That’s a lot to Gobble Up!

The leaves have fallen along with the temperature, and that means we’re into the season for feasting! Preparing a meal fit for a holiday AND a crowd can be challenging. Thankfully, we’ve got the perfect recipe! This turkey and dressing dish with gravy feeds 50 and can be prepared in a single piece of CVap® equipment. Try it this Thanksgiving and get your gobble on!

CVap Turkey and Dressing 

Recommended Equipment: CVap Retherm Oven
Channel: Select Channel #3 for Preheat
Cook Time: 50 minutes or until internal temperature
reaches 165°F

Prepare turkey, dressing, and gravy one day in advance and chill, preparations methods for each follow. Next, prepare two each (12″ x 20″ x 2.5″) steam table pans by spraying or coating lightly with non-stick spray. Divide dressing mixture between the two pans, pressing into the bottom. Add chopped cooked turkey to top of dressing. Cover with turkey gravy. Cover pans with foil and place in oven. At 30 minutes, remove covers and continue to cook an additional 20 minutes OR until internal temperature reaches 165°F. Serve immediately or hold in a CVap Holding Cabinet (Food Temp = 140°F Food Texture = 5°F).

FOR THE TURKEY
• Boneless No-Rolled Turkey (USDA commodity) | 1 each @8lb
• Poultry seasoning | 2 Tbsp
• Olive Oil | 1 Tbsp

PREPARATION METHOD
Recommended Equipment: CVap Retherm Oven
Channel: Select Channel #1 for Preheat
Cook Time: 90 minutes or until internal temperature
reaches 165°F.

Coat the turkey in olive oil and seasoning. Place on roasting plaque. When the oven display reads LOAD, place turkey in oven and cook approximately 90 minutes or until temperature reaches 165°F. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Chop meat into ½” cubes and keep refrigerated until ready to assemble and bake.

NOTE: Use recommended CVap equipment and settings for best possible results!

FOR THE DRESSING
• Whole grain, enriched bread cut into cubes | 3 lb 2 oz
• Ground white pepper | 2 tsp
• Dried blend of thyme, marjoram, sage | 2 Tbsp
• Fresh flat leaf parsley | 2 Tbsp
• Yellow onion, chopped fine | 8 oz
• Celery, chopped fine | 4 oz
• Carrots, chopped fine | 4 oz
• Margarine or butter, melted | 12 oz
• Chicken stock (non-MSG, low sodium) | 2 qt

PREPARATION METHOD
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and keep refrigerated until ready to assemble and bake.

FOR THE GRAVY
• Margarine or butter, room temperature | 6 oz
• Enriched flour | 7 oz
• Chicken stock or turkey stock (non-MSG, low sodium) | 3 qt

PREPARATION METHOD
In a medium mixing bowl, blend the flour and butter together to make a paste and reserve. In a saucepan, heat the stock to 140°F. Ladle 4 oz of hot stock into the paste. Using a whisk, blend together. Continue adding stock to paste until the paste becomes loose and resembles a slurry. Pour the slurry into the hot stock and heat to 165°F, whisking intermittently. Remove gravy and chill until ready to assemble and bake recipe. Use hot stock only when recipe will be assembled and baked immediately.

Per Serving: 271 Calories, 19.79 g Protein, 18.31 g Carbohydrate, 12.63 g Total Fat, 2.92 g Saturated Fat, 45 mg Cholesterol, 366 IU Vitamin A, 0.4 mg Vitamin C, 2.21 mg Iron, 55 mg Calcium, 441mg Sodium, 0.8 g Dietary Fiber

*Recipe has been adapted from USDA/NFSMI recipe for “Turkey and Dressing Supreme.”

 

National Taco Day? Bite Your Tongue!

October 4 is National Taco Day. If you’re like us, you don’t need an excuse to eat tacos and you’ll surely agree they’ve become an indelible delight devoured daily by millions worldwide.

