In The Master's Kitchen-Sous Vide cooking at The Lodge

Last night The Master and Lady Dearlove held a dinner party at The Masters Lodge, this would be our first opportunity to cook sous vide in their kitchen. The menu consisted of a crab tian followed by fillet of beef, a cheese course and finishing with Marquis au chocolat (some of you may remember me discussing this sweet in an earlier entry). Below is our Clifton Water Bath which we set at 57 degrees C which ensures the meat is cooked to medium-rare. On the right of the bath is the beef fillet that's been vacuum packed with a herb sachet and seasoning.


What is sous vide cooking? Sous vide - which literally translates from French as 'under vacuum' - was originally developed in France during the early 1970's. The process evolved when a chef and a university food scientist joined forces to devise a method for perfect foie gras. The best method proved to be sealing the food in a pouch under vacuum before slowly cooking it at a controlled low temperature. With the right sous vide equipment the gentle cooking process results in tender textures and enhanced, intense flavours, which are now part of every serious professional chef's life.
The Clifton Food Range of Water Baths guarantees accurate temperature control, and is now in use in the most exciting and acclaimed kitchens in the UK, including many Michelin starred restaurants. The Range is ideal for all types of low temperature cooking, including sous vide, in line with the growing appreciation of the benefits of Molecular Gastronomy. Below Seb Little, our Junior Sous Chef adds the beef to the water bath.

The water bath has a tiny propeller that gently circulates the water ensuring uniform cooking.

Tonight's dinner service was managed by our College Butler Savino and his team of assistants; Savino is widely recognised as being the best Butler in Cambridge.

With the beef we served French beans topped with glazed baby onions and crisp pancetta. The asparagus was on hand in case we needed a vegetarian alternative.

When catering at the Lodge we use the best College silver as seen below in the preparation of coffee.

Several hours later and the beef is nearly ready. Because the water bath holds the food at an exact temperature it is impossible to overcook; in fact the longer the meat remains in the water the more tender it becomes (the collagen in the muscle breaks down into gelatin which produces a tender finish).

The candles are lit minutes before the guests enter for dinner.

Below is our crab tian topped with micro-herbs seconds before a citrus dressing is added and the meal begins.

In the photo below, from left to right we have: Nick Rose-Head Chef, Xandra Diaz-Catering Assistant and Seb Little-Junior Sous Chef.

Also on hand to assist we had Fiametta Leotta (left) and Sonia Benito (right). Seen here with Head Chef Nick Rose

Rounding off our waiting staff was Adrienn Csiba seen below on the right of the picture.

When the beef is removed from the water bath and taken out of the vacuum bag is has a 'poached' appearance. We address this by quickly flashing the meat in a very hot pan, this gives the appearance and flavour of pan-cooked food.

as you can see in the picture below, the beef is cooked uniformly from edge to edge. This is the perfectly cooked result that is only possible with sous vide cooking.

Below the beef is plated with the French Beans, glazed onions, crisp pancetta and Anna Potatoes. We finished the plate with a nice thyme jus.

After the beef we followed the French tradition of serving cheese before the sweet. This allows for the continuation of red wine from the beef course.

Below is the Marquis au chocolat garnished with creme Anglaise, chopped pistachios and micro mint. The Master enjoyed this when we first served it on the 19th of October and asked for it again last night.

I spoke with Lady Dearlove earlier today and she expressed her happiness with the food and service provided.

Another great meal from the Master's Kitchen!