# Sous Vide chicken thighs at 138F for 7.5 hours....  no red around the bones...  nor the meat..



## daveomak (Feb 16, 2021)

On a different thread, some time back, a member asked me about the "red" color around the bones etc. when poultry was done at 138F....
So, I took pictures of this batch...  
2 each, 1 gallon zip bags with ~5 oz. beer, ~ 1 TBS. Standard Chicken flavor base, and 2 TBS. Costco Garlic and Herbs salt free seasoning..
2 each food grade silicone covered  weights added to each bag, to keep this stuff under water....
138F intended for 6 hours but a nap got in the way..  So, 7 1/2 hours it was....









My set up...







I've got blue and yellow weights...  the meat is submerged, under the water..  hard to see..











This sweet chili sauce is REALLY good on lots of stuff..  Not very hot...







The bone has no red...  the meat, the same...  the chili sauce has some red...  the gelatin from the chicken is delicious...
I'm gonna make some rice and add the gelatin, from both bags, to the rice...  Good rice !!!
I love how moist the chicken comes out...  








This should allow most of you, to "introduce" pasteurized chicken to folks that never touch red or pink chicken, and how juicy it is...

And some of these thighs were pretty big....

Thanks for looking....

Dave


RICE.....   The gelatin from 1 bag of chicken thighs was plenty...   It's cooking now....  I did add water to the cooker....


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## krj (Feb 16, 2021)

How is the texture of the meat itself? And what exactly are you using the meat for? Like do you follow some normal sous vide methods and do a sear, or are you shredding/chopping/whatever for a recipe? Also, if you are doing a sear how is the texture of the skin, assuming skin on?


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## Brokenhandle (Feb 16, 2021)

Looks good to me Dave! We haven't done chicken in SV before,  mainly because we don't think of it, but should try it sometime.  This should be a big help for those that are worried about the pink in chicken.  We don't worry about it for the main reason we always know our chicken is cooked to safe temps from what I've learned here and from you. So a big thank you for that!

Ryan


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## SmokinEdge (Feb 16, 2021)

Yup good looking chicken Dave.


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## daveomak (Feb 16, 2021)

krj said:


> How is the texture of the meat itself? And what exactly are you using the meat for? Like do you follow some normal sous vide methods and do a sear, or are you shredding/chopping/whatever for a recipe? Also, if you are doing a sear how is the texture of the skin, assuming skin on?



I eat the meat....  As is or in a salad or in chicken spaghetti...  or just for a healthy snack...
The meat is tender and moist...  very little chew to to it...  The skin is tender and almost dissolves on the tongue..  Spices and herbs add a unique flavor profile unlike any chicken I have eaten....
It's something different....  other than baked, fried or grilled...  and it's safe to eat for folks with compromised immune systems....

If you are expecting a "normal everyday" chicken, it ain't there...  although most folks use SV so they don't have to eat "normal, everyday" meat....   They are looking to make something that is tender, moist and flavorful.....


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## krj (Feb 16, 2021)

daveomak said:


> I eat the meat....  As is or in a salad or in chicken spaghetti...  or just for a healthy snack...
> The meat is tender and moist...  very little chew to to it...  The skin is tender and almost dissolves on the tongue..  Spices and herbs add a unique flavor profile unlike any chicken I have eaten....
> It's something different....  other than baked, fried or grilled...  and it's safe to eat for folks with compromised immune systems....



Interesting. So for something like this is the 6-7.5 hours necessary to pasteurize the meat, or can it be done in less time and this is a personal preference. First time I've ever heard of cooking to pasteurize chicken like this.


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## daveomak (Feb 16, 2021)

A Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking


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## crazymoon (Feb 16, 2021)

Dave, Great looking chicken and good use of the gelatin!


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## daveomak (Feb 17, 2021)

krj said:


> Interesting. So for something like this is the 6-7.5 hours necessary to pasteurize the meat, or can it be done in less time and this is a personal preference. First time I've ever heard of cooking to pasteurize chicken like this.


*********************************************************
These thighs were frozen SOLID...   
From Baldwin's tutorial....

Heating Time from Frozen to 1°F (0.5°C) Less Than the Water Bath’s Temperature    


ThicknessSlab-likeCylinder-likeSphere-like

50 mm5¼ hr2¾ hr2 hr


Below is a USDA pasteurization table for poultry....
Temperature........ Time .............Time 
°F...... (°C) ...........1% fat ...........12% fat
138 (58.9)......... 42.2 min....... 52.9 min

This is how I calculated the cook time...
I figured the thighs were ~2" thick, slab-like... just to be safe.. because they were stuck together in a frozen block....
So, 5 1/4 hours to get to 137F....
Then using the USDA pasteurization table..  52.9 minutes to become pasteurized...
5 1/4 hours = 5 hours and 15 minutes + 52.9 minutes = *6 hours and 8 minutes to complete pasteurization.*.. from frozen...

