not a recipe, but a method...

[jjohnwm]

Just had an outstanding elk roast, prepared using an immersion cooker. The meat is sealed into a heavy-duty plastic bag (freezer bag is great) and then immersed in water. The immersion cooker clips to the side of the cooking container, and extends down into the water. It looks like a high-tech aquarium filter; it contains a heating element and also a circulating pump. You program the temperature and the time, and forget it. The cooker shuts off automatically, and more importantly it never exceeds the temperature required to give you the degree of doneness you desire. Before serving you must quickly sear the meat on a hot frying pan or grill to give it a nice browned exterior. The thing is super simple, virtually foolproof and actually fun to use; it's perfect for game meat. Even clean-up is effortless; once you removed the bagged meat, you are left with a pot of clean hot water, no grease or other crap to worry about.

I'm no chef, but I love this thing.

 

[kc34]

Sounds like Sous vide cooking. I have been reading about. I need to give that a try. It seems to get really great results.

 

[jjohnwm]

Sounds like Sous vide cooking. I have been reading about. I need to give that a try. It seems to get really great results.

I had forgotten the terminology, but that is exactly correct. Terrific results, very little chance of screwing anything up...very well suited for my culinary skill level.

 

[kc34]

Sounds like Sous vide cooking. I have been reading about. I need to give that a try. It seems to get really great results.

I had forgotten the terminology, but that is exactly correct. Terrific results, very little chance of screwing anything up...very well suited for my culinary skill level.

What type of immersion cooker did you use?
I just start researching them. Sounds like yours works great.

 

[kodiakjack]

I built my own sous-vide machine for less than $20. Picked up an old crock pot from a yard sale for $5, then ordered a thermo-outlet for $15 off amazon. Bingo bango. Sous-vide.

 

[jjohnwm]

Mine's a Kuraidori. I actually considered going the DIY route, but I like the fact that the unit has a circulating pump. The roast I just cooked took up a lot of space in the container, and the pump ensured an even circulation of heated water...or at least that's how I am justifying it to myself.

I used an old lunch cooler as the container. It has a hinged lid, I just cut off one corner to allow a snug fit around the cooker. It's insulated, of course, which should aid in efficiency, and having the lid prevents evaporation during cooking. The first meal we cooked was done in an open-top pot and water had to be added a couple of times through the cooking cycle due to evaporation. This last roast was cooked for 2 hours and the water level barely dropped at all thanks to the cover.

 

[kodiakjack]

Mine's a Kuraidori. I actually considered going the DIY route, but I like the fact that the unit has a circulating pump. The roast I just cooked took up a lot of space in the container, and the pump ensured an even circulation of heated water...or at least that's how I am justifying it to myself.

I used an old lunch cooler as the container. It has a hinged lid, I just cut off one corner to allow a snug fit around the cooker. It's insulated, of course, which should aid in efficiency, and having the lid prevents evaporation during cooking. The first meal we cooked was done in an open-top pot and water had to be added a couple of times through the cooking cycle due to evaporation. This last roast was cooked for 2 hours and the water level barely dropped at all thanks to the cover.

Nice. Yeah, I put a proper unit on Santa’s list this year, but I guess he missed our place. Can’t justify just buying one when the current contraption suffices. I WOULD like to have the circulation though. (Even though I’m not sure it makes a difference.