Sous Vide Brisket


 
BFletcher

BFletcher

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I think some of you sometimes use a Sous Vide unit. Can you sell me on this recipe? Smoke, Sous Vide, oven. Why three steps rather than one step (the smoker)? Reason for question: I have an Amazon FD gift card and keep seeing these units pop up but I don't understand how they are uniquely useful other than--to me--possibly just a changeup of routine for something different once in a while. Thx

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Hmmm, this could be pretty interesting.
When are you trying Fletch?
I only see three stages, rub, smoke, Sous Vide, am I missing a page?
No reference to oven but, I might be missing something.
 
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Dustin Dorsey said:
My best guess is that they want to achieve a smoke ring and then at the end to firm up some kind of crust.
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I didn't state my question quite right... by asking why three steps rather than one I should have asked "why use a Sous Vide that requires 3 steps rather than a smoker that requires 1 step (at a fraction of the time)? I'm not comprehending the SV train for any item.
 
IMO:

I see the first stage--getting a smoke on.
I see the second stage BUT why to only 155o? Why not all the way to the usual 190-200-205 ?
Third stage is as Dustin suggests--get some sort of dry crust on it.

The size of the meat won't matter a heck of a lot as I've done 1 lb FROZEN steaks and they are done in the same time as unfrozen.

I think the SV component is meant to offset the possible/sometime temp fluctuations we get in the WSM.

edit--I think I'd want to try a smaller piece--say the point and see how that goes. Not commenting on the spice mix though. I do like Korean but that paste is some spicy ;) . I'd use the usual rub (1st time anyways). I know you're asking about SV and not the recipe itself but:

Why SV? Been discussed a lot here but my reason is it's so easy. Get it set to EXACTLY how you like your steak based on temps. Finish on the grill 4 minutes TOTAL time: twice each side/rotated for cross-hatch marks.

I've done cheesecake (well, lots of cheesecakes :D ) in it-->heavenly. Short ribs as well. And raw chickpeas in preparation for hummus.

Did salmon once but prefer that on the grill alone. It's a quick cook so no advantage to SV IMO.

I SHOULD MENTION: I'm doing the SV in my Instant Pot (not anova).
 
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So, I have a friend who just did a brisket with her sous vide. She did the bath first, then the smoke, then she put it on the grill to crisp up the bark. The outcome pictures looked awesome.
 
I understand how SV works in some recipes, but this one doesn't make a lot of sense to me. 36 hours to go 10F? Odds are it will do that on its own if you just cover it with foil and let it sit on the counter for an hour. Like Len said, I'd think you'd want to push it much closer to the desired final temp. Maybe the long bath at 155F converts most of the collagen and makes the trip to 200F unnecessary.
 
BFletcher said:
I didn't state my question quite right... by asking why three steps rather than one I should have asked "why use a Sous Vide that requires 3 steps rather than a smoker that requires 1 step (at a fraction of the time)? I'm not comprehending the SV train for any item.
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Oh I'm with you on this. I'm not a sous vide guy even remotely. I'm just trying to think of the reasoning. You will wind up with a very tender, juicy piece of meat. I don't know how it would render the fat.
 
I have an Anova on loan from my brother, used it for tri-tip with great success! Don’t see the value of it for this project. Yes, I think one smoker is the way to do this but, I’m willing to be enlightened when someone does this method.
 
I wish I liked cheesecake!
But, back to Sous Vide conversation,
I see lots of commentary about doing Sous Vide from frozen but, not much by way of specifics. Timing, when do you begin the timing? How long do you let it roll at 128(or whatever)? Can you Sous Vide then drop things back down in the fridge and finish the end sear later?
The more I think about these things, the more questions come to mind. Suggestions?
 
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I haven't done a whole packer, just a few points and flats ( corned beef) 140d for 24 hrs. I read both ways of doing SV, either smoke before or after and I like B4 for big hunks of meat.
I just did a 32 hr Eye of round @ 132d. I didn't smoke or sear at the beginning ( just at the end) and noticed the flavor was ok but not that great. Texture was fantastic, melts like butter in your mouth and cuts with a fork.
I'm fairly new to this but a few points I read.
The thing with SV is you can cook & hold at whatever temp you like for as long as you like. ( within reason) Collagen starts to break down around 130ish so time at that temp is determined by thickness /size of the roast.

Tim
 
Timothy F. Lewis said:
I wish I liked cheesecake!
But, back to Sous Vide conversation,
I see lots of commentary about doing Sous Vide from frozen but, not much by way of specifics. Timing, when do you begin the timing? ....finish the end sear later?
The more I think about these things, the more questions come to mind. Suggestions?
Click to expand...

I've done a one pound rib steak at 135. I start at 3 pm it's out at 5 (get the grill started at 4.40 so it's ready when I take it out at 5).

On the grill for 4 min total. It's perfect, frozen or out of the fridge. No difference in that 2 hours.

Two hours in the pot.
 
There's a restaurant in town -- The Back Porch -- that lists 52-hour brisket on its menu. A neighbor of mine is friends with the chef and says that he has the recipe, which involves sous vide. He doesn't have a smoker and wants to try the recipe using my smoker and his sous vide, but we haven't got around to it yet. (He's a Texan without a smoker. I don't know if I trust him.) Anyway, I'm gonna press him and give the recipe a whirl. I'll post the result.

Jeff
 
I've done a number of Briskets with an Anova Sous Vide setup. The reason for the long cook at 150 - 155 is to break down the connective tissues and make it tender. The more time the meat spends in the sous vide, the more tender it becomes. At 155 the fat won't render out, so you need to trim and remove most of the fat before starting the water bath.

My process was: Simple rub: Coarse ground black pepper with a little salt. a very light sprinkling of pink salt for the smoke ring. (I was using an electric smoker)
Smoke at 275 (dry, no water pan) for about 4 to 6 hours to set the bark (spritzing with water near the end)
Vacuum seal and into the sous vide for 36 hours.
Pull it out, slice it and serve it. (some people say to put it in the oven or back on a smoker to re "set" the bark, but I found that unnecessary)
Perfect tenderness every time.
Rave reviews.

One of the benefits of the sous vide is set it and forget it. Also less smoke generation to annoy the neighbors.

I have since bought a 18.5 WSM and am pimping it out. I've installed a Stoker and other things. I ran a test the other day with the left over live coals after smoking some Short ribs to see if the stoker would hold 140 degrees. (I make a smoked salmon jerky that has to be done at 140) The test was a success, 10 hours at 140 with only a 5 degree fluctuation.

Something that a lot of people don't realize is that doneness is strictly a matter of temperature. Not time. Bring the meat to 135, medium rare and it stops cooking. 24 hours later it is still medium rare. However the meat will get more and more tender the longer it stays in the sous vide until it turns to mush.

Some high end restaurants do their steaks directly in clarified butter with no vacuum bag. They just pull them out and sear and serve them.
 
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