Sous Vide

Is this one something worth buying? Gourmia GSV130 Digital Sous Vide

Or should I spring for a little more expensive one? Ya know spend $30 extra bucks get 2X the machine kind of thing...

and just for the record.. YOU GUYS SUCK! I can't believe you guys are forcing me to buy one of these for my SWMBO for
X-Mas...Baaaaaaahhhhhaaaaaaaaaa ...... She doesn't realize how much SHE needs one..... LOL

Cheers
Jay

I put the annova on my xmas list. I've used my electric mash tun a few times but it's a huge PITA to fill it up with 7 gallons of water each time, plus all the hoses and the pump.... then pump the 7 gallons back to the drain when done.

Hopefully she gets it...otherwise i will!

Jaybird said:

Is this one something worth buying? Gourmia GSV130 Digital Sous Vide

Or should I spring for a little more expensive one? Ya know spend $30 extra bucks get 2X the machine kind of thing...

and just for the record.. YOU GUYS SUCK! I can't believe you guys are forcing me to buy one of these for my SWMBO for
X-Mas...Baaaaaaahhhhhaaaaaaaaaa ...... She doesn't realize how much SHE needs one..... LOL

Cheers
Jay

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I don't know anything about that model. The Anova Bluetooth model is on a good sale last time I checked. It's the one I have and it has worked well for me so far.

I made 2x 4.5 turkey breasts for thanksgiving and I was not disappointed with its performance at all.

I also made a 4lb corned beef that I used for corned beef and cabbage for dinner then corned beef and hash with sous vide poached eggs for breakfast.

For both the turkeys and corned beef I used a cooler covered in tin foil. For the eggs I just threw them into a pot that is deep enough.

It's easier to use than my HERMS brew system, for sure. But I never had any issues with my brew system doing sous vide, either. It was just far less efficient and took longer due to the increased volume of water.

I was concerned about the 800W not being enough, but it has been plenty for any sort of reasonable family dinner application I've needed it for so far.

I was hoping someone else would chime in on Jaybird 's sous vise controller as well. I've never heard of that one either. My Anica has served me well. Having a little extra power may be nice, but cooking with a lid, I haven't really felt a need.

How were reviews?

Reviews are good. Co-worker showed it to me, as I've been thinking about one. Added it to my christmas list.

Eye round roast in the hot tub now. 30 hours at 131.. mmmm.

edit: here is a pick of the final product.

top round 30hrs @131f... stuff was good

Anyone have a solution for making sous vide eggs to stop the eggs from swirling around and bumping into the vessel and each other?

Gameface said:

Anyone have a solution for making sous vide eggs to stop the eggs from swirling around and bumping into the vessel and each other?

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I've got a rectangled vessel, they just kind of stack up and stay

Last brew day we broke out the immersion heater for some treats...


sous vide lobster (135f/1hour), Shrimp (135f/15min) and scallops (125f/30minute). We also had some homemade guanciale and Thuringer Bratwurst...then store bought stuffed crab and duck breast. Yeah, they shouldn't have sent me shopping when I was hungry!

wishingiwasfishing said:

Last brew day we broke out the immersion heater for some treats...


sous vide lobster (135f/1hour), Shrimp (135f/15min) and scallops (125f/30minute). We also had some homemade guanciale and Thuringer Bratwurst...then store bought stuffed crab and duck breast. Yeah, they shouldn't have sent me shopping when I was hungry!

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Can I get an invite to the next brew day?

I have a 5 1/2 lb standing rib roast to do for Christmas. Any suggestions on how long and what temp for medium rare? I may remove the bones and do them separately. I've done a few top rounds in the past but since this cost a tad bit more I'm a little nervous. Anybody done one ? Thnx.

vanishingpint said:

I have a 5 1/2 lb standing rib roast to do for Christmas. Any suggestions on how long and what temp for medium rare? I may remove the bones and do them separately. I've done a few top rounds in the past but since this cost a tad bit more I'm a little nervous. Anybody done one ? Thnx.

