SousVide Supreme Chef, Instructions For The Use And Care

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6 SousVide Supreme Chef Instructions
Cooking with the SousVide Supreme Chef
As with any new cooking method, there are some differences in technique that
you will want to become familiar with. Here are the basic principles you should
understand:
Length of cooking time depends on the thickness of the food (meat especially)
more than the weight. Doubling the thickness of a steak, for instance, increas-
es the time needed for the meat to reach target temperature at its center by
as much as four times. Thus if a 1–inch (2.5 cm) steak requires a minimum of
1 hour to reach the ‘medium’ target temperature of 140F/60C, a 2-inch (5 cm)
steak will require not 2, but 4 hours to reach 140F/60C.
Foods can be cooked at their desired serving temperature and held for
extended periods of time (8 hours or more) without significant loss of flavor
or appeal or can be cooked at higher temperatures more quickly. When cook-
ing meat at a temperature higher than the desired serving temperature, using
the timer function is required to prevent overcooking.
Tougher cuts of lean meat require longer cooking times (6 to 8 hours or more)
at desired serving temperature, which will not overcook, but rather tenderize
the meat. Typical of this group would be flank steak, eye of round, grass-fed
beef, ostrich filets, or bison steaks.
Tough, fatty cuts of meat, such as pot roast, pork ribs, leg of lamb, should be
cooked at temperatures hot enough to ‘melt’ the collagen fibers into gelatin,
which means at least 140F/60C and for at least 24 hours. Some very tough
cuts, such as beef cheeks or beef spare ribs may require up to 72 hours. The
end result is simply succulent, falling-apart-tender meat.
Very tender meats, such as lamb chops, rack of lamb, or tenderloin of beef or
pork, need only to be brought to serving temperature throughout, which
requires less time. Leaving tender cuts in the water bath for extended periods
(over 4 to 6 hours) can cause some loss of textural quality.
Poultry is best cooked as the individual parts. Air trapped in the cavity of a
whole bird carcass can cause the pouch to float in the water bath and result
in uneven cooking. Half chickens, ducks, or game hens or individual breasts,
legs, or thighs work best in the SousVide Supreme Chef water oven.
Vegetables and fruits, which contain a significant amount of fiber, require
higher temperatures than meats (usually 183F/84C to 190F/87C) for 1 to 2
hours to become tender. Tender vegetables, such as asparagus, broccoli,
cauliflower, cabbage, summer and winter squash varieties, as well as most
fruits including tomatoes may need only 45 minutes. Root vegetables, such as
beets, carrots, potatoes, parsnips, and turnips will usually require 1-2 hours.
Longer cooking times will result in very soft fruit and vegetable textures, ideal
for soups and purees.
Some foods—those for which poaching is an ideal preparation medium, such
as vegetables, fish, shellfish, and skinless poultry—can be plated and served
straight from the cooking pouch.
Foods in which a caramelized or crisp exterior is preferred—such as roasts,
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