Sous vide slow-cooked egg with Noodlecat ramen noodles, veg dashi broth.
Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman.
Yep, the good folks at Sous Vide Supreme are doing a promotional giveaway of one of their superb sous vide appliances—and a vacuum sealer! (Details below.)
About ten years ago, sous vide cooking (cooking food at low precise temperatures) entered the professional kitchen in America. It’s now solidly in the home kitchen with various devices for sale. For the best price/quality ratio, Sous Vide Supreme has, since its arrival in 2009, been my favorite tool. It’s fabulous for home use. I slow-cook beef ribs for 48 hours for tender and juicy ribs. You can transform eggs in ways no other method can. I love putting a soft-boiled egg into soups, as in the above ramen dish. I use it monthly to make a big batch of yogurt. It’s a great water bath for cooking custards, meatloaf, and its supercilious brother, pâté en terrine. See below for three of the key techniques and recipes.
Do you need one to survive? Of course not. Can you do endlessly creative and awesome dishes with it? You bet. Want to win one? Enter a comment below, telling me the way you’re most eager to use it. (Winner will be chosen randomly, one entry please on pain of disqualification, and the company can ship only to U.S. or Canadian addresses—sorry, UK and Aussie readers!) I really am eager to hear why people want to own a sous vide machine—slow cooking of tough meat, hitting the perfect temperature every time, egg cooking? Other?
Hell, I’ll throw in a signed copy of my book Ruhlman’s Twenty: 20 Techniques, 100 Recipes, A Cook’s Manifesto to sweeten the pot!
Looking for sous vide recipes? Check out the Sous Vide Supreme Holiday Cooking Guide, Modernist Cuisine, Modernist Cuisine at Home, and Under Pressure.
(HINT: the best way to seal the food for cooking is some kind of vacuum sealer; but you can also use Ziploc vacuum seal bags from the grocery store.)
Follow Sous Vide Supreme on Twitter @sousvidesupreme or on Facebook.
You can also sign up for the Sous Vide Supreme newsletter.
WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED NEXT WEDS; COMMENTS WILL CLOSE MONDAY AT 9AM.
The giveaway includes a both a Sous Vide Supreme and a vacuum sealer.
BBQ Sous Vide Beef Short Ribs
Beef short rib, cooked sous vide for 48 hours at 140°F/60°C, finished on the grill.
Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman.
I made these last January for the sailing crew in Key West. Short ribs cooked sous vide are amazingly juicy and tender and tasty, a quintessential example of the value of sous vide. You’d have to braise these to get them tender, in which case you’d need to rely on the sauce for succulence rather than the meat.
This recipe also defines a great general rule: all tough cuts of meat, braising meats, from brisket to pork belly to short ribs to lamb shank, can be cooked sous vide in the exact same way: 48 hours at 140˚F/60˚C. Then flavor the outside by searing, grilling, saucing, or a combination. They can be cooked sous vide and chilled in an ice bath and refrigerated for days or frozen for months before finishing.
It’s an amazing technique for cooking ahead, whether for weekday cooking or for cooking for big groups. And it results in tenderness and flavor that can’t be achieved any other way.
I’m going to make this as simple as possible. Salt and pepper the meat, seal it in a bag (get out all air so they don’t float), cook, chill, finish.
- 8 meaty beef short ribs (or however many you’re serving)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Barbecue sauce of your choice
- Give the ribs a generous seasoning of salt and pepper
- Seal them well in plastic, using a food saver or Ziploc vacuum seal bags (you can also put them in a regular ziptop bag and submerge it in water to get the air out and seal; use common sense).
- Sous vide the ribs at 140˚F/60˚C for 48 hours, give or take.
- If you are not going to finish them right away, submerge them in an ice bath until thoroughly chilled, at least 20 minutes or more.
- To finish, remove them from the bag and allow them to come to room temperature (if serving a large crowd, leave in bag and re-sous vide at 120˚F/48˚C for 30 minutes). Slather them with barbecue sauce and grill till charred and smoky and beautiful, a couple minutes on each side. You can also broil them to caramelize the BBQ sauce if you don’t have a grill.
