Sous Vide with a Crock pot?

[Darko]

Just wondering if this is doable?  I bought this slow cooker; http://www.crock-pot.ca/en_CA/specialty/multicooker-and-rice-cooker/crock-pot-5-in-1-multi-cooker-in-stainless-steel/CKCPSCMC6-033.html#prefn1=ckpType&sz=12&start=22&prefv1=programmable


Do you wise folks think this would be suitable for sous vide cooking?

[MikeRocksTheRed]

I would say yes, but I'm not sure what the function of the moving water with a Sous Vide does.  I don't think you are going to ruin anything trying it, it might take longer for the food to get to temp though, and when you add the food it might take longer for the water temp to recover and stabilize.

[56MPG]

To my knowledge, (and in my own opinion, YMMV) you cannot control temps in a crock pot. I know people have modded them to switch on and off with a more precise thermo, but it's still not as precise as a real sous vide. I use crock pots a lot, but at best they are ball-park temp wise. Low, medium and high can vary wildly. Circulation is key to the process to ensure even cooking. I suppose you can throw in a fish-tank-type circualator, but by the time all is said and done, a $99 Anova will run circles around a crock pot.

[Darko]

Hey Marty, the reason I got the one that I linked is because it has temp control not just low, high, warm. This thing is supposedly able to roast, steam, bake... That I don't really care about. I'm just wondering if I can sous vide with it.

[pbe gummi bear]

@Darko, You'll need to see how good the temperature controller on it is. Sous vide will probably tolerate a few degrees of varation but larger swings will be problematic for your cook. Do you have a probe thermometer to test it over time?

[Darko]

Yeah I got one. I just wanted to get some opinions before I cracked the box open. Thanks Lawrence. I just figured once I opened it, returning it might be problematic.

[swamprb]

drop a meat probe in the water and monitor the temp settings

[buckeyesmoker]

Return it an get the $99 Anova unit.  Saving $50 from the start

[LightningBoldtz]

Before I was gifted an avona (which I love)  I was looking into one of these

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Itc-308-Temperature-Controller-Thermostat/dp/B01MDSWXY4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1481981792&sr=8-3&keywords=temperature+controller

the only issue with this is water circulation which goes a long way to ensuring consistency.

[Troy]

I've been using a rice cooker and one of the pid controllers for several years.  Works great.  I'd love to have a circulation unit someday though.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Weber Kettle Club mobile app

[eLLWOODgGLEN]

Got my wife the Anova for Christmas. Since she's a chef in the Coast Guard I figure she will enjoy having another kitchen utensil around.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

[blksabbath]

Here's my diy:


$15 temp controller from amazon and basic electric parts I already had on hand.  Water circulation...give it stir or use an aquarium bubbler plugged in the other outlet.




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[Darko]

I'm returning it. It looks like the low temp is around 149F.   Oh well.

[AZRaptor]

You can use something like the Dorkfood DSV with a manual control crockpot (no digital controls)  and it should work fine. The water circulation is mostly for keeping the water temp even throughout the cooking vessel and since the crockpots evenly heating you should not run into having hotspots and cold spots. Something like this also allows you to pair it with something like an aquarium heater bar so that you can cook very large batches in big coolers where the volume of water can't be handled sufficiently by a circulator. You just manually stir the water once in a while.

All that being said I use an ANOVA  but if you want to see more about something like the Dorkfood DSV check YouTube for videos on it.  There are some good ones by David Cheung of Not So Ancient Chinese Secret.

[Darko]

I ended up ordering a Gourmia circulator unit with wifi. The GSV150B

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M2BHLBR/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1