Historically speaking, the origin of the taco predates the arrival of the Spanish in Mexico. There is anthropological evidence that the indigenous people living in the lake region of the Valley of Mexico traditionally ate tacos filled with small fish. Writing at the time of the Spanish conquistadors, Bernal Díaz del Castillo documented the first taco feast enjoyed by Europeans, a meal which Hernán Cortés arranged for his captains in Coyoacán.[5][6]  Source: Wikipedia    For more fun facts about tacos and what people love about them, click here: https://nationaltoday.com/national-taco-day/

There are so many varieties of tacos to count, it’s difficult to choose a favorite! So in honor of this special day of tribute to the taco, we thought we’d go uber-taqueria-traditional and share our CVap® preparation for Tacos de Lengua.

Beef tongue is exactly what it sounds like – the big ol’ tongue of a cow. Though not as commonly found on the average U.S. family’s dinner table, it’s widely used in Mexican cuisine, as well as several European, Asian, and South American cultures. It’s a great example of a fairly tough cut of meat that a CVap oven can cook beautifully. Using a low-and-slow method to prepare it in the CVap Cook & Hold breaks down the extensive connective tissue within the beef tongue, resulting in surprisingly tender, tasty meat.

Ingredients

  • 4 to 5 Beef tongues
  • 4 Cups beef broth
  • 2 Cans (7oz.) Chipotle in Adobo sauce
  • 2 Onions (sliced thin)
  • 8 Garlic cloves (roughly chopped)
  • 1 Tsp Salt
  • 1 Tsp Black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp Ground cumin
  • 1 Tbsp Mexican oregano

Cooking Procedure

  1. Rinse and wash tongues in cold water
  2. Place onions in the bottom of a 4” deep full-size hotel pan
  3. Place tongue on top of onions, top with beef stock and chipotles
  4. Add garlic and all of the seasonings
  5. Cover pan tightly with foil and place in a CVap Cook & Hold (preheated to 180°F water vapor, 250°F air temperature) and cook for 8 hours constant cook.
  6. Remove from oven and cool to room temp, then refrigerate for a minimum of four hours.
  7. After tongues have sufficiently cooled, remove the outer skin. Shred the remaining beef.
  8. Puree the chilies, onions and remaining broth to create a sauce. Toss a third of the sauce with the shredded beef. Refrigerate the beef and remaining sauce.

I recommend doing this a day in advance of preparing your tangy tongue tacos.

Assembling Lengua Tacos

Ingredients

  • Shredded tongue
  • Oil of your choosing for saute
  • Chipotle sauce
  • 2 Cups Cojita cheese
  • 1 Cup minced onion
  • 3 Cups Fresh Cilantro (roughly chopped)
  • Limes
  • Warm corn tortillas held in CVap cabinet at 140°F water vapor, 142°F air temp

Procedure

  1. Preheat remaining chipotle sauce
  2. Using a little bit of the vegetable oil, saute lengua (tongue) until it is a little crisp on the tips and is heated through. This may be done on a flat top or a saute pan.
  3. Assemble tacos
  4. Add lengua to warm tortillas
  5. Top with a little sauce, then cojita, then onions, then fresh cilantro.
  6. Squeeze fresh lime juice over taco and enjoy!

Lengua tacos are delicious, and lip smackin’ good!

Lengua tacos are delicious, and lip smackin’ good!

Winston Welcomes KY FAME

Last week, Winston Industries had the pleasure of hosting the September board meeting for the Kentucky Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (KY FAME). KY FAME provides college mechanic students with programs similar to an apprenticeship, through a network of participating regional manufacturers throughout Kentucky.

Winston Industries is a member of the KY FAME board, and has been active in the program for over a year.

Winston Industries’ Corporate Chef Barry Yates served the KY FAME board members a gourmet breakfast during the meeting. The meal highlighted the capabilities of Winston’s CVap® cooking equipment, and featured filet mignon, poached eggs, and cheese grits.