- Use one rib per serving.
Homemade Yogurt
I always have this on hand and eat some most every day. The bacteria are good for the gut and if you have a stomach bug, eat this and it may help (it always does for me). This will be loose yogurt; when you dip into the thick, creamy stuff it will be soft but hold its shape. It will weep whey, which is also tasty and good (I pour it on granola with the yogurt). For stiff-thick yogurt, Greek style, strain it through cloth for an hour, then refrigerate.
- 1 quart/liter whole milk
- 2 tablespoons Fage Greek yogurt or any yogurt that notes on the label that it contains a living culture (or if you have a wonderful Indian neighbor with a live culture as I do, ask for a little of hers—thanks, Tripta!)
- Pour the milk in a pot and bring it to a simmer (at least 180°F); careful, it’s easy to forget and leave yourself with a mess on the stove it if boils over; stick around. (Donna gets really mad at me when I leave the kitchen and she hears it boil over.)
- Pour it into a 4-cup glass measuring cup or appropriate bowl. Allow it to cool to at least 120˚F/48˚C or room temperature.
- Stir in the yogurt with the live culture, thoroughly.
- Cover with plastic wrap and sous vide at 104˚F/40˚C for 24 hours. (Some people suggest going as high as 120˚F; feel free to test for yourself.)
- Allow to cool then refrigerate.
Soft-Boiled Sous Vide Eggs
- 1 egg per person
- Sous vide at 144.5˚F/62.5˚C for 45 to 60 minutes.
- Crack each into soup or stew, or on grits or beans.
For professional kitchens, who need to sous vide a lot of food in a big Lexan tubs, the BMW of immersion circulators is made by PolyScience.
The shopping links for the week:
- OpenSky Favorites
- Big-Ticket Items
- Small-Ticket Items
- Cookbook picks of 2012
- My Books
- Dalton-Ruhlman Products
© 2012 Michael Ruhlman. Photo © 2012 Donna Turner Ruhlman. All rights reserved.
I have never worked with sous vide before but would love to experiment with any food i can think of…. but probably meats first.
we’re meatitarians at our house, so any type of meat really!
I’d love to use it for SHORTRIBS!!!
I am dying to make Nathan Myhrvold’s sous vide’d king oyster mushroom recipe that apparently breaks them down into noodle-like strands. Tried to hack a Crockpot and Sous Vide Magic together to make it but the crock pot unfortunately doesn’t heat high enough. Mmm…mushroom noodles.
Have been lusting after sous-vide cooking for a while but intimidated by the rice cooker/PID/… DIY system. My first attempt with the Sous-vide Supreme would be the pork belly to be used in udon and so many other dishes.
I’m in the final stretch (hopefully) of a total kitchen overhaul. I’m also in my second semester of graduate school to become a registered dietician. My new kitchen will be my lab where I will both learn, and teach others, about how to cook well AND healthfully. The Sous Vide Supreme seems to be the appliance that the Crockpot only wishes it could be. I’ve read about and easily bypassed many a kitchen gadget. But this truly seems to be the microwave of the 21st century – an appliance that brings a whole new level of cooking to the ordinary American family.
I’ve been dying to try making my own yogurt, but I live in an apartment with very poor temperature control. This would be perfect!
I seriously considered getting one when I started making your yogurt recipe a few months ago, so that would probably be my main use, but having first been introduced to Sous Vide through Momufuku and Keller’s book, there are several things I’d like to try! I can only imagine how amazing short ribs would come out.
Softboiled eggs have been a longtime struggle for me, so sous vide would START there.
I’ve had one for nearly 2 years now, and I can’t imagine life in the kitchen without it. But it’s just me, and I would love to give one to my family for Christmas to spread the joy of cooking with one of these.
I was just treated to sous vided pork. It was as soft as butter and melted in my mouth. I want to try it with pork, beef and venison.
Pork Belly, what else.
I would love to freak out the natives with pink chicken breast.
