Roast pork sous vide

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1.2 kg pork shoulder with skin
• 1 tsp pepper, freshly ground
• 1 tsp caraway seeds, finely ground
• 3 clove(s) garlic, chopped
• 200 ml rapeseed oil

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Cooking/baking time approx. 21 hours; Total time approx. 22 hours

Mix the pepper, caraway seeds, and garlic with the oil and blend with a hand blender. Place the meat in a plastic bag and pour the oil mixture over it. Massage it all into the meat. Then vacuum seal the bag and let it marinate in the refrigerator. Half a day should be enough. Remove the meat from the refrigerator about two hours before the water bath. This allows it to come to room temperature. Let the meat marinate in a sous vide bath at 64°C for 20 hours (I used 21 hours). The great thing about this type of cooking is that the temperature, not the exact timing, is what matters. Once the time is up, remove the meat from the water, drain the meat juices from the bag (this is great for sauces), remove the meat from the bag, and place it on a cutting board. The skin is now buttery soft – cut into cubes to form a crust. Place the meat, skin-side up, in a dish (preferably with a rack). Then place it in the oven at 200°C with the grill function on top for 30 minutes. The result is the juiciest roast pork you’ve ever eaten. And the meat stays juicy even after carving. Tip: While you wait a little longer, you can prepare the side dishes. I have salad, sauerkraut, dumplings, and sauce. Guidance on roast pork when cooking sous vide: There are very different opinions on the internet and in cookbooks. Many say 12 hours at 65°C, or 7 hours at 70°C, or even 72 hours at 58°C. It’s best to do this in the hope that the meat is still tender pink… Assume 1 hour for every 1 cm of meat thickness. That’s pretty good for ensuring the meat is super juicy, but completely at the desired and set temperature. So, for a 7 cm thick piece of meat, that’s also 7 hours. But – as far as I know, this cooking process causes the fats and connective tissue in the meat to melt, and the collagen to become liquid and gelatinous. This happens at temperatures between > 58°C and 70°C (even within this temperature range, there are many different opinions). I don’t want to go into plateau phases in detail. I will just say this: plateau phases arise from the energy exchange when the meat “sweats” (a kind of condensation cooling when meat juices are released into the warmer environment). Since the meat can’t release anything to the outside from a plastic bag, plateau phases shouldn’t even occur. So there are many ways to achieve the goal. If you want it pink, keep the temperature lower. However, you’ll have to increase the cooking time depending on the desired consistency. Since this is a roast and not pulled pork, I’d set it at 18-36 hours and below 67°C. In any case, longer than 7 hours, since the decomposition of the connective tissue takes longer at lower temperatures. And since I have the opportunity to get rid of all the tough stuff and transform it into flavor by spending a few more hours in the water… my version produced the perfect result for me. Grey, pale pink, juicy meat with a great crust.