Pink Turkey

First time trying to do a turkey breast, the plan that I executed was:

8 hours at 131, seared the turkey first per the Chefs Steps directions. I checked the water temp and it was fine all the way through. I then pulled it from the cook, and plunged into an ice bath for 45 minutes to drop the temperature so that I can warm it up and finish it tomorrow.

When I pulled it out of the ice bath it looked very pink. I sliced it, and the texture was amazing, it tastes delicious it's salty but the big issue was the color.

Deviation from the recipe - I over salted, 1.5% vs 10% - so it's very salty. Maybe I can fix that?

The big question is, why is it so pink, is it cooked, is it safe? What can I do to fix if it is undercooked? (Sure I can cook it again, but is 131 correct?)

Here is a video:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/bhnn1axzf1qilma/2016-11-24 02.18.39.mp4?dl=0

Here is a still frame:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6cy20fq7lik8i9s/2016-11-23 18.16.51.jpg?dl=0

I am in the process of cooking the legs, temp is 149 for 24 hours. I fixed the salting in this one.

Here is a before pic of that - https://www.dropbox.com/s/xg9ujoqwpdchi4o/2016-11-23 17.33.05.jpg?dl=0

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Comments

Chris_Young_80640

So the pink color is most likely the result of the long cooking time at a lower temperature, which causes the natural iron in the meat to bind with a protein known as hemochrome, and the result is the pink pigment. Totally safe, and not uncommon. The high level of salt would have made this reaction more pronounced because the excess salt would have denatured more of the hemochrome proteins, making them more reactive. [TL;DR pink poultry isn't unsafe]

You can soak the cooked turkey in fresh water to draw salt out, basically reversing the brine. But, you'll tend to make the turkey watery, while also making it less salty. This is analogous to the tradition of soaking salt pork or salt cod to make it less salty.

Brad_Slavin_321483

Chris, thanks for the TL;DR - I am sure to see you on /r/sousvide some time. I have just finished the water bath and will be heating it again tomorrow for a few hours. Thanks for the science on hemocrhome and the extra salt!

meyer8863

Thanks for the post, particularly the video and pictures. In a previous thread, there were similar concerns about the pink. While it is certainly safe, many of us have guests that won't even "risk it". The consensus by some who are much more experienced in sous vide than myself decided that they would retherm at a higher temperature than the cook temp, to diminish the pink. 140 F, specifically. Happy Thanksgiving!

Brad_Slavin_321483

Michael, I think you summed it up appropriately - its about the guests... To many fears about uncooked poultry. I am going to 140 for a few hours tomorrow. Thanks for the feedback.

Chris_Young_80640

So the color, once formed the pigment that makes it pink is pretty stable. Cooking at 140, or maybe even a bit hotter (142+) will help a little bit. But exposure to oxygen will do even more to help the color fade, so slicing the meat and giving it a bit of time to soak in the air should also help the pink color fade.