Steak by Heston .. (from Cook like Heston)

hussey

Did anyone catch the new show from Heston ?

In it he cooks a steak by flipping it every 15seconds as opposed to 2-4mins on each side ... pretty interesting

also he recommends leaving a steak in fridge on a cake rake for 2 days to dry it out, and taking it out to come to room temp before hand.

Might try it out for a saturday night steak (maybe not the in fridge first)

Here are 7 tips he has (guessing 7 shows)
http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2012-01-04/heston-blumenthal-shares-seven-cookery-tips

Honey-ec

Some interesting stuff in that article - going to give his cheese sauce technique a try next time I make one.

BailMeOut

Great link. I can cook most things but boiling eggs is something I can never get right. Looking forward to trying his method now.

Darkginger

I'm most interested in the forthcoming home kitchen sous-vide system - there's one out there now that's beyond my budget, but if Heston's comes in at a more affordable price, I am so there! The other hints in that article are great - I've been cooking for decades. but it's not too late to learn new ways of doing things Thanks for posting!

shinikins

To be honest OP, you should try drying your steak out in the fridge first-it makes a huge difference. Its also the reason that the average home cook can never replicate a gorgeous restaurant steak. Any restaurant I've worked in, the chefs will air the steaks in the walk-in for 2-3 days, and take them out before the start of service(covered, of course) to come to room temperature, and leave them to rest for a few minutes before plating. I've boiled my eggs that way for years(thanks to my Nana and her methods of energy saving) but the cheese sauce is new to me so I'll be giving that a whirl.

Darkginger, I find that Sous Vide cooking really interesting too, but I'm sure I've read that it takes several hours to cook a meal. Would that really make it a popular system for home cooking?

catho_monster

We sous vide at home with a rice cooker and this jobby: http://freshmealssolutions.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73&Itemid=100075
It's the business, well worth considering, would defo recommend it.

Darkginger

shinikins wrote: »

Darkginger, I find that Sous Vide cooking really interesting too, but I'm sure I've read that it takes several hours to cook a meal. Would that really make it a popular system for home cooking?

Probably not VERY popular, except with foodies - but there's enough of us about, I think, to make it commercially viable. I'm noticing a trend towards longer, slower cooking overall (have just eaten my first slow-cooked roast beef, a marvel, it was!) - it may be a passing fad, but it's one I'd really like to try. I wonder whether it might tempt fans of slow cookers (of which I am not one, everything seems to turn to mush when I try it!)?

It's probably a bit of a niche market, like those molecular gastronomy sets (which I also want to try) - if the price is right (the system I was looking at came in at nearly €1k, far beyond my budget) then people might buy for the novelty value, and as gifts. I'm in the market for a gift (if any friends or relatives are reading!).

Curry Addict

the sous vide thing is nice percision cooking with flavours locked in afaik. its easy to control the temperature/timing accurately and gives great results whatever lenght of time you want to cook for.
it should be cheap enough as its hardly rocket science.

hussey

apparently sous vide has been around since the 70's ... maybe not in the form of the machines.

I seen heston give a talk before, and he was saying how it is so easy. Once you do the prep put it in the machine and forget about it - if you have the temperature right there is no chance of over cooking.

I recently tried a 15hr cooking of pork. Was surprisingly easy, I put it in my cast iron pot put the oven on at the lowest temp (100c) put it in at 9pm, took it out the next day at 12pm - and was amazing, falling apart

cgarrad

hussey wrote: »

I recently tried a 15hr cooking of pork. Was surprisingly easy, I put it in my cast iron pot put the oven on at the lowest temp (100c) put it in at 9pm, took it out the next day at 12pm - and was amazing, falling apart

Did an 6 hour stew in a cast iron pot as well, nobody could believe I had cooked it :cool:

Have you a link for the 15 hour recipe?

Minder

Darkginger wrote: »

I'm most interested in the forthcoming home kitchen sous-vide system - there's one out there now that's beyond my budget, but if Heston's comes in at a more affordable price, I am so there! The other hints in that article are great - I've been cooking for decades. but it's not too late to learn new ways of doing things Thanks for posting!

