Earlier this year, Starbucks announced a new menu offering: Sous Vide Egg Bites. They are one of their only gluten free food options and I’ve seen several people raving about them on social media. I tried them while traveling when there were no other decent breakfast options and I’ll give it to Starbucks on the taste… they are good.
Unfortunately, they contain carrageenan and maltodextrin: ingredients I try to avoid. They also cost about $5 (or more in airports), which makes them much pricer than our normal breakfast options. In fact, for our whole family to eat them, we’d have to spend almost $40.00 Instead, I figured out how to make them at home with real food ingredients and a whole batch costs about what one order costs in a coffee shop!
Why Sous Vide Rocks
I’ve been experimenting with Sous Vide cooking for about six months and it has become one of my go-to kitchen gadgets. If you aren’t familiar with it- Sous Vide cooking uses circulating water at a carefully controlled temperature to achieve incredible results. The best steaks, chicken and eggs I’ve ever cooked were cooked in a sous vide.
In the past, this method required a big machine and was most often used in restaurants. Most methods also use plastic bags to submerge the food in water (so I’d never tried it because we avoid plastic if at all possible).
Sous Vide at Home!
Now, thanks to smaller and much less expensive home sous vide immersion machines (like this one that I have), Sous Vide is possible at home! It is still a pretty expensive kitchen gadget, but I asked for it for a gift for a big-ish birthday (me=getting old!) and have used it a lot!
After much experimentation I’ve also found that this recipe is possible (but not quite as good) without a Sous Vide machine and in fact you can do it three ways:
- Mason Jars in Sous Vide– The traditional way with a sous vide machine in a pot of water and small mason jars. This yields the best texture and result. I’ve found that 4 ounce mason jars and 8 ounce mason jars both work.
- Silicone Bags in Sous Vide– With silicone bags (like these) using a sous vide machine and a pot of water. The texture is amazing but the presentation isn’t as pretty. This is the method I use to sous vide most other foods without using plastic. Since Sous Vide is low-temperature cooking, I don’t worry about using the silicone.
- Egg Poaching Cups– By poaching the eggs using egg poaching cups in a skillet of water. This is the fastest method and also the least expensive if you don’t already have a sous vide machine.
Sous Vide Egg Bites
Once you’ve secured one of the three cooking methods above, you’ll also need the ingredients and some patience! Starbucks lists their ingredients online so the recipe was relatively easy to duplicate. I was surprised that the first ingredient was cottage cheese! I tried making these without it, but cottage cheese definitely gave the best flavor and texture. Other ingredients include eggs (obviously), cheese, cream and optional ingredients like bacon, vegetables or other add-ins.
Time Saving Tips:
- Make these with just eggs and cheese and add other flavors as toppings when you re-heat.
- Make a double or tripe batch of these while the Sous Vide is running and keep in the fridge until ready to use. I often make 16-24 to keep in the fridge for several days of breakfasts.
- Use 4 ounce size mason jars for a small breakfast or 8-ounce jars and double the recipe for bigger kids or adults.
Sous Vide Egg Bites Recipe (Low-Carb, Keto, THM-S)
Make the popular Sous Vide Egg Bites at home with higher quality ingredients and save money over the expensive restaurant options. There are endless ways to mix up this recipe and it is a great one to make ahead for breakfasts.
Ingredients
- 12 eggs
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup Gruyere or cheese of choice, grated
- 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika (or any other spices you like)
- 1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce of choice (optional)
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 10 slices of bacon, cooked (optional)
- any cooked vegetables you like (optional)
Instructions
Set the Sous Vide machine to 172 degrees. This is the common temperature for eggs and you can cook almost any egg recipe this way.
Crack the eggs into a blender or food processor and add the cottage cheese, heavy cream, hot sauce and spices.
Blend on medium speed until just blended and smooth. You don't want to add extra air by blending on high.
Use the butter to lightly grease 10 4-ounce mason jars (or five 8-ounce jars). You can also easily double or triple this recipe, just use more jars!
If using bacon and vegetables, place these in the bottoms of the jars. Add the grated cheese to the jars.
Pour the egg mixture into the jars and hand-tighten the lids (do not over-tighten!).
Cook for 50 minutes (If you are planning to re-heat) or one hour if you are planning to eat right away.
Remove from heat and refrigerate right away if not consuming immediately. In theory, these should last at least a week in the fridge because they were cooked at over 140 for over half an hour, but we've never had them last that long without being eaten!
Notes
If making in egg-poaching cups without a sous vide machine, follow the steps to mix the ingredients and assemble in egg poaching cups instead of mason jars. Add these to a skillet of boiling water until eggs are cooked. Do not attempt this method with mason jars, as they will crack!
This recipe is incredibly adaptable and can be made without cheese for those with dairy allergies or who are strict paleo. It is naturally low-carb and keto-friendly. Also, since I've had several readers ask about various recipes, this would be an "S" meal on the Trim Healthy Mama plan.
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Ever tried Sous Vide? Ready to give it a try? Share below!
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