Can i reduce the cooking juices from cooking chicken confit to use as sauce for the dish?
Yes, I have the same question.
If you sous vide at 130 degrees (for just an example) will that kill all potential bacteria in remaining liquid or does it need to be boiled afterwards?
When i reduce a liquid to a sauce i do it by boiling it down to the consistancy i want so it would be ok at that point. Im interested in knowing if it is worth the effort in the final taste department of if it will add nothing to the dish.
The steps for using the bag juice, which is essentially the best stock ever because there is no added water, are easier if there is a lot of juice in the bag due to a long cook, but can still be used for small amounts.
The juice should be clarified, that is brought to a simmer which will make the proteins in it coagulate and then strained through muslin/cheese cloth or even a coffee filter to remove these gritty solids. The resulting essence of meat can then be further process by adding it to your favourite sauce base or have other flavours added and reduced to be served as jus.
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Thanks. I will cook up and strain then use only a small amount with the chicken due to the intensified flavor.
Can i freeze the remaining stock after clairifying and save for other uses?
Sure can.
Did it but turned out way to salty. Even when using a small smount. Next time i will reduce the salt in the receipe. Other than the sauce the confit was delicious.
I don’t salt my meat before sous vide and only add salt just before searing. I find it doesn’t have much flavour impact on the meat and I’d much rather be able to use the cooking essence for reduction sauces. But I really don’t use much salt at all and very rarely have anyone complain about lack of seasoning.
Anytime you’re boiling down a liquid you will increase its saltiness. If the confit was properly salted, I wouldn’t change the recipe, as you don’t want under-seasoned meat. Instead, don’t reduce the liquid as much and use a thickener - roux or mustard, for example - to get your desired consistency with the sauce.
Thanks,
Roux sounds like the answer as less reduction will not give me the viscosity that i want
Berge might find it convenient to make a small batch of light roux and keep it in a jar in the refrigerator. Then its easy to thicken liquids to just-right consistency with small applications of roux. Be sure to always use a clean spoon to remove the roux from the jar. That way it will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator. Roux doesn’t freeze well as the water molecules separate from the starch.
An alternative is to thicken the strained meat juices with a slurry of corn starch, potato flour, or arrowroot using wine, cold stock, or water. Add slowly over heat and keep whisking as they thicken at a lower temperature than a roux. Corn starch would be my last choice as i don’t like the shine it gives a sauce.
If using cornflour, arrowroot or potato starch make sure you boil the sauce for long enough to cook out the starchiness. Arrowroot is probably the prettiest option as it will not cloud a nice clear sauce when properly cooked out.
Another thickening option is to make a dough/paste of butter and plain flour. drop little pea sized balls of this into your simmering sauce whisking well after each addition. It offers a good, fine control of your thickening agent.