Simple Sous Vide Chicken Dinner

It seems like this new appliance will help save a lot of hands-on kitchen time and cleanup.  We don't have a dishwasher, so a big pile of dishes on a Friday night is not something that we want to mess with.  And while I really like to cook, after working all day I don't want to always be stuck having to keep an eye on things while they cook. So far, so good.  Last night was very easy.

After getting home from work, I vacuumed some chicken breasts into pouches with a sprinkle of Penzey's Northwoods Fire seasoning.  The sous vide got set at 145 and then B-Hubz (smile) and I left for the climbing gym.  By the time we got back - tired and ravenous, we had some good climbs! - the chicken had cooked for a little over 2 hours.

I preheated one of those George Foreman-style indoor grills, and started water boiling to cook frozen peapods.  The chicken was grilled for a few minutes to color.  The veggies were drained, buttered, and salted.  Dinner done!

The lighting in the photo is a little weird, but the chicken was amazing.  The texture was great - very juicy, firm, and evenly cooked.

Verdict - Next time - extra spice.  I was worried about over doing it but a little more would have been just fine.  Also I don't think I'm going to bother finishing a dish on the indoor grill again.  It didn't get hot enough to really sear to get the grill marks that I was going for.   A smoking hot skillet is the best way to go.  At least until I get a blowtorch.  :)