Ooh, oooh, eggs! Eggs for sure. That looks outstanding.
Duck carnitas – Rick Bayless style!
The eggs. Meat of course Sure. But those slow cooked eggs.
I love the idea of making yoghurt. And, all sorts of amazing meats.
I would cook short ribs every day.
Those short ribs look like a good starting point….
I love to cook and this is the one cooking method I’ve been itching to try. I’d use it for poached eggs for sure and we cook a lot of venison and I’d love to use it for that!!
Thanks for the opportunity!
I’d love to try some venison shanks in this. Mmm shanks.
I’ve tried slow cookers, pressure cookers, traditional cooking – why not try sous vide now?
I think the awesomeness of short ribs just about says it all.
Since I bought Modernist Cuisine at Home, I’ve been yearning to try sous vide cooking. Oh the things I would try…hard boiled eggs (actually kind of hard at high altitude), poached eggs, prime rib, beef short ribs, rib-eye steak. I’d like to try it with pulled pork.maybe make pho broth, hell just experiment & see what it can do. Yogurt is a great idea, we eat a ton of it at our house. I bet braised greens would be a hit using sous vide. I could render the fat from duck breasts and let it confit in the bag. I could keep coming up with ideas, but you get the picture!
brisket brisket brisket.
Eggs are by far the driving factor. Duck next. Fish and pork after that. Beef and veggies after that. Other game, sauces, fruits… I CAN’T DECIDE!
I would love to try it with all types of fowl….duck, goose, guinea hen,….
I would definitely use it to cook everything everyone else mentioned (and I could divest myself of my unitasker yogurt maker), but selfishly it also holds the promise of converting my seven year old daughter, a self-proclaimed vegetarian (who enjoys charcuterie, heh), to a full-on meat lover. Who could resist those short ribs?
So, how about sous vide beef bourguignon. Marinate some big pieces of chuck in red wine, orange peel, and spices. Brown meat then sous vide for hours at 120 degrees while simmering wine, spices, veg, and fond in a really cool Le Crueset casserole. Add juices from meat bag and continue to simmer. Then strain and serve with rare chuck, mushrooms and onions browned in bacon fat, and yummy red wine sauce. Damn my family would love it. Mmmm..
I love eggs. With a sous-vide supreme I could make endless varieties of egg!
I would poach peaches in brandy, dip them in sugar and caramelize them!
Duck Confit!
I’d love to try some experiments with eggs. One of the simplest, complex and most versatile foods!
Is there anything more to say than 48 hour ribs?
Cooking little fishies!
We cook and eat quite a bit of wild game (moose, caribou, salmon), and I bet that a sous vide supreme would make cooking some of the tougher bits incredibly easy. What a fantastic giveaway – thanks!
Corned beef! Definitely would make those ribs though
I would slow poach eggs nonstop!
those ribs look awesome!
pork baby, pork!
I think I would make pork belly, that is my go to when I am going low and slow.
I would love to have one to experiment with different cuts of meat, but I had never considered homemade yogurt! I’d definitely try that! Count me in for the giveaway!
I’ve discovered sous-vide a few months ago reading through Modernist Cuisine and ever since then, I’ve been excited about trying a variety of recipes (I hear it does wonder with short ribs) and as a fan of yogurt, I’d be quite curious to try that recipe…
Eggs and short ribs.
I would slow cook beef!
I just got one from my brother as a birthday gift. I brought it as carry on from GA to CA for our huge Thanksgiving feast. It was amazing to see 2 of the creative series in action. My brother made the braised short ribs from Modernist Cuisine and the turkey confit in them. When we got back home, the first thing I made was simple chicken breasts. NO MORE DRY CHiCKEN!!! I made two big breasts that night for dinner, and had a tiny bit left for my lunch. I had my coworkers try it, and they immediately started looking into the machines after trying my chicken. If nothing else, most people I know consume chicken as their mainstay protein, and this would make it much more flavorful. In fact my teenage son asked for sous vide chicken breast again for the next night dinner, and he ate most of a large breast by himself. I’m planning on making baby back ribs with it this weekend, and I’m planning a Christmas dinner at a friend’s house, most likely we will make short ribs in the sous vide and finish them off at her house. The next big meat we will tackle is pork belly. I love Momofuko Milk Bar’s pork belly buns. I have several friends who would greatly benefit from a sous vide. In fact I hope one of them becomes a better cook, or at least one who enjoys cooking more.
