Sous Vide Question.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

eggo said:

Got my Anova last week. Tried two 1" first cut strips. I cooked the 2 hours at 140 and they turned out beautifully cooked medium. I seasoned them as I would for the egg before i vacuumed them. Some how the seasoning was not there after searing on the ci over the cooktop. Otherwise the steaks were perfectly cooked. What did I do to lose the seasoning? What can I do to keep the seasoning? ( I used garlic salt and seasonall)

I only season after the bath. I have never found any seasoning to make any difference in the bag- especially with beef. I'm sure with more delicate foods like fish or maybe even chicken it may make a subtle difference. I do steaks with nothing on them and then use salt and pepper before the sear

eggo

Thanks Cen-Tex. This is what I will try on my next try this weekend, hopefully with pics. 

eggo

Yet another sous vide question:

Regarding seasoning after the bath, is it better to sear before or after the bath?

Bojangles

I'm dying for an immersion circulator to add to my arsenal.  Being able to sous vide has a lot of advantages, convenient weeknight cooking chiefly among them for me.  I've read tons online, but a lot of the product reviews seem biased, or coming from someone who has only tried one brand but swears it is better than all the others.

Can you guys with experience comment on which brands to consider or avoid?

nolaegghead

Buy on price.  Your food won't taste any better if the circulator/heater costs $1000 or $100.  As long as it maintains an accurate temp and handles the volume you want to cook, you're golden.

Bojangles

good advice, Nola.  Considering we're talking about something that just heats water, I'm sure there is not nearly the amount of difference in the end-product that there is in different types of BBQ equipment.

Really I mainly wanna know if there are any brands to flat-out avoid for one reason or another (warranty issues, inconsistent manufacturing, failures, etc.)

nolaegghead

I have a $800 Polyscience, a home made job in an aquarium, a Sous Vide Demi and an Anova.  All work well.  I would buy the yellow Polyscience - don't remember the model, but they are reasonable - around $300.  Polyscience is the Mercedes of immersion circulator/heaters.  The Anova broke after 5 minutes but that was because I got a lemon.  They have good customer service.

Bojangles

thank you, nola.  I have a bad habit of not returning things that are broken in a timely fashion.  I'd rather buy reliable quality once than deal with customer service, even if it's excellent.

nolaegghead

No problem.

Here's my Polyscience in two different vessels.

Skiddymarker

As I recall, just after Nola got his circulator, the yellow Discovery series was announced by Polyscience. They currently retail for around $300. Friend bought one and had one hell of a time with it. Polyscience (Williams Sonoma Canada I think) did make it right, but it took some time - 2 or 3 months. 

The issue was with the cases. Personal opinion, I think they rushed to market with the announcements of ANOVA and Sansaire and others. 

We both bought ANOVAs and they have been running like champs. My second one is waiting to be picked up at my cross border mail drop. 

As Nola says, they are all pretty good - and all will have the odd issue.

allsid

I started with a water bath, then a crock pot, got a sous vide sidekick, and now have a Polyscience.  

I really agree that the PS is the mercedes as @Nolaegghea mentioned.

I have done short ribs for 70+ hours and the thing is a total workhorse.  I like it so much better than the SVSK (not even sure if they are still in business) because the temp is strong and precise.  If I want to go from 135 to 190 the PS gets me there quickly and maintains.  There was a lot of waiting, microwaving water, and betting a boiling pot going with the SVSK.  

Chances are that if you have an egg, you understand the value of a good product.  I have the creative but I bet the discovery for $100 less will be just as good.

Eggcelsior

I cannot get SWMBO to agree to one, nor a Food Saver for that matter. I should have had her talk to nola at Brisket Camp.  :((

nolaegghead

I've been in labs since college and PolyScience equipment is ubiquitous.  They're a commercial equipment company that's branched out into cooking.  Their equipment is designed to be repaired, not discarded.  You pay for it, but if you use it a lot, it'll pay for itself.  And the resale value will be higher than any of the other brands.  I took apart my Anova and it was obviously designed to be put together once.  What a pain.

lkapigian

So question on water in a vacuum ( moisture in a sealed bag)...........if the vacuum  sealer could get the bag down to 20" and water will boil @ 160 roughly @ that point- Will the flashing of the moisture in the food in the bag be ant different quality as opposed to the gentle cook, or will the water in the food ( in a vacuumed sealed bag) never boil

nolaegghead

lkapigian

No matter how much air you pull out of the bag, the pressure in the bag (after sealing) is the same as the atmospheric pressure surrounding the bag when you don't have any head space.  You need a container with rigid sides to draw a vacuum.  They make marination containers that hold a vacuum.