There is now a domestic waterbath available from a company called Sous Vide Supreme - I think this is featured on Hestons programme. The waterbath retails at about 250 to 300 quid. The main problem with a domestic setup for sous vide is in the vacuum machine. Chamber vacuums which easily handle all liquids are an absolute fortune to buy. The alternative is the suck and seal machine like this. Unfortunately these cannot handle even the smallest amount of liquid as it's sucked out of the bag with the air. There are ways around with the double wrapping - a bag inside the sealing bag, but my experience is that they are generally a waste of money unless you are just using dry ingredients.

hussey

I used the recipe from his book Heston at home, as a guide
but it is similar to these
http://www1.nespresso.com/precom/nmag/4/pdfs/en/nm4i_0046_0051_en.pdf
(I used this brine - minus the Sel rose)
http://www.waitrose.com/content/waitrose/en/home/recipes/recipe_directory/h/heston_s_slow_cooked_pork_belly.A4.html
(and this stock, minus parsnip and turnip, but used celery stick)

So I brined it for 24hrs (assembled Friday night)
Rinsed and washed for 1 hr (sit in cold water & change every 15mins)
then put oven on 100c and poured stock over it.
Put in oven 9pm took out 12pm Sunday.
As per the book I let it sit to cool down for 2 hrs, then used the stock and reduced it to about 500ml - was nice and thick for gravy

It might sound like a massive effort - but honestly it wasn't,

1. Prepare brine (15mins)
2. leave overnight (24hrs)
3. wash & rinse & soak in clean water (4 x 2mins, every 15mins)
4. prepare stock (20mins)
5. Leave in oven (15hrs)
6. Let rest & prep my veg to go with it (2hrs rest)
7. Make gravy (20mins)
8. reheat the meat (10mins)

His book had a very high brine solution - I would really cut this down in half to about 5-10% salt

The Hill Billy

May I ask - what was the steak like? After all that effort I'd be expecting a steak that tasted absolutely world-class.

cgarrad

hussey wrote: »

I used the recipe from his book Heston at home, as a guide
but it is similar to these
http://www1.nespresso.com/precom/nmag/4/pdfs/en/nm4i_0046_0051_en.pdf
(I used this brine - minus the Sel rose)
http://www.waitrose.com/content/waitrose/en/home/recipes/recipe_directory/h/heston_s_slow_cooked_pork_belly.A4.html
(and this stock, minus parsnip and turnip, but used celery stick)

So I brined it for 24hrs (assembled Friday night)
Rinsed and washed for 1 hr (sit in cold water & change every 15mins)
then put oven on 100c and poured stock over it.
Put in oven 9pm took out 12pm Sunday.
As per the book I let it sit to cool down for 2 hrs, then used the stock and reduced it to about 500ml - was nice and thick for gravy

It might sound like a massive effort - but honestly it wasn't,

1. Prepare brine (15mins)
2. leave overnight (24hrs)
3. wash & rinse & soak in clean water (4 x 2mins, every 15mins)
4. prepare stock (20mins)
5. Leave in oven (15hrs)
6. Let rest & prep my veg to go with it (2hrs rest)
7. Make gravy (20mins)
8. reheat the meat (10mins)

His book had a very high brine solution - I would really cut this down in half to about 5-10% salt

Dont think I have ever used the acronym OMG before but OMG

Going to make this for a 8 person come dine with me we are doing, I'll let you know!

cgarrad

The Hill Billy wrote: »

May I ask - what was the steak like? After all that effort I'd be expecting a steak that tasted absolutely world-class.

I actually tried that with rib eye tonight, not world class as I cant cook but very happy with it.

The drying to enhance the flavor and reduce the "boiling" effect in the pan definitively works, turning constantly did give a good crust and it looked very appetizing.

Steak was rib eye from Butchers Block in Dundrum so nothing special, I'll try something of higher quality now I've practiced it.

Even the girlfriend said it was good and she is eh... particular....

Sous Vide is the way I'm cooking everything once I can get one with a vacuum for sub €250

catho_monster

cgarrad wrote: »

Sous Vide is the way I'm cooking everything once I can get one with a vacuum for sub €250

We paid 147.27euro, delivered, for the Sous Vide Magic I referred to above, from the manufacturers "Fresh Meal Solutions"

You need a rice cooker or slow cooker to use as the water bath, we already had a rice cooker.