I would test its effect on everything from meat to ice cream!
I live on a real budget and love what I hear can be done with inexpensive cuts of meat using sous vide techniques. The toughest cuts can become flavorful, tender marvels. I would love to be able to do that at home.
Primary use: surprise over-our-limit Christmas gift for my wife–it’s the only serious piece of kitchen equipment she doesn’t have. Someone said in one of the comments above that they think it could be the microwave of the 21st century, which is actually one of the major reasons we’ve stayed away so far. If that’s what it is, we’re probably better off without it, I think.
What I’d be curious about for myself, though, is if it could possibly substitute for a serious BBQ smoker. Does the idea of brisket/port butt + liquid smoke + sous vide = gross? Shrug! Is there some other way of getting there? I’ve never opened the Modernist Cuisine cookbook–are the answers to be found there? I’d be more than happy to play & experiment all winter long to find out; especially after just returning from a trip to Kansas City & Texas Hill Country. Quality BBQ is sadly a long, long way from home.
It would be a blast to do baby back ribs and short ribs…….and lord knows what else!! The vacuum sealer would be in constant use in my kitchen..never knew you could sous vide yogurt…….as much yougurt as my grandaughter consumes this would be very much welcomed.
This sure beats cooking sous vide using a cooler full of hot water.
I’d like to try with fish, egg, tougher meat. It will be a good addition to my kitchen.
I was a female line cook…very difficult environment. Had to have knee surgery and now I’m forced to CHANGE to create my own path, which is scary and exciting as well.. I wish to give sparkle and Life to others. Enhance their palates with delicious and spectacular dishes. I would really, really LOVE one of my own…..thank you…
I have a dream. That one day I’ll be able to cook an edible steak. Please help me! You are my last chance!
Wife says I have to get rid of our old juicing machine if I win (something about too muc,h kitchen stuff). But I can buy juice at the store. Can’t buy slow cooked short ribs like the picture above!
Michael,
I’ve used Kenji Lopez-Alt’s beer cooler sous vide hack and made cheap steaks taste expensive. But it’s still a lot of work…I’d like to branch out in my sous vide cooking, but springing for something that expensive that I’d use only twice a month seems a bit too luxurious. Winning one, on the other hand…
I want to try it with steak!
meat. lots of meat.
Eggs, and short ribs, and carrots, and …
I would make duck breast. Finish under a boiler. Slice into a blackberry-pine nut salad.
What is best cooked low and slow? Pork belly confit with star anise, garlic and orange peel. Seared to finish.
And of course the entire range of eggs from the recent egg article on Sous vide cooking.
Eggsactly cooked eggs for a large group, available all day at a moments notice.
Oh, I’m hungry now!
Looking to get the prefect egg, rare tri tip, and the useful convenience.
So many reasons to be eager. Love the idea of not losing flavor of veg and meats to the cooking liquid. Marvel at the consistency it could bring especially when considering those “splurge” items i.e. great beef or lobster. But probably most of all, the ability to produce dishes impossible otherwise. Medium-rare brisket!?!? Almost seems like magic. Isn’t that what we all are striving for in the kitchen?…a little bit of magic!
BBQ Sous Vide Beef Short Ribs, pork belly and never thought of eggs, but sound and look delicious!
I think that the possibilities are endless for using the Sous Vide Supreme. I can’t wait to make those ribs…
I remember reading about those 48 hour ribs a while ago and have been wanting to do something similar ever since…so ya…probably ribs…besides who wouldn’t want to have a beautiful piece of pig be the first thing to go into a new toy like this!
