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Trashy, Tacky Cocktail PouchesJeff Potter, author of Cooking for Geeks, shares a very technical tip on how to turn your slow cooker into a sous-vide machine. For more detailed information, check out his book, or write and persuade him to put the info up on his website.
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sous vide - wikipedia - "Clostridium botulinum bacteria can grow in food in the absence of oxygen and produce the deadly botulinum toxin, so sous-vide cooking must be performed under carefully controlled conditions to avoid botulism poisoning.[17] Generally speaking, food that is heated and served within four hours is considered safe, but meat that is cooked for longer to tenderize must reach a...+READ
sous vide - wikipedia - "Clostridium botulinum bacteria can grow in food in the absence of oxygen and produce the deadly botulinum toxin, so sous-vide cooking must be performed under carefully controlled conditions to avoid botulism poisoning.[17] Generally speaking, food that is heated and served within four hours is considered safe, but meat that is cooked for longer to tenderize must reach a temperature of at least 131 °F (55 °C) within four hours and then be kept there, in order to pasteurize the meat. Pasteurization kills the botulism bacteria, but the possibility of hardy botulism spores surviving and reactivating once cool remains a concern as with many preserved foods, however processed. For that reason, Baldwin's treatise specifies precise chilling requirements for "cook-chill", so that the botulism spores do not have the opportunity to grow or propagate.
Extra precautions need to be taken for food to be eaten by people with compromised immunity. Women eating food cooked sous vide while pregnant may expose themselves to risk to themselves and/or their fetus and thus may choose to be more careful than usual."-COLLAPSE
Here's my version of crock pot to sous vide. It is a DIY project, but cost was only $25
http://chiefmarley.com/Arduino/?p=3
Actually Hope Sweets this Jane is going to do exactly that! So, I guess your wrong after all. Plus lots of people have the slow cooker taking up space in their kitchen and not being used. Rather than let it take up space re-purpose it for something useful.I cook brunch for anywhere from 8-30 people every two-three months. I like poached eggs but it can be a real pain and waste (broken or...+READ
Actually Hope Sweets this Jane is going to do exactly that! So, I guess your wrong after all. Plus lots of people have the slow cooker taking up space in their kitchen and not being used. Rather than let it take up space re-purpose it for something useful.I cook brunch for anywhere from 8-30 people every two-three months. I like poached eggs but it can be a real pain and waste (broken or mishapped eggs) You have to poach the night before with vinegar to make it hold it's shape (don't like the taste of the vinegar) and I don't like the amount of water and space I need to hold them overnight in the fridge.Then you have to e-warm them the next day while trying to everything else you need to do. This is a fantastic idea for me! Makes my life easier. Thanks.-COLLAPSE
Thank you for stating the obvious, HopesSweet Fantastic insight ... Then again, not everyone will ever fix a cheesecake or do anything else offered in ChowTips. There are always 'average joes' looking for small, fun projects.
Here is a link for everything you could possibly ever want to know about soft cooking eggs.
http://blog.khymos.org/2009/04/09/towards-the-perfect-soft-boiled-egg/
I didn't make it all the way though the article but I'm thinking a water bath at 145 for 45 minutes to an hour would be good.
Oh, and HopesSweets, are you kidding? It is pretty obvious that "the average joe or jane" would have zero...+READ
Here is a link for everything you could possibly ever want to know about soft cooking eggs.
http://blog.khymos.org/2009/04/09/towards-the-perfect-soft-boiled-egg/
I didn't make it all the way though the article but I'm thinking a water bath at 145 for 45 minutes to an hour would be good.
Oh, and HopesSweets, are you kidding? It is pretty obvious that "the average joe or jane" would have zero interest in doing this and this video was likely not intended for them. Nor, I presume was it intended for you. I on the other hand am already looking for deals on the thermostat and am perfectly capable of doing this without burning down the house.
Thanks for a good tip Jeff!
Randy
recipesrandycooks.com-COLLAPSE
You have got to be kidding right...the average Joe or Jane is going to first of all buy 100.00 worth of stuff to do this. If this is your thing so be it but seriously no one is going to rig up this contraption and possibly cause an electrical fire. LOL
wow...super cool! thanks so much for the tip!
how long do you put the egg in the water to let it poach?
thanks! i've forwarded the video link to bunch of friends...
Wow, Thanks man! You showed me some new info and sparked an different tree of creative ideas with this quick, efficient, well explained demo!
Your a thousand times cooler then Bobby Flay and I would watch your show! (and you don't make me want to scream "Your A Douche!" like Flay does.)
Bravo sir, From a dedicated cook an an un-blossomed entrepreneur. I will keep your name look for you with...+READ
Wow, Thanks man! You showed me some new info and sparked an different tree of creative ideas with this quick, efficient, well explained demo!
Your a thousand times cooler then Bobby Flay and I would watch your show! (and you don't make me want to scream "Your A Douche!" like Flay does.)