There is a growing awareness of the need for increased education in professional trades, such as manufacturing, electrical, and plumbing. Long looked upon as perhaps inferior to” white collar” careers, these trade professions have gained renewed respect as a crucial part of the modern American economy. KY FAME offers a pathway to a rewarding, high-paying career with little or no student debt. The program places an emphasis on developing students who are highly flexible and will be able to successfully navigate the multiple shifts in their work career.

Winston Industries is proud to be a KY FAME partner, and supports it’s efforts to improve the future of our region’s students through education.

Get Your Poultry Sales Poppin’ with CVap® Wings!

Get more covers in less time with CVap® Staging – Sous Vide Re-Engineered.

What goes better with warm weather gatherings than chicken wings? There are so many ways to flavor and cook this delicious treat, but when frying them, it feels like it takes forever.

We know that our our CVap Cook & Hold Oven is the workhorse in the kitchen, so we decided to put it to use so we could reduce fry time.

We took raw, fresh, jumbo bone-in chicken wings and advance staged them in the CVap Cook & Hold at 165 + 0 (or 165°F vapor/166°F air in New CVap) until they reached an internal temperature of 160°F. When we dropped them in the Collectramatic® fryer (open fry at 350°F), they were ready to serve in four minutes flat. The chicken was crispy on the outside, moist and juicy on the inside, and it exceeded a finishing temp of 165°F.

The CVap® Staging really came through on these chicken wings! These are easy to prepare for catering, appetizer specials, or any time you just want a batch. You’ll be able to serve them up in minutes, with each batch hot, fresh, and delicious.

Learn more about CVap Cook & Holds and Collectramatic Fryers.

Exploration of Eggs: Creamiest Cheesecake Ever

Baking a picture-perfect and delicious cheesecake in a commercial kitchen can be a lot more difficult than people realize. You could have the perfect crust, a satiny-smooth filling, the best pan on the market, an appropriate bains marie, a great oven, mad skills… and still you wind up with those cracks in your custard!

As promised, I’m sharing a cheesecake recipe that I love, not only because it’s a tasty classic but also because it’s as fool-proof as the crème brûlée recipe I’ve already shared. I am again offering two methods: one is prepared in a CVap® Cook and Hold and the other in a CVap Retherm Oven.

Cheesecake Baked in a CVap Cook and Hold

Recipe/Process:

Crust: Mix 1½ cups of graham cracker crumbs with 3 Tbsp of sugar and 1/3 cup melted butter. Press into to bottom of a springform pan.

Filling: In a mixer, cream together 4 packages of cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla. Then mix in 4 eggs, one at a time. Mix on low until very few clumps are visible and be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl. Once the filling is finished, pour it over the crust.

  1. Set the unit to 200 + 0 Constant Cook and allow approximately 30 minutes when preheating the unit.
  2. Set the timer to 1:30
  3. Once the unit reads load, place the cheesecake in the unit and press start.
  4. After 1:30, the unit will read sell and the cheesecake has finished baking.
  5. Remove from oven and refrigerate (with the springform still in place) for at least 3 hours.
  6. After refrigeration, remove springform and slice for serving.

Cheesecake Baked in a CVap Retherm Oven

Recipe/Process:

Crust: Mix 1½ cups of graham cracker crumbs with 3 Tbsp of sugar and 1/3 cup melted butter. Press into to bottom of a springform pan.

Filling: In a mixer, cream together 4 packages of cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla. Then mix in 4 eggs, one at a time. Mix on low until very few clumps are visible and be sure to scrap the sides of the bowl. Once the filling is finished, pour it over the crust.

  1. Set the unit to Channel 1 and allow approximately 30 minutes when preheating the unit.
  2. Set the timer to 1:15
  3. Once the unit reads load, place the cheesecake in the unit and press start.
  4. After 1:15, the unit will read sell and the cheesecake has finished baking.
  5. Remove from oven and refrigerate (with the springform still in place) for at least 3 hours.
  6. After refrigeration, remove springform and slice for serving.

There are 100 ways to cook an egg, and whether they are center of the plate or part of a cake or custard, there are so many ways to serve them. If you have a favorite cheesecake recipe or even want to share a past cheesecake calamity, please let us hear from you!