I have trouble believing one can cook a steak in water and then grill it with fantastic results. I am eager to be shown I am wrong.
Duck!
I mean, I want to try to Sous Vide duck. I also already own a vacuum sealer, so all I need is the Sous Vide Supreme.
Season and sear beef brisket, seal it up in the bag with a coffee based barbeque sauce. Cook it until it is almost fall apart tender.
Lamb Shoulder? Yes, lamb!
1. I’ve been putting off buying a sous vide supreme for a while, so the timing is perfect for me to win this one.
2. Pork belly.
3. I need a reason to sell my waffle maker and crock pot on eBay.
4. Pork belly.
5. I lost my instant read thermometer so this would replace it right???
6. Pork belly.
Eggs and …. Venison Shanks!
Salmon!
Eggs, too!
I’d have to try the short ribs first just because I LOVE short ribs., Then on to all the inexpensive cuts of meat. Not sure where to go yet from there. It would be perfect in my new kitchen.
Because my crazy husband wants one.
This would be awesome for cooking custards, but now I’m thinking pate and exploring the world of terrines.
The eggs and the ribs.
Super-thick steaks. I love the rosy edge-to-edge interior.
I like the idea of cooking something for 48 hours.
Hunting season in Montana just ended and I have a freezer full of birds and venison including some elk and deer shanks that are begging for a good, long sous vide bath prior to a bit of browning or grilling and a second bath in some version of a wild mushroom, stock reduction sauce….Y.U.M.!
So… many… things… Eggs for sure, and all of the tasty ideas that have already been mentioned, but I’d be most excited to finally get to experiment, mad-scientist style, with sous-vide.
Pork belly is number one on the list. I’ve heard you can do amazing things with them.
Being able to poach perfect eggs for our family’s Christmas breakfast bastardized version of Eggs Benedict (Latkes instead of English muffin, seared tomato slice, crisp pancetta instead of Canadian Bacon, and Morita Hollandaise) is my desire.
Eggs I have done them a couple of times on the stove top but would be so much easier in a Sous Viide.
Let me count the many delicious soups I can make cooking the vegetables in their own juices then hitting the blender – how yummy!
My wife has a recipe for corned beef tongue that she’s wanting to try. I bet it would be amazing cooked slow and long…. Tongue…slow and long.
Thanks for all the info you provide! I’d enjoy a sous vide for so many reasons. I love to confit things, but it’s time consuming and requires a lot of oil. Some sous vide duck confit sounds amazing!
I would like a sous vide, so I can annoy my better half with more utensils/appliances in our too small kitchen, until she is converted after trying the food it makes. Seriously though, I think I just tried to eat the short rib picture.
I’m excited to sous vide hanger steak in particular — it’s my favorite cut, but it’s tricky to nail the doneness and tenderness. Duck would also be fun.
I want to make proteins melt by turing colagen into gelatin. Help me make this dream a reality.
Yogurt and hard cheeses, but also tempering chocolate.
Tempering chocolate. I have some lovely Cuban bars that haven’t held up well in the New England weather.
I desperately want to make short ribs with a sous vide (and some eggs too)!!!
I took a class at French Institute, and the chef was a sous-vide master. Wanted one ever since. Chicken breasts never tasted so good.
I am a line cook at a restaurant in Chicago. A sous vide machine and vacuum sealer would be a great addition to our limited inventory of equipment. My chef would go nuts if we were able to be chosen. I’ll be picking up Under Pressure in hopes of being picked!
I would use it to make the perfect steak.
I have a vacuum sealer, and sous vide set up at home, but the rice cooker/PID system isn’t what i want it to be. I would love to get a real deal circulator, but it just isn’t in the budget right now. I would use it for everything. I have to test recipes for the restaurant I want to open someday.
For the love of short ribs…
Hmm… All of the above? Cooking is one of my primary creative outlets, and I love to experiment. Being able to set something up over the weekend to be ready for dinner on Monday / Tuesday night when time is limited would be awesome as well.
The eggs without a doubt! I love them any meal of the day!