Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/01/31/sous-vide-blackened-salmon-fil.html
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I know that sushi grade salmon must be flash frozen in a special freezer to kill parasites. But what about unfrozen salmon that’s heated to a mere 122ºF? Is that temperature high enough to kill off invertebrate eggs and other marine-based, wake-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-with-a-monster-worm-crawling-out-of-your-bum horrors?
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You leave it in the bath long enough to kill them, yes. 40+ min for a 1" thick slice of fishmeat. The app will handle it.
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Is that an actual photo @jlw ? If so, I am impressed. And hungry.
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Yes, that is from dinner last night. Sauteed mushrooms in sherry, brown rice and blackened salmon.
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I swear by the TFal Optigrill. http://amzn.to/2DQkdRE You push a button for the kind of meat (poultry, beef, fish, pork) and then lower the lid and it calculates the proper cooking time based on thickness. The meat gets grilled from both sides at once. It beeps to tell you when to glaze with sauce if you want, then again for rare, medium and well. The grill is angled so the fat drains off into a tray. The grills are non-stick and you can just stick them in the dishwasher. Super fast cooking time. I cook all meat this way now and do sauces separate and add them when it’s done. Works great. I’ve been using mine for every meal for the past couple of years. I did have to replace the non-stick grills once. Teriyaki Tri-Tip: http://www.vintageip.com/pics/teriyakitritip.jpg
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“Sous vide” gave me the nastiest experience I have had in a London restaurant. All the food had been cooked to a grey sludge. Nothing tasted of anything. The crowning moment came when a waiter disappeared into the kitchen to bring us a single teaspoon with a flourish. A teaspoon of the same grey sludge. It was so bad that I now suspect it was a pilot for a reality TV show. Or possibly the revenge of a restaurateur jaded by the awfulness of London clientele. I suppose we deserve it.
My 10-year-old Frying Pan™ produces excellent salmon every time. It’s fully depreciated, so I think of it as free.
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The pasteurization time for a 1" slab of never-frozen lean fish is over 3 hours at 55C.
As for worms,
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I have had good results doing sous vide with a regular old cooking pot and a kitchen thermometer held in place by chopsticks across the top. Mostly for the rare (ha!) times I do steaks, which are then finished on the grill. Once you get the temperature dialed in, you just set the timer for however long, and it coasts. Approximate times and temperatures work just fine, though you don’t want to go under time, generally. Going over time doesn’t make a big difference.
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I see there’s another model with stainless-steel (not aluminum) grill plates: http://a.co/63w1C46
It isn’t as large as the one you have, though. (but now I see there’s a larger one: http://a.co/gu4pqBe)
Thanks jlw, I will try this one. Cheers!
I just returned mine. After multiple meals trying to get it right I decided that sous vide wasn’t for me. Don’t get me wrong SV has it’s place in cooking for sure. There’s nothing better than a thick pork chop that was SV’d and then grilled to perfection by a talented chef. However, waiting hours for a piece of meat to cook in a clear plastic baggie well, was boring. It took all the pleasure out of cooking for me. The savory smells and sight and sound cues of cooking over heat were replaced by the single lazy sound of a babbling brook. I’ve gone back to cooking over fire and won’t go back but, I have learned to appreciate the SV method.
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My daughter, a skilled home cook, moved to LA to work at her first job at a tech start-up. She tells stories about each fad that passes through and requires a purchase from her co-workers. Last year, every one else had to buy a sous vide, even though no one there did much cooking.
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What about overhead costs, such as electrical and gas?
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You have a point. Also I have to wear clothes, unless it’s just me.
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Never cook when naked.
Trust me.
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Yep, have the same but most often the meat comes out a bit too much on the well done side when I want medium.
Not to be pedantic, but “sous vide blackened” is an oxymoron. Blackened, like most cajun/creole dishes is defined by how its cooked, not the seasoning or ingredients. Blackened fish is seared at high heat. The complete opposit of sous vide.
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I’m not so sure I want to try sous vide. Then again, when it comes to things beyond “pop it in the oven for X minutes,” I tend to gravitate towards stir-frying, whether it’s steak fajitas or an Asian-style dish.
