Overview of Sous Vide Cooking
In 1960s, engineers from France and America found that the taste and texture of meat cooked in vacuum bags at relatively low temperature were much better than those of traditional cooking. Since 1970s,
sous vide cooking has been widely used in top restaurants of the world. In 1990s, food scientists made extensive research on sous vide cooking. In the late 2000s,
sous vide cooking was already used in the home kitchen. Today, high-end restaurants with molecular gastronomy also use this technology. In 2008, Thomas Keller, an innovative chef, published the "Principle of Stress". It became popular in restaurants all over America. Of course, in the past few years, sous vide cooking technology has also been used by other countries. But in America, where it originated, sous vide cooking technology has spread to every family.
What is sous vide cooking?
Sous vide cooking refers to the cooking of food materials packed in vacuum at stable heat and precise temperature. The main advantage of vacuum cooking is that it can ensure that food can be cooked evenly that keep moisture from the outside to the inside without being overcooked on the outside. In addition, if the vacuum cooking time is too long, the over-cooking will not occur, and it is convenient to eat.
Why is vacuum cooking so popular?
With almost perfect reproducibility, compared with traditional cooking, it can better control the degree of cooking, and it can ensure that food is cooked evenly from the inside out. Food can also be sterilized at low temperature, so steaks cooked in vacuum need not be fully cooked to ensure safety. Tough meat is soft when medium rare or half cooked. Vacuum sealing can transfer heat from water or steam to food efficiently, and it can eliminate the risk of re-contamination during storage, thus prolonging the shelf life of food. It can also eliminate the peculiar smell produced by oxidation, and prevent the evaporation of food flavor and moisture during cooking.