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Questions tagged [sous-vide]

Questions about food safety and technique for cooking sous vide.

Sous Vide is a method of cooking food in an airtight sealed bag for a very long time. The bag sits in a water bath with accurately determined temperature which is much lower than normally used for cooking. The temperature of the water bath is generally the same as the target temperature of the food. The aim is to maintain the integrity and flavor of the food, as well as provide novel results by using fine temperature control.

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Is it possible to cook a whole fish in a dishwasher?

I heard that there is a way to cook a whole fish in a dishwasher - any techniques, tips??
AttilaNYC
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What parasites are problematic in sous vide?

Obviously, one should use only clean ingredients. However, especially with game and river/lake fish that's rather difficult. What are parasites that should be taken into account in sous vide cooking, or any other tightly controlled low-temperature…
Olli
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Which torch to buy for finishing sous vide meat? Butane or propane?

I have started cooking sous vide and am thinking of buying a torch to finish off the meat. I have seen stores selling little butane torches for creme brulees, but some have claimed they are not hot enough and I should use propane. On the other hand,…
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What is the purpose of using ping pong balls on top of a Sous Vide Bath?

I recently saw a picture of expert Douglas Baldwin with his sous vide equipment in this article. One of his immersion circulator baths was covered with ping pong balls. What is the purpose of covering the immersion circulator bath with ping pong…
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Is there any way to sous-vide without a machine

I live in an apartment and have limited space to store kitchen gadgets. I don't really like the idea of having a machine that is dedicated to one specific task. I particularly want to get into using sous-vide as a cooking technique, but I don't…
Jacob R
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Can you shred raw potatoes to make mashed potatoes?

When cooking sous vide, will shredding the potatoes, instead of cubing them, work just as well or could it have unintentional consequences? Context: I am trying to improve my mashed potato recipe to get more consistent results. Unfortunately, I…
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How to pasteurize eggs in a sous vide machine (in the shell)

I have a Sous Vide Supreme machine and I like raw eggs (in the shell). I've made a few batches by simply boiling them at 134 oF for 2-4 hours, but I have 2 problems: Some of the eggs crack and most of the eggs begin to coagulate. Are there better…
deadprogrammer
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Can I sous-vide meat (at a temperature between 40ºF and 140ºF) for more than four hours?

According to the USDA cooking chicken at 145ºF (63ºC) for 13 minutes (i.e. maintaining an internal temperature of 145ºF for that long) will bring about a "7 log10 relative reduction of salmonella". A recent question made me wonder whether this can…
Chris Steinbach
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How do I impart "extra" flavor with Sous Vide cooking?

I've been cooking Sous Vide 2-3 times a week for about 10 months now, and I absolutely love it. The control of temperature and time makes for some really interesting possibilities. But, one of the touted benefits of the method is better imparting of…
yossarian
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Is a vacuum strictly necessary for sous-vide cooking?

I'd always assumed that things cooked sous-vide (which translates as 'under vacuum'!) needed to be under a good vacuum for the most efficient heat transfer into the meat, since air is less convective than water. I also thought there might be a…
Benjamin Hodgson
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Should I sear meat which is cooked sous vide before it goes in the bag, or after?

After reading the beer cooler sous vide hack, I'm tempted to try it probably with duck, but maybe with steak. Should I sear my duck/steak first before I put it in the bag, or afterwards, and why? Or does it not make a difference?
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Are there food safety issues with sous-vide cooking?

As I understand the technique, you put a food item in a plastic bag and dump it into warm water for some amount of time. What happens to bacteria growth inside the bag?
BaffledCook
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Are the claims legitimate linking botulism to vacuum prepared foods?

I have read in many places 1,2,3 claims of a link between preparing foods sous vide and botulism, with claims that this is because the food is prepared in a vacuum. This struck me as illogical, so I looked around online and could find no solid…
Jeff Axelrod
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Would sous vide-ing tomatoes result in a deeply caramelised tomato sauce?

I am looking to take the effort out of slow-cooking tomatoes for several hours over the stove and wondered if sous-vide may be a possible method of doing this. I understand that the end result may be slightly watery but this sauce can then be…
seeker
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Where can I find "food safe" glass marbles for sous vide cooking?

I would like to find "food safe" glass marbles for sous vide cooking. They can be used for keeping bags from floating, to space out ingredients in a bag, or even as "filler" space in a chamber vacuum to get a higher level of vacuum sealing. Even…
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