Bravo sir, From a dedicated cook an an un-blossomed entrepreneur. I will keep your name look for you with great interest!-COLLAPSE
I think Jeff did a great job. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Here is a good controller that is also flexible enough for other uses.
http://www.etcsupply.com/johnson-a419abc1c-120240v-single-stage-temperature-control-p-111.html
@toodie jane: My reaction exactly! Using the speech patterns of adolescents is not the ideal means of conveying what may very well be valuable information. Did anyone listen to this before posting it?
The thermocouple should be set in the water more.
A great controller that can be used is the Auber PID controller. You can then make the unit for many uses, such as a bbq smoker, alcohol still or sous vide.
Check out www.JazzyJ.Ca for info on how I made my setup!
What? part of cmmunciating effectively to a wide audience is to speak clearly and EE-NUN-CEE-ATE.
A rice cooker with a PID type controller like the one cowboyardee mentions is a significantly better setup and for very little more money. An off/on temp controller will not handle temperature swings properly at all and almost defeats the purpose of cooking SV. Chances are you will also have hot and cool spots without proper water circulation.
We asked Jeff to do a writeup on his blog with some more information about the equipment featured in this tip, and he generously obliged! Check it out: http://www.cookingforgeeks.com/blog/posts/diy-sous-vide/
If anyone ends up hacking their slow cooker this way, let us know how it turned out here in the comments,
Meredith of CHOW
Here's what you want to look for: a digital aquarium temperature controller. A whole bunch on eBay for $20-$30, for instance:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Mini-Digital-Temperature-Controller-Thermostat-Aquarium-/270629998461?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f02ce0f7d
spsaucier -- It could work...but it might not work at all. And even if it did it would be really annoying. Here's why:
It might not work because it's automotive and only rated for 12V power. The components inside might not like being hit with wall 120V.
It would be annoying because the way to set the temperature is with a screw -- there's no readout. So you'd have to set it by "trial and error"...+READ
spsaucier -- It could work...but it might not work at all. And even if it did it would be really annoying. Here's why:
It might not work because it's automotive and only rated for 12V power. The components inside might not like being hit with wall 120V.
It would be annoying because the way to set the temperature is with a screw -- there's no readout. So you'd have to set it by "trial and error" every time you wanted to change the temperature of your water bath, using a separate thermometer to actually read out the temperature.-COLLAPSE
It seems like something like this would be ideal: http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_x_6016936-P_x_x?cm_mmc=CSE-_-Google-_-VALUE3-_-VALUE4&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=6016936
Any thoughts?
cowboyardee - check this one out:
http://www.omega.com/ppt/pptsc.asp?ref=CN4000_SERIES
Only downside is the relay output is only rated for 1A. Can even do PID control if you have the hardware for it!
A dimmer switch would be no good as it's the temperature that needs to remain constant not just low.
You could swap out the probe for something more food friendly on something like this: http://www.honeyrunapiaries.com/store/ranco-etc111000000-digital-temperature-controller-p-86.html
None of your wiring is exposed like his either. There's another version here that's pre-wired:...+READ
A dimmer switch would be no good as it's the temperature that needs to remain constant not just low.
You could swap out the probe for something more food friendly on something like this: http://www.honeyrunapiaries.com/store/ranco-etc111000000-digital-temperature-controller-p-86.html
None of your wiring is exposed like his either. There's another version here that's pre-wired: http://www.honeyrunapiaries.com/store/ranco-etc111000000-prewired-digital-temperature-controller-p-87.html-COLLAPSE
This is brilliant! I've been doing sous vide recipes for the Kitchen Hotline for months and just directing our clients to monitor the temperature of a pot of water on the stove.
Out of curiosity, can anyone link me to a cheap digital thermostatic controller like what he's using? The only ones I'm seeing after a brief google search cost north of $100, and at that price you may as well just buy a PID made for sous vide - you'll get more precise results with a PID (less overshoot and tighter temp control), and the set up is easier.
Also quite cheap for anyone interested -...+READ
Out of curiosity, can anyone link me to a cheap digital thermostatic controller like what he's using? The only ones I'm seeing after a brief google search cost north of $100, and at that price you may as well just buy a PID made for sous vide - you'll get more precise results with a PID (less overshoot and tighter temp control), and the set up is easier.
Also quite cheap for anyone interested - you can get remarkably tight temp control with just a large covered stockpot on a low burner (I've managed to stay within a 2 deg F temp range over 16 hours on an electric burner), but it does require some set up and monitoring. You'll need a thermometer obviously.
I hadn't seen anyone rig up a slow cooker with a thermostatic controller, but it's a cool trick. I'm not sure I'd trust myself to safely split an extension cord and then leave the room, trusting no fire to break out, but then again, I'm not much of an electrical handyman.-COLLAPSE
ive always wondered if you could just attach it to a rheostat (dimmer switch). No doubt this is much better, but somehow offputting.
um that's amazing, wish he would tell us the exact specific stuff but that's just awesome