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I wouldn't go a degree over 129F for medium rare. This is in the danger zone so 4 hours is your max, and it'll need every bit of that for that big of a piece.

Are you planning to sear, or reverse sear?

Another thing i'd suggest is if you dont' plan to serve the meat with the bones, is to de-bone it before cooking, then tie them back on. After cooking you just cut the tie strings and you're done. Much easier than cutting a cooked piece of meat.

I'll be doing a roast Monday using ideas here, http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/12/food-lab-guide-to-prime-rib.html
Going for the low and slow, hope it's good.

ChefRex said:

I'll be doing a roast Monday using ideas here, http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/12/food-lab-guide-to-prime-rib.html
Going for the low and slow, hope it's good.

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I've found seriouseats website to be the best springboard for sous vide cooking. Usually lots of good advice and they cover multiple times and temperatures that let you decide where and how you want to do your cook.

The prime rib article/link you provided was a pretty good read...thanks for posting it

Xernex said:

Can I get an invite to the next brew day?

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sure thing

Thanks for the replies.I was torn between trying sous vide and Kenji's low cook reverse sear method. I usually do sear and lower the oven til temp is reached ,but since I have the circulator this year I was tempted to try it.Serious eats is my favorite go to. Low and sear it is.

schematix said:

I wouldn't go a degree over 129F for medium rare. This is in the danger zone so 4 hours is your max, and it'll need every bit of that for that big of a piece.

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The "4 hr 40 to 140 rule" is an oversimplification. The literature I've read on sous vide suggests that the bacteria we're worried about in cooking die at 126.1 deg. ( Cite: http://www.douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html )

So you can go longer as needed, as long as you're over 129-130. And at those temps you might need a little longer to achieve pasteurization. The link above suggests that at 130 degrees, it takes 112 minutes to achieve pasteurization.

For a big prime rib, however, I'm not sure you're going to get the center to 129 in 4 hours BTW.

The USDA has some handy data that looks relevant (page 4ish): http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/co...70048a113a/RTE_Poultry_Tables.pdf?MOD=AJPERES

Anything over 130 and things are starting to pasteurize.

I cooked a 8 lb prime rib following the chefstep recipe, it was AWESOME! Even at 136f rather than me usual steak temp of <130F.

Another Anova user here - I definitely love the sous vide for fish. My two favorites are-

• Chilean Sea Bass - bagged with butter, garlic, ginger, onions and white wine. Sous Vide at 130-134 (depending on quality) for about 30 minutes. One of the first things I cooked and still one of our favorites
• Black Cod (Sable) - the "Nobu" recipe - marinate with mirin, white miso, sake/white wine a day or two in advance, transfer and we add in soy sauce for some saltiness, then sous vide and sear. Very delicate flavor and beautiful presentation colors.

I've tried steaks and meats in it a number of times, but I find that I miss that grilled texture and smoky flavor. My grill doesn't get hot enough for a good quick sear, so I'm going to experiment around more with searing under the broiler. Anyone else find that they aren't a bit fan of beef in the sous vide? I can grill a pretty good steak already, and I find that I miss some of the inconsistency and nuances that add flavors from grilling.


Side topic, and maybe in the wrong section -has anyone ever tried using sous vide for mashtun temperature stability? As a beginning brewer that already has a sous vide machine, I was thinking I could use my kettle as a mashtun and use the sous vide to control a water bath. Basically heat kettle and grains to mash temperature, put that into a large rubber keg tub full of water, then use the sous vide to control the keg tub to 150 to maintain temps in the mashtun kettle. Someone must have done this before, but it seemed like a cheap way to jump to all grain with limited additional equipment...

GoHokiesGo said:

I've tried steaks and meats in it a number of times, but I find that I miss that grilled texture and smoky flavor. My grill doesn't get hot enough for a good quick sear, so I'm going to experiment around more with searing under the broiler. Anyone else find that they aren't a bit fan of beef in the sous vide? I can grill a pretty good steak already, and I find that I miss some of the inconsistency and nuances that add flavors from grilling.

