Most people know they can cook food with the Sous vide but they lack the idea that they can still use it to defrost food too. To defrost food using the Sous vide consider using the Sous vide cooker that is one of the best ways to defrost frozen foods and can even make the frozen foods get ready with little time.
Before using the Sous vide to defrost food it is good to know the process of defrosting food using the Sous vide cooker to help reduce the chances of failures with the preparation of your food. Sous vide is also good as it can help maintain the taste and texture of the food; it is environment friendly and also fast and accurate.
There are the normal problems that you can encounter when defrosting food, how to defrost the foods and what you should take into consideration before trying out anything with the preparation which I will include in the article below. There will be the frequently asked questions and later the conclusion which summarizes the whole article.
How to defrost foods using Sous Vide
While using the Sous vide when defrosting food you can choose to cook frozen food using Sous vide or choose to use Sous vide cooker to defrost meat so that it can marinate or that you can season before cooking.
The best way to follow when defrosting food using Sous vide is by setting the thermostat to 38 degrees F and allow the cold water to circulate around your food. However, for fast defrosting of meat, you can use higher temperatures for shorter periods. All this is quite cool since the time frame is short; it doesn’t allow time for bacterial growth and doesn’t impair food while at the same time shortening defrosting time.
Reasons of using Sous vide when defrosting food
Below are some of the reasons why you need to use Sous vide to defrost foods as the best way:
1. Microwaves are awful at defrosting
We all know that when you use microwaves to defrost food it can produce a poor output of the food. Yes, the microwave has the setting that you can use to defrost which is also easy to understand but sometimes they tend to overheat liquid parts of the food and start warming them while leaving other food frozen in some parts.
Microwaves affect liquids a lot and ice almost not at all. On the other hand the Sous vide defrosts foods evenly without causing the overheating or beginning the cooking process which is good for the food.
2. Sous vide is good for the environment
Leaving Sous vide under running water is another good way of defrosting some foods even though it can waste a lot of water. In this case, when you use Sous vide cookers; it can be good for you since it will re-circulate water such that you can save a lot from the moving water that gently defrosts while protecting the texture of food without wasting water anyhow.
3. Sous vide is accurate in defrosting
When using the machines like the refrigerators to defrost food there will be variation with the temperatures such that there will be differences with the degrees that it can make the defrosting frozen foods take a long time and make thawing time frames less predictable. On the other side with the Sous vide you can set the cooker with a certain temperature you need that it will defrost without cooking and you get an accurate thawing.
4. Faster and safer
Sous vide cookers are faster and safer since they defrost more evenly and accurately that can help save your time in the kitchen and also improve the safety of your food. Remember when you are defrosting and thawing your food and they spend less time with the process at unsafe temperatures, they tend to reduce the risk of your exposure to food borne pathogens.
What are the effects of defrosting food in a regular way?
The effects with defrosting food in a regular way depend on the different methods you are using and the kind of food you are defrosting. Below are a few effects of defrosting food in a regular way:
- When you defrost the food in a regular way, the foods usually thaw unevenly. The uneven thawing of food is because of the spaces inside the food that can absorb the liquid from parts that are frozen, drawing moisture out of the food that creates the puddles of juices you can get below the thawed foods.
- Sometimes as the moisture transfers inside the food, ice particles can be moved along with it damaging the food’s cellular structure and impairing the texture.
- The defrosting process is slower with some methods that it causes more moisture to be drawn out of the food and hence makes it lose its texture.
- Traditional and other methods of defrosting food causes the food to lose its quality, juicy taste and some of the flavors with it that it is good to choose using Sous vide to defrost your food.
Can one cook Sous vide without defrosting?
Cooking Sous vide without defrosting is possible so long as you use the Sous vide cooker for the whole process and ensure you seal them properly. In a case that you need to use Sous Vide to cook frozen foods, consider adding more time to the normal time you always use. For faster thawing and cooking of frozen foods, start by the Sous vide with hot water for thawing more quickly.
Therefore, you can cook the Sous vide without defrosting at the start but still works the same.
Frequently asked questions
- Between cold water and warm water, which one is best for use when thawing meat?
When you are thawing meat consider using cold water that is specifically 40 degrees and below since it is much safer and much faster for thawing. With the hot water, water transfers heat a long distance more efficiently than air but it takes a long time to work.
- Can one use Sous vide in a frozen roast?
Of course yes, you can Sous vide a frozen roast however it can take a bit more time to come up to temperature and the seasoning will not marinate quite as well but it can work since it is cooking for 24 hours or more time
- What do most restaurants defrost meat?
Most restaurants prefer defrosting meat by running cold water from the tap for hours to defrost frozen meat since it is a common activity in their kitchens. The process is quite cool even though it wastes water as it cannot re-circulate it.
Conclusion
In summary, if you have the Sous vide cooker but you are choosing different things to defrost your food then you are missing out and bringing low quality food on your table that you need to wake up and change. The article above shows the reasons why you should use the Sous vide to defrost your food and how you can use it.
Sous vide is fast, efficient, environment friendly, safe and maintains the texture and taste of food when eating. Sometimes defrosting food can be unnecessary because you can Sous vide frozen foods without defrosting first since it is also a good way of defrosting foods when marinating or seasoning or using in recipes.