Nomiku Sous Vide? Anyone see this one yet?

[The empressof all]

I haven't gotten on the sous vide band wagon ...YET... But you know me and my gadget obsession. This one has me curious.

http://www.nomiku.com/

It's still too pricey for me right now at 299.

Does anyone sous vide at home and what machine do you use. How much did your unit cost and what kind of vacuum sealer do you use?

[enough]

1. Looks like an interesting method.

I have some doubts about cooking food in contact with plastic, especially for long periods. But I don't know if that's actually a legitimate concern.

I've never tried this, curious to hear others' experience.

[flamin lib]

4. If you use food grade plastic like foodsaver it's safe.

The FDA has published a time/temp chart. It seems that 140 F for even a second kills off the pathogens or lower temps over longer times will do the same.

BTW I detest Foodsaver products. They don't service out of warranty products or sell replacement parts. I suggest you shop at your local restaurant supply store. You'll be amazed at the pricing and product selection.

[Major Nikon]

2. I've been doing sous vide for years

The way I do it works differently than the device you listed. This is the device I use:

http://freshmealssolutions.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73&Itemid=100086

The one you listed is more like a commercial immersion water bath circulator. There are advantages and disadvantages to both ways of doing it. A thermal immersion circulator is the way to go if all you want to do is sous vide. The advantage is it turns any suitable water vessel into a sous vide water bath, so you can use a pot or even a polycarbonate tub from the restaurant supply. The device I have requires a separate heating (and optionally circulation) device. So you use it in conjunction with something like a crock pot or a rice cooker. It works by cycling the power on and off to the device to electronically maintain temperature via an external temperature probe. I don't use a water circulator. So long as the food isn't close together, you don't need a circulator so if I have a lot of things I want to sous vide at once, I just use my 18qt roaster. What I like about mine is I can use it for things that aren't sous vide. I use it as a temperature controller for my slow cooker, and I actually wind up using it more for that than I do sous vide. I can also use it to turn my 18qt roaster into a proofing oven for bread. The disadvantage is although it does work well for sous vide, it's a bit more trouble. I usually pile towels over the slow cooker or roaster to help insulate and maintain temperature stability and by doing this it will regulate the temperature to about + - 1F which is quite good. With an immersion circulator you don't really have this problem and they will still maintain tight control of temperatures.

I use a foodsaver vacuum sealer. I don't use the foodsaver bags. I buy my bags in bulk from ebay and they are not the foodsaver brand, but work just as well. There are also cheaper vacuum sealers and I'm sure they work just as well as the foodsaver. You can use ziplock bags like they show in the video, however the problem is when you start trying to sous vide at temps much above 150F any air in the bag will expand and cause the food to float and it will also create a void between the bag and the food, both of which are not good.

One disadvantage to using vacuum sealers like the foodsaver is that you can't really have any moisture in the bag that isn't frozen because it will try to suck up into the vacuum. The foodsaver I have has a seal button, so when the moisture starts to rise once most of the air has been sucked out, I can push the button and it seals instantly. The really good vacumm sealers are chamber vacuums which will work even if there is liquid in the bag. They also draw a stronger vacuum. The problem is they are ~ $1,000 and up and they take up a lot of room.

I use my vacuum sealer once per day or more, so if you cook a lot at home it's very worthwhile having one even for things that have nothing to do with sous vide. You can also use one to pull a vacuum on mason jars and seal those (don't do it with hot ingredients though).

[sir pball]

6. Sous Vide Supreme has a chamber unit for $650

It's still well out of my price range, but significantly cheaper (and smaller) than a Minipack-torre. Probably be down to $300 in another couple of years, I could justify that.

Strictly speaking though, "sous vide" and "immersion circulation" are two separate techniques that don't necessarily have to go together. It's a distinction most people aren't aware of, but that's worth knowing. The former refers to vacuum-packing while the latter is cooking in a temperature-controlled water bath. Sous-videing, with a chamber vac, is a great technique by itself - we "compress" veggies a lot; it gives them an appealing density and jewel-like translucency for garnish use. Getting the bubbles out of a freshly-blitzed fluid gel is another handy trick; pour it into a shallow pan and pull it down hard, clear goo in thirty seconds. Also, it's obviously a great way to store food longterm; pack it in a hard vac and freeze it and you can get it to last almost forever.

On the flip side, you don't need any kind of vacuum machine to circulate food; eggs are probably the prime example, you just drop them in the bath and go. For other stuff, a ziplock baggie with the air sucked out will generally work just fine. Or, if you're feeling absolutely over-the-top, you can cook proteins "naked" in oil or fat...there's literally nothing quite like a steak circulated to medium-rare in duck fat and then quickly seared off.