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Yes, generally I find the texture on most beef items to be less appealing than just cooking at high direct heat on the grill or roasting on the grill.

Some of the beef cuts that are tougher, however, can end up nice. Although I consider tri-tip to be one of my best grilled beef dishes, I do find that sous vide is very well suited if you really want it super-tender. And because it's an oddly-shaped roast, you'll end up with consistent doneness where the smaller ends undoubtedly get more cooked when done on the grill.

Another one is short ribs. Short ribs really need to be done low and slow on a smoker or braised in a dutch oven or crock pot to get tender. Doing them sous vide can give you ultimate tenderness with medium doneness, which is nice.

The one I'm currently experimenting with is pork chops. Generally I haven't liked pork chops cooked any way. I find them to be tough and dry, even if I brine them and cook them direct over high heat. I recently did a 2.5 hour SV bath at 140, and they were moist but still tough. I'm probably going to try 135 for closer to 5-6 hours next time and see if I can get a more silky-smooth texture from them...

GoHokiesGo said:

Side topic, and maybe in the wrong section -has anyone ever tried using sous vide for mashtun temperature stability? As a beginning brewer that already has a sous vide machine, I was thinking I could use my kettle as a mashtun and use the sous vide to control a water bath. Basically heat kettle and grains to mash temperature, put that into a large rubber keg tub full of water, then use the sous vide to control the keg tub to 150 to maintain temps in the mashtun kettle. Someone must have done this before, but it seemed like a cheap way to jump to all grain with limited additional equipment...

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I haven't tried it (I use a GrainFather,) but there's no reason why that wouldn't work, especially if you can find a way to insulate the larger tub. If you can stick a BIAB pot in the oven at 150+°F and keep the mash warm, why not SV? Just my $0.02. Ed

www.ChefSteps.com Use them often for tips and tricks for Sous Vide. Mainly use mine for steaks and salmon.

GoHokiesGo said:

Another Anova user here - I definitely love the sous vide for fish. My two favorites are-

• Chilean Sea Bass - bagged with butter, garlic, ginger, onions and white wine. Sous Vide at 130-134 (depending on quality) for about 30 minutes. One of the first things I cooked and still one of our favorites
• Black Cod (Sable) - the "Nobu" recipe - marinate with mirin, white miso, sake/white wine a day or two in advance, transfer and we add in soy sauce for some saltiness, then sous vide and sear. Very delicate flavor and beautiful presentation colors.

I've tried steaks and meats in it a number of times, but I find that I miss that grilled texture and smoky flavor. My grill doesn't get hot enough for a good quick sear, so I'm going to experiment around more with searing under the broiler. Anyone else find that they aren't a bit fan of beef in the sous vide? I can grill a pretty good steak already, and I find that I miss some of the inconsistency and nuances that add flavors from grilling.


Side topic, and maybe in the wrong section -has anyone ever tried using sous vide for mashtun temperature stability? As a beginning brewer that already has a sous vide machine, I was thinking I could use my kettle as a mashtun and use the sous vide to control a water bath. Basically heat kettle and grains to mash temperature, put that into a large rubber keg tub full of water, then use the sous vide to control the keg tub to 150 to maintain temps in the mashtun kettle. Someone must have done this before, but it seemed like a cheap way to jump to all grain with limited additional equipment...

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It's funny, so far I'm the exact opposite of you. I haven't been impressed with seafood using sous vide, but I wouldn't make a steak any other way. I assume you eat your steak at med-rare or less? The broiler should work pretty well. You could also get a torch. Or just a cast iron skillet heated very hot. I love that all but the outer edge is done exactly the way I want it.

Thick pork chops are even better. There is absolutely no other way I would prepare a 2" thick pork chop besides sous vide.

With fish, lobster, scallops I've found that you cook them so lightly anyway the sous vide doesn't make much of a difference.