You need a vacuum packer - we got a cheap one in Lidl, a suck and seal like Minder referred to. (Thanks for the double bagging idea btw Minder, can't wait to try it!)

We buy our vacuum pack bags from Nisbets, 50 for 10.89euro (+VAT and delivery)

= FAR cheaper alternative. Works a dream and I'd recommend it to anyone and everyone with interest in this kind of thing. Had great fun cooking some dishes for Christmas dinner from Heston's Fat Duck cook book

hussey

Any one watch the show last night ...
I love poached eggs and have tried everything from a poaching pan to rubber egg holder
but usually always used teh vinegar and whirlpool trick.

Will definitely try his suggestions.
Anyone who didn't see it look here
http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/heston-blumenthal/poached-eggs-recipe
pouring the egg to a slotted spoon gets rid of all the white strands and float around.

nompere

hussey wrote: »

Any one watch the show last night ...
I love poached eggs and have tried everything from a poaching pan to rubber egg holder
but usually always used teh vinegar and whirlpool trick.

Will definitely try his suggestions.
Anyone who didn't see it look here
http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/heston-blumenthal/poached-eggs-recipe
pouring the egg to a slotted spoon gets rid of all the white strands and float around.

I love poached eggs as well, but I missed the programme.

What's the point of putting an upside down plate at the bottom of the pan?

hussey

nompere wrote: »

I love poached eggs as well, but I missed the programme.

What's the point of putting an upside down plate at the bottom of the pan?

The bottom of the pan is direct heat, so by putting something on top it takes away the direct heat process as a buffer - so the water cooks the egg rather than saucepan and water.

Kinda like a bain marie for melting chocolate

duckworth

Alot of what he does in this programme is from Harold McGee's On Food & Cooking http://www.amazon.com/Food-Cooking-Science-Lore-Kitchen/dp/0684800012.

Stuff like the slotted spoon/egg trick and the constant flipping steak are all in this book - it's a bible for people who are interested in cooking.

What I love about these tips is the complete counter-intuitive way of cooking it is. For steak in particular, you are always told to put in the pan and NOT touch it until you are flipping - so it gets a crust. The flipping is completely against this, and yet it works just as well, except it has the added benefit of not overcooking the middle.


It'll be interesting to see how his domestic sous-vide machine works out - I would have thought you'd need a vacuum packer as well. Also, there are health precautions when you are doing the real low-temp stuff, like exact timings to kill germs etc.. will be interesting to see how this can be done in the home.

nc6000

catho_monster wrote: »

We paid 147.27euro, delivered, for the Sous Vide Magic I referred to above, from the manufacturers "Fresh Meal Solutions"

You need a rice cooker or slow cooker to use as the water bath, we already had a rice cooker.

You need a vacuum packer - we got a cheap one in Lidl, a suck and seal like Minder referred to. (Thanks for the double bagging idea btw Minder, can't wait to try it!)

We buy our vacuum pack bags from Nisbets, 50 for 10.89euro (+VAT and delivery)

= FAR cheaper alternative. Works a dream and I'd recommend it to anyone and everyone with interest in this kind of thing. Had great fun cooking some dishes for Christmas dinner from Heston's Fat Duck cook book

Wow, I got that book as a Christmas present. What recipes did you make from it?

catho_monster

so far, we've cooked the red cabbage gazpacho, whiskey wine gums and millionaires shortbread. YUM!!!

Minder

What was the red cabbage gazpacho like? It caught my eye in the book - an extraordinary colour.

melatonin

catho_monster wrote: »

We paid 147.27euro, delivered, for the Sous Vide Magic I referred to above, from the manufacturers "Fresh Meal Solutions"

You need a rice cooker or slow cooker to use as the water bath, we already had a rice cooker.

You need a vacuum packer - we got a cheap one in Lidl, a suck and seal like Minder referred to. (Thanks for the double bagging idea btw Minder, can't wait to try it!)

We buy our vacuum pack bags from Nisbets, 50 for 10.89euro (+VAT and delivery)

= FAR cheaper alternative. Works a dream and I'd recommend it to anyone and everyone with interest in this kind of thing. Had great fun cooking some dishes for Christmas dinner from Heston's Fat Duck cook book

How do you connect the temp. controller? have a slow cooker here