moisture as you cut it It practically oozes juices as you chew Equally stunning results can be achieved with pork, which will submit to your fork like butter With some foods, the final serving temperature you’re after is actually below the level at which bacteria begin to be actively killed off Rare salmon, or steak, is around 120°F, for example For foods like these, you must be very careful not to let them sit for too long To be safe, I don’t hold my medium-rare steaks or salmon in the cooler any longer than hours After that, dinner becomes a game of Russian roulette And never, ever cook food in the cooler, let it cool, and reheat it This is absolutely inviting illness or worse With that somewhat dry lesson out of the way, let’s move on to the actual techniques—the fun part COOKING IN YOUR COOLER These recipes require an accurate thermometer as well as a beer cooler with at least a 2.5-gallon capacity and a tightfitting lid Some coolers retain heat better than others Heat retention can be further improved by draping several towels over the cooler during cooking Leaving it in a warm spot also helps—I leave mine in direct sunlight on a warm day or in a warm corner of the kitchen indoors Here are the basic steps for cooking in your cooler: Season the food generously on all sides with salt and pepper Place in a single layer in gallon-sized zipperlock freezer bags along with any aromatics or rub Squeeze out as much air from the bags as possible with your hands and close them, leaving inch unsealed (See photos here.) Heat at least gallons of water to the designated temperature, using an instant-read thermometer to ensure accuracy (the hot water from your tap may be hot enough, without having to heat it on the stovetop) Pour the water into the cooler One at a time, slowly submerge each bag of food in the water until only the unsealed edge is exposed Any remaining air should have been forced out of the bag as it was submerged Seal the bag completely Close the cooler, drape it with a few towels, and set it in a warm spot for the specified cooking time, checking the temperature of the water every 30 minutes or so and topping it up with boiling water as necessary to maintain it at within 3 or 4 degrees of the desired final temperature (with a very good cooler, this may be unnecessary) Remove the food from the bags and sear in hot fat, on a grill, or with a blowtorch to trigger the Maillard reaction and add textural contrast to the food SEARING A s I mentioned earlier, sous-vide cooking is deficient in one key aspect: it doesn’t brown your meat The browning reactions that give your meat ... hands and close them, leaving inch unsealed (See photos here .) Heat at least gallons of water to the designated temperature, using an instant-read thermometer to ensure accuracy (the hot water... hot enough, without having to heat it on the stovetop) Pour the water into the cooler One at a time, slowly submerge each bag of food in the water until only the unsealed edge is exposed Any remaining... of the bag as it was submerged Seal the bag completely Close the cooler, drape it with a few towels, and set it in a warm spot for the specified cooking time, checking the temperature of the