Information and discussion about canning and dehydrating tomatoes and other garden vegetables and fruits. DISCLAIMER: SOME RECIPES MAY NOT COMPLY WITH CURRENT FOOD SAFETY GUIDELINES - FOLLOW AT YOUR OWN RISK
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December 10, 2016 | #541 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Langley, BC
Posts: 768
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Thanks, that helps. I will give it a try.
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December 10, 2016 | #542 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Ontario
Posts: 3,893
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Oakley, what is Sous Vide? (which you mentioned several messages back). I haven't heard of that one.
I make Kefir every day, and I have made Kombucha Tea in the past (which I LOVE). Linda |
December 10, 2016 | #543 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
Posts: 38,539
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It sounds creepy but it works. I do something similar with my sausage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sous-vide#Uses |
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December 10, 2016 | #544 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Ontario
Posts: 3,893
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Thanks Worth! Very interesting!
Linda |
December 10, 2016 | #545 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
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Linda I do it with my big salamis that are cured.
Sometime it takes many hours to bring the internal temperature up to par in a low temp water bath. This allows even cooking without running out all of the fat and juices. Worth |
December 10, 2016 | #546 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: MA/NH Border
Posts: 4,919
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A Sous Vide cooker is on our Christmas list. If we don't get one, then we will gift one to ourselves.
We've had perfectly cooked "roast beef" made with an eye round roast cooked Sous Vide, and you would never have known it was made with such a cheap cut of beef. Last summer a friend invited us to dinner and served one of the best steaks I've ever had. He cooked them Sous Vide earlier in the day, then seared on the grill right before serving. I've even seen videos of people starting Ribs, brisket or pork butts Sous Vide and then finishing them off in a smoker. Supposedly excellent results and cuts down dramatically on the amount of time you have to tend to your smoker. The one on our wish list is wifi enabled and you can use a smart phone app to set it and start the cooking from anywhere. Like a slow cooker, only better since there's no risk of over cooking! |
December 10, 2016 | #547 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: NewYork 5a
Posts: 2,303
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Developed in the 50-60's and used in the Airlines, caterers, restaurants to prepare and keep proteins at a perfectly tender temp over a long period of time. Usually 3-4 hours. The first home units were huge and expensive. Inova i believe first offered during a KickStarter campaign, then now have a fantastic unit very affordable. I've had mine for a few years now. 99$ during a sale. It uses a phone app. No big appliance. About the size of half a baseball bat. Rests on the edge of any home pot that is deep enough. I use my small pasta pot next to the sink. Beautifully designed. Easy to use. I can prep a meal in the morning, wash veggies. Go about our day with a clean kitchen, then get caught up in the garden for hours...a great meal can be ready for 5pm or 8. It is a waterbath circulator at a precise set temp and holds that temp. Always tender and perfectly cooked. A small learning curve but any good cook that really cooks from scratch, and not processed foods, frozen pre-prepared meals or from cans, will love it. It will not make a good cook out of a non-cook. But it is a tool to help the good home cook much better. More of an efficiency tool. |
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December 10, 2016 | #548 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
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With simple replacement of the temperature control of a crock pot from one with high medium and low settings to one that is totally variable you could do it in one.
What I do is use a huge kettle in the stove top and a thermometer with an alarm. I think my last salami took about 8 hours to get to 150 in the middle. Worth |
December 11, 2016 | #549 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: north central B.C.
Posts: 2,310
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I have often thought that a sous vide setup would be very useful in heat treating seeds. But I also understand that such treated seeds may not have such a long shelf life...
Has anyone tried it?
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December 11, 2016 | #550 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
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Quote:
If I had the desire I could make one with common parts but I dont have the desire to do so. All you would need is the right thermostat and temp probe with the correct span setting. Span is the degrees it cycles on and off from the set temperature. In other words if you have it set for 100 it shuts off at 102 and turns back on at 98. Many years ago I was asked to hook a high temp alarm up to a computer server cabinet and connect it to a fire alarm system. I used an analog Honeywell thermostat to do it, and programmed in a zone for it to set off a light and buzzer to let the people know it was overheating. This was programmed non latching so it would shut off on its own without a reset. To keep it on the fermenting side I used a IR heat lamp set at a distance from my fermenting crock at night so it wouldn't get too cold. Worth |
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December 11, 2016 | #551 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Edina, MN (Zone 4)
Posts: 945
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Worth, you've got me interested. How could a crock pot be converted into a sous vide cooker, exactly? Any ideas?
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December 11, 2016 | #552 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Langley, BC
Posts: 768
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On the topic of fermenting, the discussion about the sousvidi made me think about it, has anyone tried fermenting garlic? Amazon has a garlic fermenter on their site, but it is a bit pricey. Just wondering because the black garlic it produces is highly sought after and I have a lot of garlic that usually ends up sprouting before I can use it.
Alex
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I'll plant and I'll harvest what the earth brings forth The hammer's on the table, the pitchfork's on the shelf Bob Dylan |
December 11, 2016 | #553 | ||
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
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Yes me all you need to do is put the required amount of (non) iodized salt to water. 2 to 3 tablespoons per quart and pour it in a jar full of garlic and let it do its thing for a few weeks. I just make a quart of water at a time and toss what I dont use it makes it easy that way. The small onions came out great too and I mean real good. I just use the lids and let off pressure everyday. A little mineral oil on the ring makes them easier to unscrew and helps prevent rusting. No need for silly stuff they sell. Worth |
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December 11, 2016 | #554 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: NewYork 5a
Posts: 2,303
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Lots of SousVide hacks all over the web and youtube. The problem with a crock pot is the heat comes from the bottom and without a circulator, a simple fan, the water surrounding your food will not heat evenly. So a submersible pump will help. And if you don't mind hack parts all over your counter...(not in my kitchen). All parts are easily under fifty bucks. The method uses a temp controller that your crock pot is plugged into. A simple unit that cycles on and off at a set temp. turning your crock pot on and off.
The Anova is a beautiful design. I gladly gave the fellas the extra fifty for good looks and reliability. Small size and uses any number of my stock pots. A crock pot isn't really deep enough for anything larger than a couple small steaks, a couple pork chops, and a small bag of shrimp. A pork loin would work the long way. Your food needs to be under water. I can use my larger tall stock pot or a smaller sauce pan depending on the volume i need. The best use is, as i stated before, the ability to have food done and ready and held at that perfect all-the-way-through temp, and remains exactly the way you like it cooked, for a few hours, until you are ready to plate. Or like steak it needs a quick cast iron sear. Excellent for pork. And shrimp, scallops. Because of work overload we buy and freeze in bulk and into food saver bags anyway. So ready to go. Steaks tonight. I'm tending my indoor garden...moving lights and cleaning up and starting some more trays... and have no interest in a big cooking process. We can sit down at 6 or 9pm. |
December 11, 2016 | #555 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: MA/NH Border
Posts: 4,919
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I've been looking at recipes for making yogurt using Sous Vide. Best part is that you make it right in canning jars so it can go directly to the fridge when it's done!
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