Anova Sous Vide

[Type R Tom]

I’ve just ordered form the US an Anova Precision Cooker - Sous Vide Immersion Circulator. I’ve been going back and forth on ordering one for a while now as it's not cheap at £170ish but had my birthday a couple of weeks ago so I asked for money this year and put it all together.

Anyway, if people are interested I’ll post up a bit of a review once it arrives (hopefully this week) with a few pictures and the obligatory steak cross section.

Anyone else got one?

[Jakarta]

Ordered mine a couple of weeks ago and a mate is bringing it over from the UK next week to coincide with me arriving back home.
We shall have some interesting pics to follow between us I'm sure.
They've just announced the wifi version. Ho-Hum
Get yourself over to SeriousEats for some extra special ideas.

[Type R Tom]

Jakarta said:

Ordered mine a couple of weeks ago and a mate is bringing it over from the UK next week to coincide with me arriving back home.
We shall have some interesting pics to follow between us I'm sure.
They've just announced the wifi version. Ho-Hum
Get yourself over to SeriousEats for some extra special ideas.

I ordered mine about 6 hours before the WIFI one was announced. Was particularly annoyed with the $50 discount but didn't want to wait until October for it and I'm not sure I'd use the WIFI much anyway, can't see me using it much when I'm out the house for long periods.

[Jakarta]

I wouldn't be entirely comfortable leaving bagged food in a pot of water at room temperature for the day on the premise of setting it to cook an hour or so before you get home. Surely raw food sitting at that temperature can't be that good for you?

[Type R Tom]

Jakarta said:

I wouldn't be entirely comfortable leaving bagged food in a pot of water at room temperature for the day on the premise of setting it to cook an hour or so before you get home. Surely raw food sitting at that temperature can't be that good for you?

Someone made that point on Facebook; there advice was to fill the container with ice/freeze the meat etc. so it will keep it cool during the day until the cooker switches on.

[devnull]

A colleague of mine has a sous vide - their first few attempts was essentially controlled decomposition of meat.

[Pferdestarke]

I'd certainly be interested to hear your findings. I've only used a water bath with no circulation so fairly primitive by comparison.

Good luck!

[C0ffin D0dger]

My desire for all kitchen gadgetry has led me to "want" one of these but in reality I don't know home much or how often I'd actually use it or whether it would end up gathering dust in a cupboard.

I like the idea of doing steaks Sous Vide but in reality only really have steak at home every couple of months. Not too sure how often I'd use it for other stuff. The wife doesn't like fish which is the other thing it does very well.

Be interested to hear how you get on though

[21TonyK]

C0ffin D0dger said:

My desire for all kitchen gadgetry has led me to "want" one of these but in reality I don't know home much or how often I'd actually use it or whether it would end up gathering dust in a cupboard.

I like the idea of doing steaks Sous Vide but in reality only really have steak at home every couple of months. Not too sure how often I'd use it for other stuff. The wife doesn't like fish which is the other thing it does very well.

Be interested to hear how you get on though

Sous vide steak isn't as fantastic as it sounds unless you are doing something like a large fillet or porterhouse but for poultry and clever things like candied fruits or confit its fantastic with the added bonus of long term cooked storage.

When I was using sous vide commercially it was a massive bonus but I admit for home use I don't use it that much although I may do a big batch of confit duck when I next get a chance

[F-Stop Junkie]

I went with the Codlo which I like, but it does have a few areas that could do with improvement.

Be careful though, PH doesn't like sous vide. I'm sure people will be along soon to point out how it's stupid/pricey/can be done quicker in a pan. Me though, I'm a fan. Sous vide pulled pork is very, very good.

[Type R Tom]

So Saturday morning my parcel from the US arrived.






Opened it up, very simple packaging with the unit, clamp and basic instructions inside.

So Saturday night after about 7 beers while watching the rugby and football I fired it up attached to the pot from a slow cooker to test a couple of bog standard supermarket ribeye steaks. Sealed them in a zip lock bag using the “immersion” technique which worked well enough and dumped them in at 59c for 40 minutes.



After I seared them in the pan we tucked in. Firstly the steaks were extremely tender with a uniformed colour though out, the one pictured was thinner than the other and a little over cooked to my liking but extremely soft. Unfortunately due to the poor quality of meat they were a little lacking in taste but the tenderness was excellent.




Now my first go was a bit poor, mainly because the meat was a bit crap and I was a little drunk but as I type this a couple of pork chops are in as I write this so will report back in a bit.

[21TonyK]

Lamb rumps cooked really well sous vide. Trim and portion then sear them off and pack with herbs and seasoning. Cook at 55 for 45 minutes and chill until you want them. When you are hungry finish them off fat side down in a low pan and rest in a warm oven.

Perfect medium rare lamb.

[scottri]

I like sous vide, some of the best stuff i have had is salmon and chicken, you just can't get the same results using other methods IMO.

A steak is good too, one from a few nights ago...133F for 45mins or so.

[Du1point8]

New toy arrived, got it when it was pre order and $50 off making it something like £130 or so, but it is the wifi one so I can now cook something from the office.

SWMBO doesnt yet know I got it and hates me buying more kitchen toys to play with, this despite the fact that she agrees that she enjoys the fact I cook and to a reasonable standard... first task is to cook a rib eye for tea tonight!!

[Type R Tom]

Nice one, been meaning to update this thread for a while but mine gets a lot of use. Pork chops tonight!

I'd recommend a vacuum sealer too in the future but the displacement trick can work for a while.

[Du1point8]

Type R Tom said:

Nice one, been meaning to update this thread for a while but mine gets a lot of use. Pork chops tonight!

I'd recommend a vacuum sealer too in the future but the displacement trick can work for a while.

shhh... thats the next thing that will appear in the kitchen magically, suppose I will negotiate and lose the george foreman in the process, this despite using it every now and again.

[Type R Tom]

Du1point8 said:

shhh... thats the next thing that will appear in the kitchen magically, suppose I will negotiate and lose the george foreman in the process, this despite using it every now and again.

I have exactly the same problem with my OH, asked for a food processor for Christmas which I already have then won a stand mixer in a raffle. Kitchen is full!

[Du1point8]

Well Im a convert... Sous vide steak is the way forward.

cooked for 45mins on 124F and then quickly seared in griddle.

Turned a good ribeye into an amazing ribeye.



Should have let it rest longer, but was hungry.

[David A]

Du1point8 said:

New toy arrived, got it when it was pre order and $50 off making it something like £130 or so, but it is the wifi one so I can now cook something from the office.

SWMBO doesnt yet know I got it and hates me buying more kitchen toys to play with, this despite the fact that she agrees that she enjoys the fact I cook and to a reasonable standard... first task is to cook a rib eye for tea tonight!!

Whats the difference to the wifi one vs the non wifi one? Other than not being in stock in 240V

Is there a UK stockist for these yet?

[Merp]

I follow chefsteps and they have just released Joule, which seems to be a very similar device, but comes with a chefsteps supported app.

https://www.chefsteps.com/joule