Exploration of Eggs: CVap® Crème Brûlée

Creamy, velvety, decadent, smooth…there are so many delicious words to describe custards! But anyone who works with eggs or custards knows they are delicate and require precision handling. Even with the right skill set, it can be hard to get the same results every time with the limitations of traditional equipment. Not anymore! I have a few recipes that will give you perfect results, time after time. The way CVap® treats a custard is just awesome.

Today I’m sharing my favorite Crème Brûlée recipe; one is prepared in a CVap Cook/Hold Oven and the other in a CVap Thermalizer Oven – ENJOY! I’ll post my favorite cheesecake recipe soon, so be sure to check back. If you have a favorite custard recipe that you’d like for us to try in a CVap, please share it.

Crème Brûlée Baked in a CVap Cook/Hold Oven

Recipe/Process:

  1. Preset Cook/Hold to 200 + 0 and allow approximately 30 minutes to preheat.
  2. Set timer to 45 minutes.
  3. Beat 6 egg yolks, 4 tablespoons sugar, and ½ tsp of vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until thick and creamy.
  4. Pour 2 ½ cups of heavy cream into a saucepan and stir over low heat until it almost comes to a boil. Remove the cream from heat immediately. Stir cream into the egg yolk mixture; beat until combined.
  5. Pour into a shallow, heat-proof ramekin.
  6. Place in Cook/Hold and press start. After time is up, remove from oven and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
  7. When ready to serve, sprinkle sugar on top of the custard, and caramelize with a chef’s torch.

Crème Brûlée Baked in a CVap Thermalizer

Recipe/Process:

  1. Preset Thermalizer channel 1, place a full sheet pan on the top rack and allow approximately 30 minutes to preheat.
  2. Set timer to 30 minutes.
  3. Beat 6 egg yolks, 4 tablespoons sugar and ½ tsp of vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until thick and creamy.
  4. Pour 2 ½ cups of heavy cream into a saucepan and stir over low heat until it almost comes to a boil. Remove the cream from heat immediately. Stir cream into the egg yolk mixture; beat until combined.
  5. Pour into a shallow, heat-proof ramekin.
  6. Place in Thermalizer and press start. After time is up, remove from oven and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
  7. When ready to serve, sprinkle sugar on top of the custard, and caramelize with a chef’s torch.

There are 100 ways to cook an egg, and whether they are center of the plate or part of a cake or custard, there are so many ways to serve them.

CVap® Staged Burgers Are Speedy, Juicy, and Delicious!

At some of our trade shows, we have showcased delicious, juicy burgers that have been CVap® Staged in a CVap Cook & Hold Oven. Quick speed of service and maintaining product consistency are just two advantages of using this method!

To prepare the burgers, we set the CVap to 135°F (food temp) + 0 (texture) and preheated for 30 minutes. After placing the burger patties on parchment-lined sheet pans, we put them in the cabinet and set the timer for one hour.

After an hour, the burgers had reached our desired minimum endpoint temperature.

Once we got them to temperature, we held the burgers at that temp until we were ready for our lunch service. We pan seared to finish them, but they can be finished however you prefer (marked on a grill, pan seared, etc.). The point is, using this method you can produce a perfectly cooked, juicy, delicious burger two minutes after it is ordered, and it’ll have that mouthwatering, fresh-off-the-grill taste that patrons love. Plus you are serving a safe product that hasn’t been overcooked.

To finish our CVap presentation, we split hamburger buns, placed a slice of American cheese on one half, and held them in a CVap Holding Cabinet for about an hour to gently melt the cheese and soften the buns before service. We also prepared crispy bacon using a CVap Thermalizer set on channel 7 for 20 minutes. Lettuce, onions, pickles, and a variety of condiments were made available and attendees were not disappointed!

To give you another perspective, watch this short video You’ll see that in the time it takes to cook one frozen burger patty on a grill, you can finish three burgers that have been Advance Staged – and we would argue they are a little juicier than the traditional from-frozen product. Watch to the end and see for yourself!