My Reveo review

SmokinMoe · March 24, 2005, 02:00:45 PM

It arrived with great packaging. It is impressive to look at for sure.
I cleaned it up, read the manual and got ready to do some steaks in it. I had a little under 3 lbs of Ribeye Steak, so I added 2/3 cups marinade. * let me put the star there so that I don't get ahead of myself.
I put the steaks in, marinade in and put it on for 20 minutes. It wasn't too loud for the few seconds it takes to get a vacuum, comparible to a foodsaver, and the tumbling was very quiet. I thought the barrel was going to roll of the tumbler and I kept pushing it back. I finally realized that it was where it should be-so be aware that it doesn't sit firmly against the machine on the left. There will be a 1/2 inch gap with the rim right at the right edge of the machine. It DID NOT come off, so don't get excited about that.
RIBEYE is NOT a good thing to put in it. Where there is fat, the meat separated and it looked like I played tug-o-war with it. I did see the meat pulled to the point where I could see open pores in the steak when it was up against the sides of the barrel. So, it did do what it said.
Now, two things that I did wrong and so, my review is neutral right now. I might have not had enough marinade, I should have had about 1 cup (steaks were a little less than 3 lbs and it says 1/3 cup per pound. I only added 2/3 cups marinade) I also put the steaks on before the grill was at 300 degrees or more and didn't have it hot enough to sear the meat.
My husband said the steak was great, but I did not taste the marinade at all. I use this marinade quite frequently on chicken for fajitas and love the taste. I couldn't taste it. It may be because the steak ended up cooking too long since the temp. was low to begin with.

That said, I am not ready to give up. I am trying chicken tonight and will be careful with the amount of marinade. I will also use a marinade in the bottle so that I can't say it was MY marinade that wasn't working. I think that because of the two things I mentioned, I don't have much room to make a decision.
Being honest here and will post how my chicken came out.

nsxbill · March 25, 2005, 06:02:27 AM

Try this Moe,

3 or 4 Sirloin Strips

1/4 cup EEOO
1/2 cup Soy Sauce
2 Tbsp. Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 or 2 Tbsp. Pappy's Seasoning

Steaks come out a little sticky...

Most excellent grilled. I start the steaks about 550° 4 min each side then another turn to get the grill marks 2 min and turn for another 2 min. Results medium, and excellent!

Hope your next effort comes out better. Everyone that has tried thus far are quite pleased.

Bill

There is room on earth for all God's creatures....on my plate next to the mashed potatoes.

Oldman · March 25, 2005, 03:29:25 PM

Moe,
I agree about the Sirloin. Rib-eye by its very nature cannot be forced marinaded as you now know. Nor can a fillet. A strip steak is ok.

IMO if you want to marinate a Rib-eye is has to be a stand-up marination. When doing Sirloin you might want to do a control test of a force and a stand-up marination. This will help you adjust the time of the force so the end results are the same. Once your tumble is over the time adjustment IMO would be leaving the steak under a vacuum without the force action. Try mixing equal part of teriyaki sauce, white vermont and a fair amount of fresh ginger for your marinade. The stand-up time on this should be about 2 to 2-1/2 hours for a Sirlon that is 3/4 of an inch to 1 inch thick. Complete cover the steak. When you get to the end of this time-line then do your force marination. Then cook both steaks together and that will be your base line for adjustment. If you like this marinade you can freeze what is left over and re-use it.

Force marination does speed up things, however unless the item is in strips you still have to allow for some dwell time.

Olds

http://rminor.com

JJC · March 26, 2005, 01:57:20 AM

Hi Moe,

I did have excellent luck with both shell sirloin and Porterhouse steak with the Reveo, although the Porterhouse did separate a bit. I used a 2:1 combo of BBQ sauce:cheap bourbon on the shell sirloin, and the same liquid with 2T of Dizzy Pig Cow-Lick Steak Rub (BigSmoker sells it) mixed in for the Porterhouse. Both were superb, with marinade flavor throughout, yet the shell sirloin was definitely more "marinated". My wife and younger son (21) both thought they were the best steaks they have had, and my wife generally doesn't like marinades. So, keep on experimenting--I'm sure you'll like the unit.

BTW, you might want to give Bigsmokers tri-tip recipe a try using the Reveo . . . Jeff--can you provide Moe with the details (I don't have my smoker info handy right now)? I think that would really show off the value of the Reveo (marinating and tenderizing). I've done it with the Dizzy Pig Red-Eye Express (a coffee-infused rub) without the Reveo and it was excellent. I think Jeff did it with the Reveo and provided some pics, and he said it came out great. HTH

John
Newton MA

ChefBill · March 26, 2005, 02:46:57 AM

I've been marinating my RibEyes this way for years and it turns out great. I sprinkle both sides with Lemon Pepper and place in a "ZipLoc" freezer bag. I then mix 1/4 cup Dale's Marinade & 1/4 cup Olive Oil + 1oz. Vodka.. The Alcohol acts as a tenderizer and also will kill any bacteria in the 40-140º range.
I pour the liquid into the bag with the steaks and massage in. Squeeze as much air as possible out and put in the fridge for a couple of hours. I remove them about an hour before they hit the grill and let them reach room temp.
Preheat grill to about 550-600º and then they are sealed as soon as they hit the heat. Then just grill according to your personal taste.

ChefBill
If you can eat it, you can smoke it.

BigSmoker · March 26, 2005, 03:34:05 PM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by JJC

BTW, you might want to give Bigsmokers tri-tip recipe a try using the Reveo . . . Jeff--can you provide Moe with the details (I don't have my smoker info handy right now)? I think that would really show off the value of the Reveo (marinating and tenderizing). I've done it with the Dizzy Pig Red-Eye Express (a coffee-infused rub) without the Reveo and it was excellent. I think Jeff did it with the Reveo and provided some pics, and he said it came out great. HTH
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Tri-Tip[:D]

Jeff

Some say BBQ is in your blood, if thats true my blood must be BBQ sauce.

Habanero Smoker · March 26, 2005, 10:47:53 PM

I used my tumbler for the first time, and used it to brine a 4.5# chicken. I used 1 1/3 cups of brine, and tumbled for 20 minutes. The brine appears to have fully penetrated. The weight of the chicken increased approximately 9% after the process was completed. There was plenty of brine left, so I'm thinking I can cut back on the brine next time. I took the chicken out of the smoker about two hours ago, and the breast is tender and moist. I also brined 4#'s of turkey legs (I forgot to weight it after tumbling), with great results.

Thanks Bill. I don't think I would have purchased this without the discount that you generously offered. Being able to brine a chicken in 20 minutes, sure frees up a lot of refrigerator space.

nsxbill · April 05, 2005, 01:56:57 AM

Recipe for Success:

On Saturday, our vacuum marinated steaks were absolutely obscene:

4 Sirloin Strips 12oz ea about 1.25" Thick
3 large cloves of garlic crushed
4 tsp. Montreal® Steak Seasoning McCormicks®
1/2 cup EEOO
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp. Parsley Flakes

Tumble 20 Minutes. All the liquid into the steaks with sticky residue on meat surface.

Grill to your degree of doneness...I recommend rare...so tender you barely need a knife.

One bite & prepare for compliments.

If you want to make your own Montreal Steak Seasoning, here is the recipe I use when I run out and too lazy to pick it up at Costco.

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon coarsely-ground coriander seed
1 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt = (like kosher or sea salt)
1 teaspoon dill weed
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper (I like it a little coarse)

Makes about 1/8 of a cup

Bill

There is room on earth for all God's creatures....on my plate next to the mashed potatoes.