I am a bit perplexed about one thing though....chicken. We tried chicken the other night (2 marinades, one dry, one wet), and while the wet marinated chicken was indeed very tender, the dry marinade ended up surprisingly dry. I expected both to maintain their moistness due to being sealed in the bags. Now, I didn't actually seal the bags myself, and I did notice that the person who did left some air at the top of the bag, even though the chicken was entirely submerged. We also cooked it at 150 degrees for about 2 hours. I'm thinking maybe the remaining air in the bag allowed the moisture to escape the meat? Everything I've seen says the bags need as much air as possible removed, even the parts that aren't submerged. We just got some dedicated sous-vide bags, so we'll see if they work better than the normal ziplocks we've been using so far.
If there is any air in the bag, it can lend itself to drying out your protein because of the steam that will build up inside the bag. So that might have caused your chicken to dry out so much.
It also doesn't hurt to brine your chicken the day before you sous vide it to guarantee you won't ever have dry chicken :)
Vacuum tight sous vide bags are definitely better than ziplocks also because of the assurance that you won't deal with air bubbles or tears from the plastic being heated for so long. So they are definitely worth the investment in the long run.
I'd like some advice, y'all.
What sort of dessert flavors complement a tomato/meat based main (spaghetti).
I'd like a holiday themed parfait, but I was wondering if something else might be more appropriate. Preferably, I'd like to serve it IN a small glass, so it has to be both pretty and delicious.
Initially I was going to do chocolate and matcha layers (maybe pudding & oreo layers, w/matcha whipped cream?) but I'm worried that might not pair well, as we're having sweet red wine and whisky. Maybe a coffee to accompany that
Or should pasta go with something fruity at the end. Lemon perhaps? Banana pudding?
Please help me, IronERA.
After a heavy meal like pasta, + your pairing of a sweet red + whiskey, I would go for a light dessert thats more tart than rich.
If you want to do a holiday parfait, I would go the light route. Maybe do a vanilla/caramel pudding (or mousse!), add layers of brown butter streusel, and layers of sauteed spiced apples. You can top it with a dollop of fresh whip cream :)
Or you can do a dessert complimenting the cocktails and do something like red wine poached pears with chopped pistachios, bake it into little coin purses (aka line the inside of cupcake tin with butter + sugar, put the pie dough open in it and fill them, close, egg wash, top with sugar, bake ) garnish with a honey whipped cream.
The ideas are endless really.
