What Are Sous Vide Prepared Meals?
Sous vide is a cooking method that was once thought to be used exclusively for higher-end restaurants.
Pronounced soo-veed, sous vide is a French term translating directly to “under vacuum”, as it’s the process of vacuum-sealing food into an airtight bag, then cooking it at a low temperature for an extended period of time in a water bath.
The great thing about the sous vide cooking method is that it preserves foods’ natural flavors and integrity, meaning that little to no preparation work is required, as well as marinades, tenderizers, or seasonings.
Today, not only is the sous vide cooking method gaining traction in the market for at-home chefs, but sous vide prepared foods are also becoming especially popular in the restaurant scene.
What Makes Sous Vide Meals Great for Restaurants?
There are companies out there, such as Cuisine Solutions, that specialize in sous vide style prepared dishes for both at-home consumers and as a great addition to restaurant menus.
Sous vide means are a great addition to any restaurant’s menu for several unique reasons. But most importantly, they help to deliver consistency and quality to restaurant chains and allow restaurants to expand their menu offerings without having to add any additional staffing.
Outlined below are a few of the other reasons sous vide meals are a great addition to any restaurant’s menu.
Quicker food prep
In restaurants, food prep is one of the most tedious and time-consuming tasks for a chef on a day-to-day basis. It involves ensuring you have all of the appropriate ingredients for your dishes, and that those ingredients are all properly prepared and ready for use.
This can involve precooking certain ingredients, slicing and dicing vegetables, and so much more. However, when adding sous vide-prepared meals to your menu, the preparation work is already done for you.
They come vacuum-sealed in an airtight container, and all that’s left for you to do is heat it and serve!
Better quality food
As mentioned previously, when the sous vide cooking method is used, it helps to preserve food’s natural flavors and integrity. When it comes to sous vide prepared meals for restaurants, the same can be said.
The food requires far fewer flavors and additives, simply because it captures the true essence of the food and its natural flavors. Not only that, but according to Toast Tab, many chefs agree that the sous vide method is cost-efficient, it can transform tougher, oftentimes cheaper cuts of meat into a flavorful and tender dish.
Sous vide prepared dishes ensure that you’re not sacrificing flavor or quality for lower food costs, which is another reason they are such a great addition to your restaurant menu.
Several different food applications are available
There is a large misconception that the sous vide method is only to be used for meats. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
In reality, the sous vide cooking method can be used to cook just about anything and everything, ranging from meats to vegetables, condiments, desserts, and even cocktails.
Sous vide prepared dishes are a great addition to restaurants, simply because they can perform in a plethora of different applications, as well, such as sandwiches, salads, bowls, and so much more.
Reduces waste
By adding sous vide prepared meals to your restaurant menu, it also drastically cuts back on the amount of food being wasted daily. As mentioned previously, there is preparation work that is required before cooking just about any dish.
However, if you prepare ingredients for a dish to serve up to 30 people, but only 10 people order that dish, the remainder of the ingredients that were prepared are then considered waste.
However, sous vide prepared dishes come vacuum sealed and can be returned to storage until needed at a later date if they aren’t used.
Ultimately, not only does this help to reduce food waste, but it also helps to achieve optimal order-to-serve time, thus improving profitability for the restaurant, as well.
Developing sous vide products specifically for your restaurant
As outlined above, there are several unique benefits associated with incorporating sous vide prepared meals into your restaurant menu. Cuisine Solutions, as mentioned previously is a company that works with restaurant chains to deliver memorable dining experiences with their sous vide style prepared dishes.
But did you know that companies such as this can also work with you to develop new and custom dishes specifically created for your restaurant? They typically have an innovation and research team that’s readily available to do research and test different menu items to create new and unique dishes for your restaurant alone!
It’s no secret that sous vide prepared foods would make a great addition to any restaurant menu. The first step is to get started today! You won’t regret it.
