OT - The new Sous Vide

This raises some interesting questions.  I previously assumed that vac sealing and a water bath was part of what made the low temps of sous vide safe.  If you can safely cook at 120 F or so in the open air, could you just use a low temp oven?  To me, a small oven with more room would be more useful.  This cinder device looks like it could only cook 2 or 3 steaks at a time. 

SmokeyPitt said:

This raises some interesting questions.  I previously assumed that vac sealing and a water bath was part of what made the low temps of sous vide safe.  If you can safely cook at 120 F or so in the open air, could you just use a low temp oven?  To me, a small oven with more room would be more useful.  This cinder device looks like it could only cook 2 or 3 steaks at a time. 

The safety aspect of sous vide is that it can hold temperatures above 130-ish for long periods of time without drying the food. The water bath not only helps holds the temperature steady, but also transfers heat to the food more rapidly. If there is any contamination, the food temp will rise above the temperature (around 110) where pathogens grow most rapidly.

In ordinary cooking environments, like an oven, if the temperature could hold a steady 130F, by the time the pathogens had been destroyed, 5 - 6 hours, the food would most likely be very dry from evaporation.