Anova 3.0 Precision Cooker

[RichieB]

I'm doing a rib eye for dinner. I like the idea that I can use a smaller pot and not the Anova container. Heats up much quicker and a lot less water.

[GolfGeezer]

Where did you get the bag clips…inquiring minds…

[RichieB]

Great basically what I have. I don't need them but that's never stopped me before.

[GolfGeezer]

RichieB. Got those clips from Amazon, but they do not work for this. They are not wide enough to fit cleanly over the rolled lip on most pots. Back to the binder clips like fzxdoc describes below.

[RichieB]

Bummer. As you can see in the picture the pot doesn't have that rolled lip.

[DaveD]

The hot water out of our tap comes out a few degrees warmer than your target in that photo... for steak cooks, there is no waiting time for the water to heat for us. In fact sometimes I have to add a bit of cold to bring it down one or two degrees...

[fzxdoc]

That's pretty much how I roll most of the time with SV--using a dutch oven when it's only for the two of us. As you say, Michael, it uses less water and heats faster. Nothing not to like about that setup. I use larger Lipavi containers for larger cuts of meat or when cooking more servings than for 2-4.

I use binder clips to secure the bag to the pot. They work pretty well for me.

I never can feel comfortable setting my SV lower than the recommended 130° for food safety, but many of my friends SV lower than that without apparent ill effects. As with all things food safety related, there is an interplay of time, temp, pH level, and the freshness of the ingredients. I try to keep it simple.

As an aside, I am often surprised at how long it takes for the heat to get to the center of a chunk of meat. I always temp the meat when I take it out, and sometimes get an eye opener. The last time it happened was a couple of weeks ago when I reheated some lobster meat pieces all less than 1/2 inch thick, to 145° SV as recommended for safety by the lobster company. For a single serving, after 30 minutes, the lobster was in the high 130s. I had thought that 30 min for such a thin pack of meat would be more than sufficient. Of course it came from a cold fridge (usually set to 33°).
A one minute detour to the science oven before serving fixed that.

Kathryn

[dubob]

I'm doing a rib eye for dinner. I like the idea that I can use a smaller pot and not the Anova container. Heats up much quicker and a lot less water.

@RichieB,

Thanks for the tips on using a smaller container. I hadn't thought about those advantages before. With regard to your pictured set temp, I offer you this for consideration.

Meathead has done some videos with some scientific folks and made reference to the lowest temperature recommended for sous vide cooking of any meat - 131*F. There is one species of bacteria (Bacillus cereus) that is able to reproduce at temperatures up to 55C/131. It is mostly associated with rice/pasta but can exist in meat. Here is a link to a very good discussion on 'Advanced Sous Vide Food Safety' that discusses temperatures and bacteria. I suggest you read this information and start using at least 131*F for all of your sous vide meat cooking. That temperature produces a very nice medium rare steak that is juicy and flavorful in my experience.

Advanced Food Safety — International Sous Vide Association

[fzxdoc]

Thanks for the link. I'm a food safety nut. Too much so, truth be told, but then I don't want anyone to get sick on my watch, especially the little ones or older folks I sometimes feed.

Kathryn

[RichieB]

dubob thanks for the information. FYI, the target temperature is taking into account some carry over prior to the ice bath.
Also the finished product after the sear was at 133 per the thermometer.