This method has become increasingly popular over the years for both restaurants and now home cooks. This fall, the first device ever, designed for the home kitchen was introduced for cooking sous vide. It is called Sous Vide Supreme and retails for around $500.
I mentioned this to a sous chef. His response was a little confused - "why would you need that, why not just put a pot of water on the stove?" While this may seem laughable to and primitive - it is the most practical and simple method of cooking sous vide, which we employ at the restaurant where I work. It is accessible to the home cook with nothing but a kitchen, a stockpot and a clean water supply. I cooked this way for years before even upgrading to a vacuum seal setup. Still, the comment raises an interesting question - why would a home cook want/need something like this? For me, this has been a gradual process of upgrading.
The one greatest disadvantages, is most the sensual gratification of the cooking process is removed. The sounds of meat searing, or pasta simmering, the smell of a chicken roasting and filling the house with the warm oven air are all lost, traded for precision and control. While this is beneficial for restaurants and commercial operations that need to produce large amounts of food consistently, the sociological value of home-cooking and family-togetherness are removed. The process is very sterile and unrewarding up until the point that food is eaten, which on top of that, add potentially hazardous.
However, there a number of great advantages. Cleanup is much easier in general because the plastic bag is later discarded. The only leftover dishes are the ones used for serving and eating. You can heat up a spaghetti sauce in the same water you used to cook the pasta. It won't burn or splatter as in a microwave or require stirring and attention.
The heat levels are relatively low. If you live in a hot climate, or if your home is not air conditioned this can be a great advantage. It does not heat up the house. It requires no attention. You can leave, go to sleep, do your taxes, watch youtube, etc. There is no safety risk in leaving the appliance unattended.
Safety: Sous vide cooking requires more knowledge and care than conventional methods. An unskilled cook could easily create health hazards with perfectly functioning equipment. There is a great deal of controversy surrounding this technique and requires a rigorous bureaucratic process before food prepared in this way can be sold to the public.
That said, this is an examination of the benefits and drawbacks of various methods of preparing food sous vide. The focus is only on the device used to cook and not the sealing method.
First a quick definition. This is not a new method of cooking, but a refinement. The product is sealed under vacuum in a plastic bag and poached in water at a precisely controlled temperature for a specific length of time.
1) ziploc bag, digital thermometer, pot on the stove:
Cost: nothing (probably)
Fill a large pot with cold water. Place the food in a heavy-duty zip-top freezer bag and submerge the bag in the water just to the zip-top. Seal and remove bag to refrigerate until ready to use.
Pros: cheap, easy. Does not require additional equipment or space.
Cons: Lowest level of precision and control. energy costs are likely higher. greater likelihood of the bag breaking. You actually need to be in the house with the stove on.
Personally, I have poached chicken breasts, braised short ribs and pork belly, cooked salmon, steaks and pork chops all with great success using this most basic method. I would not recommend spending any amount of money to cook sous vide without first attempting this method. Is it really worth it to spend hundreds of dollars for what is essentially a marginal cooking technique that has debatable home appeal?
2) Crockpot/Rice cooker, controller method
Cost: $400-$500
Pros: relatively low cost. high degree of control. Does not require human presence or attention - you can leave the house with the machine running.
Cons: consumes great deal of space, requires equipment not normally found in the home and not usable for other purposes. Cumbersome.
This method employs a special device called a temperature controller available through sous vide magic or auber. When connected to a heating element with manual on/off, it can acturately control the temperature of a water bath within 1 degree celcius.
These are intelligent devices that cycle an ordinary rice cooker or crock pot on and off to maintain a consistent temperature. There is no technical knowledge required. The user sets the temperature and a timer and the machine takes care of the rest. The timer will stop the device and sound an audible alarm.
While it will control temperature to 1 degree celcius which is extremely accurate, the setup is itself awkward, space-consuming and cumbersome. Because it uses more than one electrical device, and takes up a great deal of space it almost needs its own table or designated area.
A commercial rice cooker has no other practical use. Eggs and shortribs are the two reasons I wanted to upgrade my pot-on-the-stove setup. I wanted to cook tough cuts of beef for 1.5 days without having to be in the house the entire time. This setup offers a high level of temperature control and accuracy without requiring human attention.
Circulation becomes an issue with this method. Rice cookers are heated from directly below the bath, which creates a natural convection current. These do not require circulation anymore than a pot of water on the stove. While not as accurate as a circulated bath, it will not create hot spots or uneven cooking areas. The crockpot or slow cooker is usually heated through the sides, and does create hot spots and uneven spots. Use with these, requires an additional device to circulate the water and maintain even heating.
3) Sous Vide Supreme
Cost: $400-$500
Pros: Singular device, high level of accuracy.
Cons: new to the market, potentially unsafe for uneducated consumers
This machine seems to do what make-shift sous vide enthusiasts have been attempting for years - to create a more affordable option to cook sous vide without cumbersome setups. I have not used this device and cannot personally attest to any drawbacks or benefits. The size of the bath given on the website is suitable for 2-4 people. Based on tests by Heston Blumenthal, the device maintains a consistent temperature over a long period of time. The contained singular unit makes a more convenient setup. While sous vide cooking may have marginal home appeal, there is no more danger to it than marketing any other obscure kitchen device.
4) Immersion Circulator
Cost: $1,000
Pros: laboratory level of accuracy. Versatility over containment device.
Cons: expensive. motor runs continuously.
If you can spend $1,000 on a cooking device, this one is the ultimate indulgence. Polyscience in illinois, produces the popular devices. Other companies that produce immersion circulators also sell controlled waterbaths, which are similar to the rice-cooker setup. They are not circulated, however maintain a consistent temperature throughout.
The unique advantage over the immersion circulator is it gives you versatility over the containment method. Any container - whether a pot of water, plastic square or wooden box - that will hold water to a depth of 5.5" or more is an acceptable device for sous vide cooking. Because it both heats and circulates the water, the shape and material of the actual bath make no difference. It will maintain a consistent temperature regardless. One disadvantage is the motor and heating element run continously rather than a device that cycles on and off.
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