Then I took a nap and it ended up being 7.5 hours....
**********************************************
OR, Using Baldwin's thawed meat table....

Pasteurization Time for Poultry from thawed meat...
(starting at 41°F / 5°C and put in a 134.5–149°F / 57–65°C water bath)

50mm thick @ 138F from 41F thawed meat....  3 3/4 hours to pasteurization..  

then I would add 1 hour to be safe....  4 3/4 hours for me to be happy....

Anywho, the FIRST few times trying to figure this stuff out gave me a headache....  
then it got easier....  
Dave

I prefer to use Baldwin's frozen to 1deg. below target temperature...  THEN use the USDA pasteurization table because I can't see how to get to a pasteurization time from frozen using Baldwin's tables...

He does have the USDA charts for "beef" and poultry, near the end of his tutorial....

Dave

.....


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## daveomak (Feb 17, 2021)

crazymoon said:


> Dave, Great looking chicken and good use of the gelatin!




The rice is really good......    It takes added flavors well.....


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## chef jimmyj (Feb 17, 2021)

That is very cool Dave. The end result is very similar to Confit. The meat is juicy and tender and the skin, while not having much, if any color, melts in your mouth, no teeth needed. I make a Chicken Wing  Confit with Soy Sauce, Fresh Thyme, Garlic and Sriracha to taste,  half way up the wings then top with cheap EVOO. I bake at 225 for 2 hours. Really tasty, if you can get past the wing skin not being crispy. Im thinking SV would be perfect for this wing recipe...JJ


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## krj (Feb 17, 2021)

I'm going to have to hunt down my anova and give that a try. Have you tried vac packing and freezing the cooked product? My girlfriend is due in a little over a month and I'm getting ready to start working on freezer meals so I don't have to do as much shopping or spend as much time in the kitchen at least the first couple weeks in.


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## zwiller (Feb 17, 2021)

This is crazy!  I was planning to do nearly the same but a little hotter for pulled chicken!  You even answered the question I had (can I use the bag as stock)  BIG LIKE


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## daveomak (Feb 17, 2021)

The chicken will pull pretty good at 138F...   Much hotter and the muscle tissue starts to contract and get stiff and dry out.......   No intramuscular fat.....  Or so it says somewhere....


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## BrianGSDTexoma (Feb 17, 2021)

Dave I have been really liking that Sous Vide pasteurization.  I hate frozen cooked food.  Finished my turkey off with in few weeks after smoking it and it tasted better than when I smoked it!  I am just finishing off some ham now.


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## zwiller (Feb 17, 2021)

Brian brings up a great point.  

 daveomak
 I remember you warning me about SV after smoking that it enhances it or something.  I am thinking I should try and rest a week after smoking?  Any thoughts?  I SV'd a loin next day after smoking and was not ha ppy with my outcome.  Sorta fake tasting.


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## daveomak (Feb 17, 2021)

Cut the smoke time down, WAY down...


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## daveomak (Feb 17, 2021)

Sous vide processing is used in the food industry to extend the shelf-life of food products; when pasteurized sous vide pouches are held at below 38°F (3.3°C), they remain safe and palatable for three to four weeks (Armstrong and McIlveen, 2000; Betts and Gaze, 1995; Church, 1998; Creed, 1995; González- Fandos et al., 2004, 2005; Hansen et al., 1995; Mossel and Struijk, 1991; Nyati, 2000a; Peck, 1997; Peck and Stringer, 2005; Rybka-Rodgers, 2001; Simpson et al., 1994; Vaudagna et al., 2002). 


While keeping your food sealed in plastic pouches prevents recontamination after cooking, spores of _Clostridium botulinum_, _C. perfringens_, and _B. cereus_ can all survive the mild heat treatment of pasteurization. Therefore, after rapid chilling, the food must either be frozen or held at


below 36.5°F (2.5°C) for up to 90 days  
below 38°F (3.3°C) for less than 31 days,  
below 41°F (5°C) for less than 10 days, or   
below 44.5°F (7°C) for less than 5 days

to prevent spores of non-proteolytic _C. botulinum_ from outgrowing and producing deadly neurotoxin (Gould, 1999; Peck, 1997).


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