Food - Drink
The Complicated History Of Sous Vide
By EMILY BOYETTE
To cook using the sous vide method, you seal raw food — along with any marinades, sauces, herbs, or spices — in an airtight pouch, submerge it in temperature-controlled water, and cook it low and slow without ever letting the water boil. Sous vide actually preserves food for longer, making it super simple to try at home.
In 1968, Col. Ambrose McGuckian, while working for W.R. Grace created the water-bath cooking method to boost the taste of food and extend its shelf life, naming it the “A.G.S. system.” McGuckian found that this method would not only prevent overcooking, but would also pasteurize and sterilize the food.
However, in the mid-1970s, two French chefs, Bruno Goussalt and George Pralus, each developed a version of sous vide with separate goals in mind. The two eventually partnered up and were known as the "fathers of sous vide." They later on teamed up with Cryovac to finalize the invention.
As it turns out, Cryovac was a division of W. R. Grace, and they claimed ownership of the A.G.S system due to McGuckian being hired as a contractor for them during development. With Cryovac now being owned by Sealed Air, McGuckian is sadly all but forgotten, when in reality, he should be mentioned alongside Goussalt and Pralus.