OK smart people. After one cook in the books, my question is how do you know how long to cook something for? The chart I used said 1 - 4 hours. I know its trail and error but should I have just gone the longest time?

The cooking time really depends on the thickness of the product being cooked and the cooking temperature. The minimum time is the minimum time it takes to get the entire product (including the center of the product) to the cooking temperature and maintain that temperature for a long enough time to pasteurize (eliminate pathogens) in the entire the product. The maximum amount of time is the total time the product can be cooked/held with minimal degradation of the product. Anything in the middle is fully cooked (meaning pathogens are sufficiently eliminated) and the consistency of the product should be pretty much the same. I personally choose the middle ground. If the chart says 1-4 hours, I plan for 2.5 hours so that gives me the most leeway should anything happen that would move meal time forward or back. Cooking the full 4-hours should not have a significant change in the food compared to cooking it 1 hour.

As to your other note about cooking at 140 and the food came out at 120. That should never happen. The food will come out of the water bath at whatever temperature the water bath is, if the time and temperature chart (and the chart was properly based on the correct thickness of the product being cooked) was used correctly. That said, I have noticed when I cook sous vide, the food seems to cool much quicker because the exterior is not overcooked like cooking on a grill. You do not need to tent meats cooked sous vide, at least I do not, because you do not have the overcooked exterior that the juices from the interior flow back into and everything evens out temperature wise from one side to the other. It is already the same temperature throughout.

I tested my SV machine at 140*, 150*, and 160* and the temp was spot on based on my Thermapen. The only thing I can think is given the thickness and quantity of chops I was cooking I need more time. Oh well I will see how it does moving forward.

The food should be surrounded by water on all sides too, even the bottom. It should not sit on the bottom of the water vessel or along the side. I have a "steamer rack trivet" that sits nicely in the bottom of my stockpot to keep food from touching the bottom, or I use clothes pins to suspend the product in the vacuum sealed bag above the bottom of the stockpot.

I cannot tell from your pic of the tub with rack in it whether there is a divider between each bag.  I can see the rack provides space between the bottom and sides.  I presume it does, but just covering all the bases as I still cannot figure how the chop would drop from 140* to 120* just pulling from the bag and then testing the temp - unless it took 10-20 minutes before temp probing.  Maybe 5*, but 20*?

Yes I have a rack which allows water to flow around the food.

I don't believe the chops ever got to 140*. When I pulled them out I took the temp and they were in the range of 120* - 127*. That is why I was wondering how to determine how long to leave food in the CV. The chart I looked at said 1 - 4 hours.

Where is the picture of the tub with the food in it? I looked through this entire thread and cannot find one.

Thank you. It appears my work has a firewall that blocks all imgur photos I guess. I cannot see them with my computer, although I can see other pictures in the thread like the post with the hinged top cooler. I can see triplebq's pictures on my phone though. I see it now.

So how long does it normally take you all to get a 3/4 inch 12oz Rib Eye tender @ 135°?

IMHO, a choice/prime rib eye should be tender virtually out of the package. If you want it medium rare, sous vide it for about 2 hours at 130°, let it cool a bit then sear by a method of your choice. 

IMHO, a choice/prime rib eye should be tender virtually out of the package. If you want it medium rare, sous vide it for about 2 hours at 130°, let it cool a bit then sear by a method of your choice. 

That's a good plan.

The most difficult thing for me is getting a good smoke flavor and Maillard reaction combined with SV's uniform precise cooking.  I want the best of all three.

I want the best of all three.

To get all three, I season, smoke at 160° to an IT of 115-120°, sous vide, cool, then sear. My better half does not care for heavy smoke flavor so I quit this method a while back.

This was not a well marbled cut.  But at 30 hours, no wonder it was to much like stew meat.  I will get it one of these days.

This was not a well marbled cut.  But at 30 hours, no wonder it was to much like stew meat.  I will get it one of these days.

 This may have been posted, and please if it is not okay to do so, Admins can remove and I understand.

This may help out with some times and temps. Although much of it can be adjusted to your liking once you figure out what you like.

When doing SV think Temp=Doneness and Time=Tenderness/Texture

https://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html

To get all three, I season, smoke at 160° to an IT of 115-120°, sous vide, cool, then sear.

Hugh, you smoked to 115-120° IT and SVd.  Did you vacuum seal the steak immediately after removing it from the smoker?

Did you SV it immediately after sealing?

If you were looking for a Medium-rare steak, at what temperature and for how long would you SV it?

After SVing, you cooled it before searing.  Please provide some details of the cooling process and time and/or IT.

The last step was the sear.  How did you do that?  On a blazing hot pan or griddle or on a medium hot (which takes longer, consequently raising the IT)?

I apologize for being a pain by digging so deep on this, but I've been fooling around with various SV steak methods until I have myself confused.  So I often revert to charcoal hot and fast.

"Did you vacuum seal the steak immediately after removing it from the smoker?
Did you SV it immediately after sealing?"
Yes and yes. I dry any moisture with a paper towel before sealing.

"If you were looking for a Medium-rare steak, at what temperature and for how long would you SV it?"
I sous vide at 130° for 2 hours to insure pasteurization.

"After SVing, you cooled it before searing.  Please provide some details of the cooling process and time and/or IT."
I cool while it is still sealed so measuring IT is not possible, it's sort of a xxxx shoot. If I'm in a hurry, I dunk it in cold water for a minute or two. If not, I just leave it on the counter for a while.

"The last step was the sear.  How did you do that?  On a blazing hot pan or griddle or on a medium hot (which takes longer, consequently raising the IT)?"
My preferred method is to dry and fire up the gasser to 600°+ and do ~ a minute on each side. I do use the thermo-pen to verify. a lot depends on the IT when you start the sear and the degree of sear that you prefer. My next best method is a smoking hot cast iron pan using the same technique. I normally start sear with an IT below 110°.

Gee, thanks, Hugh.  I copied your instructions and filed them for my next steak cook.