Boil in the Bag Reheating

[Libohunden]

I had some pulled pork in my freezer that I had vacuum sealed a couple months back with the thought that I would try the boil in the bag approach. I had never tried it until tonight.

I brought the water to a slow boil then reduced the heat and dropped my bag of goodness inside. I flipped it back and forth for a good 15-20 min until I thought surely I had to be done reheating. Cut the bag open to find that it was still mostly frozen. I took off most of the outer layer that had already warmed up then held the bag while the meat continued to take a hot bath.  This time I turned up the heat so that there was a slow simmer. About 5 minutes into that, the bottom seal of the bag became unsealed and all my delicious pulled pork fell straight into the boiling water. After a few quick obscenities, I grabbed a colander and drained the water to save the pork. Surprisingly, the center was still frozen. The pork that ended up in the boil was now kind of bland. But figured I could throw some sauce on it to make it acceptable. Worked out okay for pulled pork tacos.

Not sure what I did wrong with this boil in the bag thing. Has anyone else had this experience?  It has also got me wondering if the foodsaver bags are bpa free or are they leaching into the meat during the boil.

I thing I may just go back to the old school way of defrosting in the fridge over a couple days and warming in the microwave.

 

[Texan in Tulsa]

Libo........that sounds like a case of bad luck all the way around.

I have never tried to boil anything in my Foodsaver bags and am surprised that the bag seal gave out. Were these pre-made bags or did you make that bottom seal with the machine? It melts the bag to make the seam, so I guess it's possible if you reach that temperature when reheating that the bag could fail in any place with a melt through.

 

[Libohunden]

This bag was from a roll that I had sealed both ends of the bag. 

It was a case of bad luck.  But the good news is that it is still edible so not all is lost!

 

[DivotMaker]

Only one answer:  HEAT!  FoodSaver bags are not "boil-in" bags, but they can withstand heat.  When you reheat, using this method, bring the water to a point just below a boil (high simmer); do not let it start to boil!  If it does, turn the heat down to a simmer and let the water cool until it stops.  I like to place a baking rack, or something similar, in the bottom of the pan to keep the plastic off the bottom.  Let the bags simmer for a few hours, and your results will be much different!  When I seal fresh pulled pork, or ribs, I triple-seal the bags in case I reheat with the simmering water method.  Never had any blowouts doing it this way.

 

[Libohunden]

Tony, won't a few hours re-cook the meat too much?  How do you determine when it's done?

 

[Limey]

I always use an Adnova sous vide circulator to reheat. That way you can select the precise temperature you want with no problems of over cooking or blowouts. Works great for me.

 

[DivotMaker]

If it's a low simmer, you won't go past around 170 or so.  If you've thawed your meat in the fridge for a couple of days, about an hour is fine.  I only said 2-3 hours because you were starting with frozen meat.  Got to allow for the thaw time before it starts heating.  Of course, the very best way to reheat is a sous vide heater, like the Anova!

 

[NDKoze]

I always unthaw mine before reheating in the bag and have never had a problem and I do this ALL the time.
I bet I have 5-6 bags of PP in the freezer right now.

One of my new favorites that I started doing a couple of years ago is adding PP to spaghetti sauce with about 1/3-1/2 cup of BBQ sauce to make some killer Spaghetti sauce.

 

[RG 2.0]

I've reheated frozen stuff in FS bags for years and never had a blowout. I've also never done a rolling boil but more than a simmer, no issues. I've grilled chicken breasts in bulk and freeze them individually and take them frozen and nuke'em for about 2 minutes (I go cut a slit to vent) and that works good too.

 

[RG 2.0]

I always unthaw mine before reheating in the bag and have never had a problem and I do this ALL the time.
I bet I have 5-6 bags of PP in the freezer right now.

One of my new favorites that I started doing a couple of years ago is adding PP to spaghetti sauce with about 1/3-1/2 cup of BBQ sauce to make some killer Spaghetti sauce.

Oooooh!! I like the sound of that! Recipe please!!

 

[NDKoze]

I think I originally saw this on a Food Network Show (can't remember which), but SuperDave saw the same show and wrote it up with this thread:
http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=2732

I don't use nearly as much BBQ sauce as he does though. I just pour the sauce and stir until it tastes right. But, I think it usually ends up being about 1/3-3/4 cup depending on how much sauce I have. I usually use a homemade sauce that I make in large batches and divide and freeze. This one I really don't have a recipe for as I just throw things in until it tastes right. But, I have also used store bought (don't tell anyone) in a  pinch and was really good too.

 

[Libohunden]

Greg, that does sound damn good!  I'll have to give that a try.

I guess I should have thawed the PP first. I'll give it another shot. It's about time for me to smoke a few pork butts anyway.

 

[SconnieQ]

+1 on the Anova for reheating. Nothing easier or better. Expensive gadget just for reheating, but you can actually use it for sous vide too!

 

[Libohunden]

Greg had me thinking with his pulled pork spaghetti recipe.  Last night my wife was cooking yakisoba but had to take care of something so I took over. Realizing that she didn't have any meat in it, I looked in the fridge and saw the rest of the pulled pork I had reheated earlier this week. I dumped the remainder in and it turned out to be a very interesting and delicious combination!  Heck, what doesn't taste better with pulled pork in it?  LOL

 

[NDKoze]

That looks awesome! I agree, pulled pork can make anything taste better.