Top Sous Vide Equipment - What Should I Look At?

TedW

TedW

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Despite my initial inclinations, I'm considering cooking in plastic. Lol. Polyethylene is pretty stable stuff. And there's health / taste benefits to consider.

But what system to look at? If I were to go down this road, I'd want some size / volume to handle whatever.

I'm grateful for any opinions on brands / quality.

Thank you
 
Anova makes a nice unit with WiFi and is of solid quality (I've got one.) I also have an Auber controller that I can use to run a bain marie if I want to do something big. Actually, I think I can control up to a 2000w element with that, so I can probably use a bathtub if I wanted!
 
Thank you Sleebus. I'm ignorant to all of this, but does the Anova unit have a volume max that it can handle on its own? I have a 12 quart stockpot and also a tall 38 quart stockpot. I could wrap these in towels to insulate.

I'm not sure of the role of that Auber? It is used with the Anova?

Thanks very much.
 
TedW said:
Thank you Sleebus. I'm ignorant to all of this, but does the Anova unit have a volume max that it can handle on its own? I have a 12 quart stockpot and also a tall 38 quart stockpot. I could wrap these in towels to insulate.

I'm not sure of the role of that Auber? It is used with the Anova?

Thanks very much.
Click to expand...

I use my anova in this stock pot with no issue at all.
 
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I have one of the original Anova One circulators and I started having an issue with it last week after owning it for 2.5 years. I contacted Anova about the issue and they e-mailed me a FedEx label to send it back to them and are sending me a refurbished unit once they receive shipping confirmation that it's on the way back to them.

Mind you this is all for a unit with a one year warranty. Great customer service if you ask me.
 
I have a couple of these that I use with 2 Anova units. Works well and can hold a bit, I'm sure you could go bigger but don't remember the max Anova says it will work at max.
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I just had one Anova BT run a cheap 65q cooler with the breasts of 3 turkeys in it at 147. Took awhile to get to temp, but held flawless once there.

Ive seen people run multiple anova's on a cooler for big loads. With how cheap they are now on sales, ordering 2 isn't ridiculous as you can also run 2 separate pots/vessels

99% of my sous vide is just using a stock pot on a wire rack on the counter. The need for special containers or insulation is overstated
 
TedW said:
Thank you Sleebus. I'm ignorant to all of this, but does the Anova unit have a volume max that it can handle on its own? I have a 12 quart stockpot and also a tall 38 quart stockpot. I could wrap these in towels to insulate.

I'm not sure of the role of that Auber? It is used with the Anova?

Thanks very much.
Click to expand...

The Anova is rated up to 5.8 gallons of volume. I'm sure you could go above that if you use an insulated container such as a cooler, but 5.8g is quite a lot. Using a towel to insulate will definitely help with energy consumption.

The Auber sous-vide controller is an external controller than can be used to control anything that has a heating element. It is not used with the Anova, it's just a separate controller. This is the one I have:

http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=13&products_id=44

I bought that because it was dual voltage and we were living in a foreign country at the time. Main reason for geting it was it would be extremely versatile in terms of what I could use it with. Now that we're back in the states, it's on the shelf because the Anova is much easier to handle. This was also at a time when circulating sous vide controllers were around $400, and this was a cheap way to get a sous vide machine capable of large cooks.
 
How important is the circulation if thoroughly insulated? I ask because if I can get away without circulation, I'd be inclined to get a single Induction heating element that I can plug in, and get the Auber. Maybe?

And maybe I'm over-thinking this
 
I guess the other half of the equation is whether to vacuum seal. I see many don't vacuum seal or seal more than a baggie
 
In for the responses. I am thinking about trying out the sous vide craze.
 
TedW said:
How important is the circulation if thoroughly insulated? I ask because if I can get away without circulation, I'd be inclined to get a single Induction heating element that I can plug in, and get the Auber. Maybe?

And maybe I'm over-thinking this
Click to expand...

Circulation is critical
 
TedW said:
How important is the circulation if thoroughly insulated? I ask because if I can get away without circulation, I'd be inclined to get a single Induction heating element that I can plug in, and get the Auber. Maybe?

And maybe I'm over-thinking this
Click to expand...

Personally, I'd just get the Anova. The WiFi feature is nice as you can monitor your cook on your phone from anywhere, which is pretty handy. I'd only get the Auber if you needed dual voltage OR were planning some HUGE cooks...like multiple briskets or something, and then you'd want some sort of circulation so you ensure your water bath temperature is consistent.

The Johnson controls gizmo you list likely is not a PID controller and wouldn't keep the temp as tightly controlled. Just not the right application for that device in my opinion.

TedW said:
I guess the other half of the equation is whether to vacuum seal. I see many don't vacuum seal or seal more than a baggie
Click to expand...

I would vacuum seal. Baggie if you've got nothing else, but a tight seal will help ensure that you get even cooking. If there's any air in there, you won't get as efficient heat transfer in that area and worst of all, it'll make the bag float which really is a problem. Besides, the vacuum sealer will come in handy for the freezer. We had ours years before I got the sous vide machine.
 
OK on the Anova. This is a $150 item.

What sort of sealers are folks fond of?
 
I just got my Anova, going to cook some chicken with it tonight and move on to some surf and turf for this weekend! The Joule is also highly rated. I would look at wither one of those...

TedW said:
OK on the Anova. This is a $150 item.

What sort of sealers are folks fond of?
Click to expand...

I'm going to use my food saver, or just a zip lock bag...
 
I'm wondering if there's much difference with the various Food Savers. Capacity, maybe?
 
I'd want to be able to vac seal a big roast. I suppose that puts me in a $$ sealer category...
 
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