Sous-vide (pronounced “soo veed”) is a cooking method where food is vacuum-sealed in a bag, then placed in a temperature-controlled bath for long periods of time -- up to 48hours, in some cases.

The relatively low temperature of the bath (compared to grilling or roasting) cooks the meat slowly and evenly, thus ensuring that moisture is retained. This result in succulent and tender food.

But one food blogger, Rubbish Eat Rubbish Grow, thinks "it’s just plain lazy" for chefs to use this method in a restaurant.

He lists the following reasons in a recent blog post:

1) It is something a home cook can easily achieve at home

For around US$100, one can own a sous vide machine. Put the food in it in the morning, and you can have a meal ready by evening.

For him, it boils down (ha) to this: "The role of a professional chef is to create something that an amateur home cook could not do. We cannot cure ourselves so we go to a doctor. We cannot write a will so we go to a lawyer."

2) It reflects a lack of culinary skills on the chef's part

"Tell me: how can chefs demonstrate good cooking techniques when all they have to do is put food in a water bath, something a 5 year-old can be instructed to do?"

3) It also shows a lack of human touch

"What makes cooks irreplaceable by machines is the human touch behind the food, that there is a possibility that the dish may fail and turn out badly."

But besides replacing the chef, the blogger also argues that the method has its limitations:

4) The difference between "smooth" and "tender" textures

Sous-vide proteins cannot strictly be called "tender", because the sinews have been broken down. Instead, a better term would be "smooth", as it glides on the tongue.

Tender meat, on the other hand, creates friction against the tongue -- something that a professional chef should know and care about.

5) Not everything can be "sous-vide"-ed

But he's seen some chefs do it.

However, he ends by conceding that chefs can still use the sous-vide method -- but it should only be employed as an enhancer, and not out of convenience. It's a last resort, when all other options have been exhausted.

Responses

A heated argument in the blog's comment section soon took place.

While there may be certain valid points raised in the blog post, clearly not everyone agrees.

One response even called his views "a crock of shit", and points out that the food blogger lacks an understanding of the modern kitchen:

While others begged to differ: 

This user probably provides a more balanced view of the issue: If a proper chamber vacuum is not a common product at home, then patrons can decide for themselves if they wish to dine at a particular place or not.

You can read RubbishEatRubbishGrow's full post here.

Not the first spat

It is not the first time Rubbish Eat Rubbish Grow has had one stuck back at him.

Previously, in April 2016, the blogger gave a scathing review of some pastries from Tiong Bahru Bakery.

This drew a response from an F&B practitioner who said that Rubbish Eat Rubbish Grow reviews are crass and unwarranted.

At that time, the debate on the role of food blogging came to a head as two months before the spat, a veteran chef Jimmy Chok openly denounced food bloggers by saying that he hates them.

Here's an article you should check out next:

We cycled through 700 years of Singapore history just to write this article

Related articles:

About time F&B practitioners in S’pore take the fight back to food bloggers

Veteran S’porean chef-restaurateur Jimmy Chok openly declares he hates food bloggers

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