Serious Efforts: vacuum sealing liquids in a Foodsaver for SV
I have a theory, soon to be tested, for sealing liquids in a bag for cooking sous vide. Gelatin! (or other thermo reversible gelling agents...?) The idea is, add gelatin to the braising liquid, insert to the bag with the solids, refrigerate until the liquid gels encasing the solids, then seal. When heated, the gel will melt... Could also be done for poaching in butter or other fats. I will be getting my sealer this week, so will be able to test this. In the meantime, I'm curious to hear your thoughts and experiences on the matter, and your tips, tricks and techniques for sealing liquids without having a high end chamber vac.
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4 Comments:
Depending on the model you got, they now have things like a slower vacuum, moisture detection, pause/start thing (forget what they call it), immediate seal so you can stop it at any point...all sorts of ways to keep you from sucking liquid into the machine. When it arrives, read the directions -- there are plenty of tips for sealing in wet stuff, which does vary a bit by model.
dbcurrie at 6:06PM on 05/26/09
I had to look this one up. I remember seeing the guy that invented on one of the original Iron Chef episodes. I think he went up against Chef Sakai.
Grumpy Old Man at 6:46PM on 05/26/09
I have a standard vacuum sealer with a "pulse" function that lets me stop the seal where I want it. I have used it for poached salmon as well as antelope with good results.
I also use the vac sealer method for confit of wild duck and goose and I LOVE it -- doing it this way uses less fat and because the fat sets up firm in the fridge, keeps the confited meat coated and sealed. I have set confited goose legs in the fridge this way a month and they were still delicious.
I have not been able to get that compression effect Thomas Keller talks about with fruit, however. I think that needs the high-pressure model.
HunterAnglerGardenerCook at 7:15PM on 05/26/09
This is a creative idea and should work well for water-based liquids.
I don't think gelatin is fat-soluble, so it wouldn't mix in with liquid fat. However, most fats can be immobilized by refrigeration or brief freezing.
My technique is to use as little liquid as possible and hang the bag over the edge of the counter, so I get maximum gravity pulling down on the liquid (and bubbles are naturally forced to the top to get sucked out. Then I hit the "manual seal" button as soon as I can see that liquid is at or close to the sealing bar. I've never had a problem getting a seal this way using my old FoodSaver 1050. I do get a lot of yucky stuff in the little vacuum chamber from time to time, which can be a bitch to clean.
My father-in-law (whom I have converted to the SV lifestyle) has a newer FoodSaver (I can't remember the model number but it's black and silver). It has a tendency to "auto seal" much sooner in the cycle, when there is still tons of air in the bag. Lame! I find that I need to use a much longer bag at his house, so there is more room for liquid to run without angering the FoodSaver.
Until I can afford a cryovac it'll have to do . . .
hsawtelle at 11:32AM on 06/12/09