mole roast: faking sous-vide

2015-11-29

I do not find store-bought roast beef appetizing at all with all the sugar, artificial colorings and other chemicals they put in there nowadays. As the saying goes: I you want it done right, you’ll have to do it yourself.

Faking sous-vide with Mexican Chocolate Mole Sauce is one of my experiments that worked out very well. Instead of sous-vide, you can use a mole marinade (Pic2+3) au bain-marie = ‘in a water bath.’ This is a less technological method than Sous-vide Cooking, but it works just as good.

The mole sauce covers and seals the meat just like the plastic bag does and also equalizes heat distribution during the cooking. Unlike sous-vide, you can check the internal temperature of the meat.

You could also do this stovetop (Pic4) over lowest heat as long as the roast doesn't touch the bottom of the cooking pot. A few spoons underneath the roast should do the trick.

Take note that the finished roast has the same bright red color throughout. Unlike an oven roast, this roast has no dry or overcooked edges. The bright red color is normal for low-temperature cooking, but rest assured that the meat is fully cooked.

Chocolate mole has the advantages that it has the correct brown color for a roast; and that it does not overpower the meat flavor. I assume you can do the same with other sauces, but I have not tried any specifically for this purpose.

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need for 6-8 servings:

Beef roast, about 3 lbs.
1 jar Doña Maria mole (8.25 oz.)
S&P, additional spices as desired
Optional:
- 2 nesting pots for au Bain Marie stovetop cooking,
  OR a slow-cooker with accurate thermostat
- a meat thermometer
- ginger for the marinade (Pic3)

Pic1: fake sous-vide roast

Directions

Pic2: mole paste
Pic3: ginger mole marinade
Pic4: for stovetop cooking

Optional:

Sear the roast on all sides in a hot pan.

Sous-vide: no mole necessary, see The Unroasted Roast

You can always add mole in the cooking bag.

Au bain-marie:

Marinate the roast in a mole solution overnight. (Pic3)
The marinade will not penetrate the inside of the roast, but it flavors and colors the outside.
A spice rub will just dissolve away in the sauce. This doesn't.
Make enough to cover the entire roast in the inner au bain-marie pot.
To make the mole sauce:
- Heat some water,
- Add mole paste 1 tsp. at a time and use a spoon to dissolve the pieces.
- The mole sauce will thicken when it boils.

Place the cooking bag or pot on a grill inside the slow-cooker. (Pic4)

Pic5: au bain-marie
Pic6: the finished roast
Pic7: the meal

Fill the slow-cooker with water. Be careful not swamp the au bain-marie pot.
Place a lid on the au bain-marie pot to lock in the heat.
Heat the water in the slow-cooker to 132 ºF.
Use a food thermometer to check occasionally because the actual water temperature may differ from the thermostat indicator.
When the target temperature has been reached, cook for 3 to 4 hours.
Au bain-marie takes longer because the inner pot with the mole needs to be warmed up as well.
Low-temperature cooking timing does not have to be very precise for larger pieces. As long as the water bath is kept at the correct temperature, you won’t overcook the meat.
Remove the roast and rest it for 10 minutes before slicing. (Pic5)
The mole sauce can still be used as a sauce in this or another recipe.
Optional:
- Briefly sear the roast in a hot pan again for added crispness.
Slice, serve and enjoy. (Pic1)

Serving suggestion:

Thin-sliced roast beef sandwiches are delicious.

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more and avemariasongs.org

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more
and avemariasongs.org