 155F for 24-36 hrs
Ingredients - Serves 8-12:
- 6 racks of pork baby back ribs (make sure you take the silver skin off the back if it isn't already off)
- Your favorite BBQ sauce
- Thai Sauce:
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 1 T peeled, sliced garlic
- 2 T chopped lemongrass
- 1 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 2 T brown sugar
- 3 T finely chopped ginger
- 10 kaffir lime leaves (optional)
- 1 t kosher salt
- Aromatics:
- 1 T Thyme
- 1 T Rosemary
- 1 T Orgeano
Here is another place where sous vide shines! I've cooked BB Ribs may times, on the grill, in the oven, in a crock pot, in a smoker. While some have come out very nicely, my experiences have been inconsistent to say the least. Sometimes, they come out dry and chewy, sometimes mushy. It was always hit or miss.
With sous vide, BB ribs come out incredible! And every time incredible. I've made them several times now with huge success! the most important feature is that they are all "FALL OFF THEM BONE"!!! I mean really fall off the bone. You can control how much fall off the bone by the time AND temperature. You can find many variations for time and temperature for BB ribs on the web. Some say lower temperature and longer time (140F for 72 hrs), while others say medium temperature (155F for 24-36 hrs), while even others say higher temperature (176F for 8-12 hrs). The higher temperatures guarantee the collagens and fiberous fats break down and render out, which is what makes them "fall off the bone".
I have settled on the mid temperature cooking technique (155F for 24-36hrs). I bagged up to 6 racks of BB ribs, using different marinades for each of 2 racks a piece. I didn't brine them as I don't think you need to with sous vide.
I did a BBQ sauce marinade for one. Using whatever your favorite BBQ sauce. I've found that the good store bought brands are equally as good as making it from scratch. I know I should want to make it from scratch, but I love getting some hidden gem of a BBQ sauce brands! Sur La Table has some good ones.
I did a Thai marinade for the second pair. Mix all the ingredients in a sauce pan and heat on medium until sugar melts and a gaze consistency forms..
I did a simple aromatic marinade for the last pair. Putting in thyme, rosemary and oregano herbs.
They all went into the Polyscience IC bath together and 30 hrs later, I took them all out and off to the grill I went. I slathered some BBQ sauce on the BBQ sauce pair and seared all the racks on a high heat outdoor grill. The results were incredible! Truly fall off the bone and all wonderfully flavorful. I made three little stacks on a large white plate.
Asparagus Spears
Sous Vide Details: Cook Asparagus at 183F for 40 minutes
Ingredients - Serves 2-4:
- 16-20 Asparagus spears
- 2 T Mint
- 2 T Basil
- 2T Lemon zest
- 1/4 cup EVO
- 1/2 T garlic powder
- 1 t champagne vinegar
- Salt to taste
Sous vide asparagus spears comes out wonderfully. You should trim bottoms and peel 2/3 of the base for a nice presentation. I mix the spears with a mixture of EVO, chopped mint, chopped basil, lemon zest, garlic powder, sea salt and a tiny bit of champagne vinegar to coat. Pop them in the bag and cook at 183F for 40 minutes.
Non-Seared Chicken Breast with Pesto Sauce
Sous Vide Detailed: Cook chicken at 140F for 1 -2 hrs
Ingredients - Serves 4:
- 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 2T Basil
- 8 Thyme twigs (or savory or oregano)
I think chicken is the most transformed dish with sous vide. The texture is virtually indescribable! It is buttery, moist and cuttable with a fork. For this dish, I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I seasoned with sea salt and pepper on both sides, popped them in a bag and added some rough chopped thyme and basil. You can also use rosemary, savory and even oregano. Don't use a lot since the bag magnifies the aromatics versus normal cooking techniques. I cooked the chicken breasts at 140F for 1-2 hours. While most literature recommends you "sear" the chicken breasts before serving, I actually like the "non-seared" look and texture so I don't sear, but feel free to fire up the grill and sear them to your liking!
I typically cook up to 6 breasts in separate bags and then quick chill them (in ice bath water or I just pop them in the freezer). Then I can use them as I want and it makes a quick healthy meal. I typically make different sauces (pesto, mushroom, etc..) which is fast and easy and creates a variety. The texture of the chicken is like eating fillet minion! The picture below is with pesto sauce (
Click here for that recipe) and rough chopped basil (from my garden).