On your other question, I think anovo had an article showing someone using their sous vide device to do a BIAB mash. I personally didn't think it looked like the best idea, but it worked for that person.

here's a link

https://anovaculinary.com/brewing-beer-with-the-anova-one/

Gameface said:

It's funny, so far I'm the exact opposite of you. I haven't been impressed with seafood using sous vide, but I wouldn't make a steak any other way. I assume you eat your steak at med-rare or less? The broiler should work pretty well. You could also get a torch. Or just a cast iron skillet heated very hot. I love that all but the outer edge is done exactly the way I want it.

Thick pork chops are even better. There is absolutely no other way I would prepare a 2" thick pork chop besides sous vide.

With fish, lobster, scallops I've found that you cook them so lightly anyway the sous vide doesn't make much of a difference.

On your other question, I think anovo had an article showing someone using their sous vide device to do a BIAB mash. I personally didn't think it looked like the best idea, but it worked for that person.

here's a link

https://anovaculinary.com/brewing-beer-with-the-anova-one/

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Different strokes for different folks! I probably need to try a few more cuts of beef before giving up with steaks, and I'm planning to try it again using the broiler to sear at the end. I'm typically a med-rare to medium fan, depending on the cut of meat; I'll push closer to medium on the more marbled cuts to make sure all the juicy fat renders into the meat.

I have not tried pork in the sous vide yet, and I'm definitely planning on a pork tenderloin or chops. Still some experimenting to do yet!

Thanks for digging up the Anova brewing link. Some interesting info there. I dont think I want to use my sous vide directly in the mash, but more so just to make a water bath to put the entire mash kettle into. Will report back whenever I get around to trying it!

GoHokiesGo said:

Different strokes for different folks! I probably need to try a few more cuts of beef before giving up with steaks, and I'm planning to try it again using the broiler to sear at the end. I'm typically a med-rare to medium fan, depending on the cut of meat; I'll push closer to medium on the more marbled cuts to make sure all the juicy fat renders into the meat.

I have not tried pork in the sous vide yet, and I'm definitely planning on a pork tenderloin or chops. Still some experimenting to do yet!

Thanks for digging up the Anova brewing link. Some interesting info there. I dont think I want to use my sous vide directly in the mash, but more so just to make a water bath to put the entire mash kettle into. Will report back whenever I get around to trying it!

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You mention something that makes sous vide cooking a steak really awesome. Give it more time and the fat will render, even at med-rare temps. But all the same, at med temps they will render too, as long as you give it enough time. Try three hrs for a steak or even up to four. You can get really juicy meat that is super tender.

Look at what people are doing with chuck roast. I can tell you that after three days it is super tender, super flavorful. It really does taste a lot like, and has a very similar texture to, prime rib.

Gameface said:

You mention something that makes sous vide cooking a steak really awesome. Give it more time and the fat will render, even at med-rare temps. But all the same, at med temps they will render too, as long as you give it enough time. Try three hrs for a steak or even up to four. You can get really juicy meat that is super tender.

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I've done a few sous vide prime rib eyes now and i have been less than impressed. What temp do you cook to? I've done them 3 times. Once I did 131 for 4 hours and it was overcooked for my tastes. I've done 129 for 2 hours twice, and while i liked the cook better, the fat was completely unrendered. I think i've got one more chance to get this right before my wife says it's no longer permissible to experiment because it really doesn't do justice to an otherwise great piece of meat.

How about beef tenderloin?

So far the only things i've found sous vide useful for is something similar to soft boiled eggs on toast (cooked 145 for 45 mins). The egg white is not very good (looks like something unspeakable), but the yolk is so good it's almost easy to overlook the white. However if you go up even 2 more degrees the yolk sets solid, which isn't good.