[Major Nikon]

9. I hadn't seen that one

I usually get about 2 years out of a foodsaver, so the one I have now is due to wear out any day now. I might look into this one when the time comes.

Another great thing about sous vide is that once you've vacuum packed and cooked something, it's pretty much pasteurized provided your cook temp is above 135F or so. This means you can cook food packets in bulk, store them in the refrigerator, and it will keep for weeks. All you have to do is drop the bags in boiling water to heat the food up when it's time to serve. I can also pasteurize eggs in the shell.

[sir pball]

11. If you have a reliable, cold fridge at least..

Biggest problem with sous vide storage is the anaerobes, especially Clostridium botulinum. You can't kill the spores even by boiling (you need pressure treatment, 250F/3min) and if your food gets above 38F they can begin to grow...and botulism is not tasty!


Granted it's not a huge issue but it's still something to be aware and wary of. NYC DOH will only issue a license for sous vide if you have a HAACP plan that pretty much invariably involves storing the food below 38 with at least hourly temperature logging and disposal if it's been over 38 for more than two hours (IIRC).

[Major Nikon]

12. It is something to be mindful about

For anything I don't plan on consuming within a week, I freeze and I keep a good reliable thermometer in my fridge at all times, but it is good to know that it will keep significantly longer especially if it has any significant level of salt or acidity. It's certainly a lot safer than putting cooked foods in a ziplock or plastic food storage tub, because other bacteria are what's far more likely to make you sick and these are virtually eliminated much in the same way canning does.

[flamin lib]

3. I have this product:

http://anovaculinary.com/ It sells for $199 and fits any container 12" deep. I use either my stock pot or a 5 gallon plastic bucket for large items. Plus it's made in the US!

Accurate to .01 C or about .1 F. Estimated life span is 10,000 hours.

I had a 6 lb brisket Saturday cooked at 132 F for three days and finished in the smoker for a few hours. It was cut-it-with-a-fork tender and medium rare. Can you imagine tender brisket that's medium rare? Same with chuck steak or roast and the flavor is as good as tenderloin or porterhouse. I've got beef short ribs cooking now--be ready on Saturday and @ 130 F will be medium rare and fall apart tender.

I don't care for poultry cooked this way and except for salmon the same goes for fish, but I won't cook beef or pork any other way.

You do have to finish meat with some kind of conventional cooking to get the millard reaction and browning.

Check out the sous vide course at http://www.chefsteps.com/. It's a fun site with all manner of avant guard techniques.

[The empressof all]

5. Oh WOW! Thanks that's a huge price difference

I'm not quite ready to get one yet as my kitchen is still out of commission. I'm getting new countertops today so I'm getting closer. I'm thinking maybe of trying this soon though. I just bought a Vacu Vida which should be coming in a few months....http://vacuvita.com/shop/preorderoptions. I bet there is a way I will be able to use those valve operated vacuum bags with it...we will see.

Thanks for the tip. I will definitely add it to my wish list.

[Major Nikon]

7. That's the great part about sous vide

It turns cheap cuts of meat into fork tender without washing out all the flavor like stewing or braising tends to do. Also since you are cooking by temperature and not time, within reason you can't overcook something. So you can put something on in the morning or the night before and it will be ready by dinner whenever you are ready. All you have to do is finish it off in a hot skillet or brown it some other way.

[flamin lib]

8. Not only that but the food doesn't oxidize so the flavor

won't change for up to a week in the fridge as long as it stays sealed in the bag.

Cook a week's worth and serve at your choosing.

[flamin lib]

10. One I would not recommend is

the aquachef. http://www.aquachef.com/ I have one but it won't maintain temp closer than 5 F without some work. I had to add insulation and an aquarium pump for circulation to maintain +- 1 F. It's way too small to cook more than two small steaks. I still use it to cook veggies like carrots and such (lose no flavor and tender crunchy brilliant orange). Don't like the results with green veggies tho--they turn grey and besides they cook in 3 minutes anyway.

[Warpy]

13. It's high time someone came out with this

Once sales go up, production costs and prices will go down and this will likely take the place of bulky professional units and almost as bulky home units.

My suggestion is to get the Food Saver now, you can use that immediately for freezing your food. Wait until the price comes down on this before you leap into it. By that time, any bugs will be worked out and most foodies will have them.

I finally bought a commercial induction hob for my dyepots. One technology at a time, thanks.