I am cooking for 5 - three of which are teenagers. Do I cook the amount I need at the same temp that is suggested in the recipe? For example…if I am cooking chicken for 5 people I need at least 1 breast, etc for each person. Do I cook all 5 at whatever the temp is in the recipe or need to up the temp?
I hope this is in the right category…I just got me Anova today and just joined the community today. I have yet to actually use it yet.
Time and temp don’t change with a greater quantity. Only a desire to change the doneness/texture or the size/thickness of the chicken breast (steak, roast, etc) would change the temp or time.
Bag each breast individually and make sure you have enough free circulating water (use a larger vessel if necessary) and you should be good to go.
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When I cook multiple pieces at one time I will often bag multiple ones together. The key thing to watch out for is that they do not overlap making a thicker piece to cook. I am stingy with my vacuum bags and will often cook 2 or 3 together. Single bagging works great.
The texture of chicken is a little different than the dry stringy breasts you often get when using conventional cooking methods and higher temperatures. Season things well and give people some time to adjust if they are adverse to change.
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Hey @TFinney I do the same thing that @john.jcb does. As long as you layer the meat side-by-side (not stack), time+temps shouldn’t change. And yep - you’re in the right category (and don’t worry about it too much if you’re not…things are interrelated).
And welcome the anovafoodnerd fam. 
Vacuum bags are like $0.12 / ea in bulk (200 pack). I think my cooking is worth the extra 2-bits to bag individually…
But, yeah, side by side works too.
You are right they are pretty cheap. It would be an interesting study to determine why I feel the need to conserve on a $0.12 item.
I buy the vacuum bags on a roll and cut them to order based on what I am cooking or saving. Since I normally only cook for two it is easy to put everything in one bag.
I was honestly just poking a bit of fun there. Kind of figured it might be the generate less waste thing too. I prefer to have repeatably and I feel that having separate bags is the way to help achieve this, as I have had stuff slide. Plus, sometimes with things like chicken, you get various sized breasts in a pack, so I might pull the smaller bags out 10 minutes before the larger ones.
I guess if you are using a wider roll, then side by side makes a bit more sense. I find for convenience, that pint and quart bags work better for me as I use far more of them for bagging things like smoked cheese and cured meats than I do for SV.
For some it’s not the price of the vacuum bag for cooking in but the price of the ectra piece of plastic in the rubbish pile that is the issue.