I've made some dynamite chicken quarters, mostly because of the sauce made from all of the gelled juices. Also had good luck with straight chicken breast when it was chopped up and used for chicken salad. Without the browning though it would have been meh for an entree serving.

schematix said:

So far the only things i've found sous vide useful for is something similar to soft boiled eggs on toast (cooked 145 for 45 mins). The egg white is not very good (looks like something unspeakable), but the yolk is so good it's almost easy to overlook the white. However if you go up even 2 more degrees the yolk sets solid, which isn't good.

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You may want to give the Serious Eats article on sous vide eggs a read.

They recommend that you parboil/blanch the eggs for 2-3 mins first in boiling water and cool. This let's the outermost portion of the white set up a bit since the egg cooks from the outside in. Then transfer into the sous vide bath to finish cooking to the desired temp. I bet this would get you a slightly more appealing egg and white while still getting the yolk texture you desire.

GoHokiesGo said:

You may want to give the Serious Eats article on sous vide eggs a read.

They recommend that you parboil/blanch the eggs for 2-3 mins first in boiling water and cool. This let's the outermost portion of the white set up a bit since the egg cooks from the outside in. Then transfer into the sous vide bath to finish cooking to the desired temp. I bet this would get you a slightly more appealing egg and white while still getting the yolk texture you desire.

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I read that article, but if i have to boil a pot of water in addition to heating a pot of water for sous vide, i'm just going to poach the eggs the traditional way in the boiling water.

I also tried another method that was 13 minute at 75C. While the white cooked better in that method, my yolks were half set and at least half of the white stuck to the shell. Not worth the effort either.

I do want to try an experiment of making a ~ 140F egg, but then at the end of the 45 minutes at the lower temp, stepping the temp up to say 155, but only letting it sit for a few minutes at the higher temp. Seems like it would work but i haven't seen anyone suggest a method like this.

Alright - so I finally had some success with sous vide beef last week! We had a beautiful set of grass-fed Hangar steaks that came out perfectly, and I think I've got my technique down now for future cuts.

My two main take-aways were:

• Salt- I felt flavor was lacking and somewhat bland with my past attempts, so I added a bit more salt than normal to my seasoning rub (mostly salt & pepper, with a touch of other flavorings). Without the smokiness of the grill, the little extra salt was enough to accentuate and punch out the flavors
• Searing at extreme temperature- Pizza steel and the broiler worked like a charm. Preheated the steel at 500F, then swapped over to broil once the steaks were added. The pizza steel has a really high heat transfer, which you really need to sear quickly to get a caramelized crust without overheating the rest of the steak. My gas grill just doesn't get hot enough for a really quick sear, so this was the first try in the oven.

A few things to try next time-

• Sugar & Baking Soda when searing- sugar burns quickly and baking soda enhances the maillard reaction, so I might try a touch of each to get a better crusty sear
• Thick Cut - we've got a great butcher nearby now, so we get great grass-fed and wagyu beef without too much trouble. I've never tried one of those massive 2"+ cuts though, which would obviously shine with sous vide.
• Smoke - debating on liquid smoke, or maybe one of those little mini tabletop smoking guns, to help infuse some of that wood smoked flavor.

We've had this great weather on the east coast lately, so it's gotten me back into the grilling/steak mood. :rockin:

I have an Anova one and I really like it. I've done chicken, beef tenderloin and several varieties of steak. It works awesome for steak, you really can get the entire cut completely rare then sear the crap out of the outsides on a hot skillet. Crispy edges but otherwise completely rare.

I've also been really pleased with chicken done for two hours at 145F. It makes for a very different texture, much juicer and less string-y than other cooking styles. Beef tenderloin also for 3-4 hours at 140F with a generous helping of garlic salt, then seared sliced and served with some new potatoes.

You can successfully pack your own recipes using good ziploc bags, or you can use a vacuum sealer. I have tried both as I already have the sealer for breaking down packs of hops and overall the vacuum sealer is easier and if you buy the bags on rolls then theres not much in the price.

I don't find the wireless thing to be very useful, it's much more of a set it and forget it thing IME than something which needs much tending to. However, the Anova app does have a lot of good recipes so is still worth downloading and skimming through.