Conversely, if you vacuum seal coffee beans, you'll have head space between the beans and you will have a lower pressure in the bag.  But for meats and things that fill up the bag with no headspace, there is no change in the boiling point.

You can damage meat by pulling too much vacuum.  This is only a problem with chamber vacuum systems.

lkapigian

Thanks @nolaegghead‌

The Cen-Tex Smoker

eggo said:

Yet another sous vide question:

Regarding seasoning after the bath, is it better to sear before or after the bath?

after.

Bojangles

For home cooks, this seems like a pretty good comparison between the PolyScience Discovery, PolyScience Professional Creative, Anova, Sous Vide Supreme, and Nomiku

http://www.theblackpeppercorn.com/2014/03/sous-vide-machine-comparison/

Skiddymarker

That is a great comparison for anyone interested. It was the blackpeppercorn review of 2013/10 that sold me on the ANOVA vs the Discovery, which was twice the price at that time. For value, and I seldom do long baths as most are under 5 or 6 hours, still think it was a good choice. Two things interest me in the review - taking water from 86º to 146º although informative is not as realistic as taking water from 140º to 180º. Most of us can start with hot tap water, which may already be at 140º. More watts means more heat usually, so the more power consumed, the faster the heating. Egg owners know that time is not always important, patience is a virtue. That is what interested me with the Discovery. The other is the dry macaroni test showing water movement. If using a round container and with the "exhaust" port of the impeller chamber adjusted correctly, the ANOVA will move macaroni around better than any circulator I've seen, including the Chef series. It is adjustable, and if you have it pointed in the wrong direction like at the side of the pot, there can be little or no water movement noticed. (One reviewer admitted to doing this) I like being able to take the sleeve off for cleaning. I have had two Zip Locks fail, I Food Saver everything now. Cleaning oil off the heat coil and impeller is never fun, but really quite easy when the sleeve is removed. 

Thatgrimguy

I never add anything but salt or aromatics to the bag. Make sure you always precook garlic. On longer cooks spices seemed to intensify greatly. I ruined some stuff experimenting. Seasoning pre sear works great but I always salt in the bag.

U_tarded

Eggcelsior said:

I cannot get SWMBO to agree to one, nor a Food Saver for that matter. I should have had her talk to nola at Brisket Camp.  :((

same issue here i was a click away when the anova was 150 and she saw what I was buying when I went to get my wallet.  after camp she is on board, but I have to "chill my tits" (her words) for a minute being we just bought a new house. 

nolaegghead

I would have gone in used car salesman mode:  You can't afford to NOT buy souse vide machine.  It slices, it dices, it grows cultures (sans slices and dices).  Your neighbors will be envious and you'll be the talk of the town.

Bojangles

Hahahaaaa!

PNWFoodie

I love my Sous Vide Demi.

Photo Egg

nolaegghead said:

I've been in labs since college and PolyScience equipment is ubiquitous.  They're a commercial equipment company that's branched out into cooking.  Their equipment is designed to be repaired, not discarded.  You pay for it, but if you use it a lot, it'll pay for itself.  And the resale value will be higher than any of the other brands.  I took apart my Anova and it was obviously designed to be put together once.  What a pain.

I agree. The upper end PolyScience units are outstanding and repairable. From what PS told me about their SV immersion models, only their "Chef" model, priced at $700 plus, is repairable. Their two lower end models, Creative and Discovery, are disposable and replaced not repaired. They and not built to the same high quality standards as the "Chef". The basic repair charge on the "Chef" model is in the $300 range after warrantee. 

The Anova is now priced under $200 with free shipping. Got mine for $150.00 and free shipping on a special.

The newer, lower end models are a bargain for people looking to try SV or only use occasionally.

I will admit the quality control on the Anova has been a little less than perfect from my experience and reviews but their Customer Service has been great. 

Cymbaline65

fljoemon said:

@eggo, Board Sauces are sauces that you put on the cutting board and then slice the steak on the cutting board to absorb/coat the meat in the sauces.

Adam Perry Lang has bunch of good board sauces. Here's a link to couple: http://amazingribs.com/recipes/other_fun_sauces/board_sauces.html

++1 on the board sauce concept. Tried it once and now the family demands it.