Sous vide is a celebrated cooking method in commercial kitchens mainly because of its precision, consistency, and ease of use. But are these benefits of sous vide cooking limited to restaurant operations?
Over the years, bulky sous vide machines have become more lightweight and compact, making them more accessible to home cooks. They are not as expensive, too.
Modern immersion circulators are also easy to clip on any pot, so you can sous vide your dinner or party menu. These only mean that sous vide benefits are for everyone.
Here’s a list of why you should consider getting a sous vide machine for your home kitchen.
Why Use a Sous Vide Machine at Home
Sous vide may seem too fancy for an ordinary home cook, but this cooking technique offers plenty of benefits for your family.
1. Sous vide makes overcooking virtually impossible.
Usually, kitchen multitasking or cooking sizable cuts of meat means meals cooked to death – dry, bland, and chewy like leather.
Overcooking can ruin a delicious lunch or dinner, and it’s a waste of money, too. If you often encounter this problem, consider getting a sous vide machine.
One of the best benefits of sous vide cooking is its ability to protect your food from being overcooked.
Since this technique works with precise cooking temperatures and times, your food will not cook beyond your preferred doneness.
Also, your food gently cooks in a temperature-controlled water bath, allowing it to stay moist and flavourful even after long hours of cooking.
2. Sous vide meals are consistent and easy to repeat.
A first-time sous vide user will likely need time to figure out this cooking method. However, once you master it, you can serve perfectly sous vide meals every time.
If you impressed your family with a beautifully cooked steak last night, you can surely make the same impressive meal for a crowd.
Because accuracy and consistency are among the benefits of sous vide cooking.
When you cook the same cut of meat or type of vegetables at precise times and temperatures, the result will always be the same.
With sous vide, recipes are easy to perfect and reproduce.
3. Sous vide cooking fits your busy lifestyle.
After putting your food in a vacuum bag and setting up the sous vide machine, all that’s left to do is to set the time and temperature and forget about it.
While your meal cooks, you can enjoy your morning walk, go to work, or shower without worries.
Sous vide takes the stress away from home cooking because you don’t have to stand and watch for hours while your food cooks.
This slow-cooking technique is a big time-saver that lets you do all sorts of things and enjoy a perfectly cooked meal.
4. Sous vide is ideal for cooking make-ahead meals.
The sous vide cooking method suits you if you frequently throw dinner parties at home or cook weekly meals in advance. With the correct machine and cooking equipment, you can effortlessly cook multiple vacuum-sealed items in one go.
For example, sous vide several pork chops days before your get-together, so you only need to reheat or pan-sear them come party time.
You can apply the same strategy for meal prepping or batch cooking. Cook multiple bags of vegetables in one pot, store them in the freezer, and then toss them in butter or stews whenever needed.
Buy meats in bulk, portion them for sous vide, and then freeze. Reheating meal prepped meals using sous vide is also another good idea.
5. Sous vide optimises your food budget and supplies.
Aside from time-saving benefits, sous vide cooking also helps you save money and reduce food waste in many ways.
For example, you can avoid throwing food away since you won’t be overcooking meals as often with sous vide.
Also, you can spend less by buying food in bulk, then vacuum seal, sous vide, and freeze them to avoid spoilage.
Another money-saving strategy is to purchase more affordable cuts of meat and turn them into delicious entrees using your sous vide machine.
Also, if you can enjoy restaurant-style meals at home, you don’t have to dine out or order takeaways often, allowing you to save money.
6. Sous vide is reliable for safe and healthy cooking.
Following the food safety guidelines for sous vide ensures your food is safe and cooked through. With your food in a sealed bag, chances for contamination are zero, too.
Also, sous vide cooking does not involve high temperatures, keeping you safe from kitchen accidents.
Compared with traditional cooking methods, sous vide meals have better nutrient retention.
Moreover, your food stays tasty and moist inside the bag, so you don’t have to cook it with lots of oil or fat. It’s perfect for healthy eating!
Final Thoughts
The sous vide method may initially be for large-scale food production. However, with more compact immersion circulators now available, you can enjoy the benefits of sous vide cooking at home.
On top of serving restaurant-style meals for your family, sous vide can also help you save time and money. It allows you to buy food in bulk, plan and cook meals in advance, and practice safe and healthy cooking.
Are you interested in giving this cooking technique a go? Check out our list of the best sous vide machines in Australia.
