Have I missed the point?

In the Getting Started with Sous Vide Forum
Just bought a Supreme and am looking forward to experimenting; however,what is the point of cooking (say) several chicken breasts and then refrigerating / freezing some if you need the same amount of time (or more) to reheat them ready to eat?
Thanks,


7 Replies So Far

I do chicken breasts in quantity as I find the cooked ones handy to have on hand when I want to use the chicken in a situation that calls for cooked chicken breasts for say, making club sandwiches or in a pasta salad. I will also do beef cuts that take longer to cook in quantity. For example, I cook hangar steak for 24 hours, braising ribs for 48. They are cooled then frozen in the bags they are cooked in. Last night for dinner I took one of the previously cooked and frozen hangar steaks, heated it in a water bath for 60 minutes, seared it and dinner was ready. For cuts that don't take as long such as strip loins, I can't really see the advantage of cooking ahead and freezing.
Thanks for this and I can see the point if the reheating time is 60 mins but the initial cook was several for hours.
From what I have read though chicken breasts take as long to reheat as they do to cook from raw; have I read this correctly?
I cook chicken breasts for 2 hours at 140F. It won't hurt the chicken if it is in the water bath a bit longer as it will never cook past 140F. To re-heat, I put the frozen breast in a 140F water bath for 45 minutes. Does this help?
Thanks, yes it does.
I read that the same time was needed for reheating as cooking originally, hence I didn't see the point.
Many thanks for your help.
I pre-cook them for 2 reasons:

1) When I want the breasts pasteurized, it takes about 3 hours cooking time, much longer than the reheating time.

2) We often eat the breasts cold, they're great for sandwiches and salads.

Otherwise, as you point out, there's no reason to cook them ahead of time.
Eating cold after refrigeration sounds good to me :-)
If you do want to reheat (either after refrigeration or freezing) how do you ensure the correct temperature is reached?
Just a note: The FDA requires previously cooked foods to be heated to 165 F. OR to the original internal cooking temperature.
Just FYI


Reply to this Topic

In order to add a reply to this topic please log in or create an account, it's free and only takes 30 seconds.









placeholder image

Cookie Consent

This website uses cookies or similar technologies, to enhance your browsing experience and provide personalized recommendations. By continuing to use our website, you agree to our Privacy Policy