CookTech Sous Vide Digital Circulator Cooking Machine - Immersion Precision Pump Cooker with Timer for Vacuum Bag Cooking in Water Using Kitchen Small Pot and Food Containers, Great for all Food

Best deal by far on Sous Vide CirculatorsAt half the price of some comparable units, and with several apparently comparable units selling for several times the price, this seems the best deal by far. Even so, I had my doubts, so I did some measurements.The unit heated at a rate of about 1.5ºF per minute and temperature stayed within 0.1ºF at all tested temperatures. The conclusion from more extensive tests is given first in case you rather not read all the details.Conclusion. More than adequate for most anyone wanting a unit of comparable capacity and clearly the most economical in its category. Even so, I recommend a digital kitchen thermometer as a companion device, and the digital thermometer can easily be checked using ice water and boiling water for reference temperatures.Disclaimer. Though I have graduate degrees in math and physics, I make no claim as to the accuracy, validity, nor reliability of the following. The process seemed insightful to me, and perhaps interesting to some readers.For my tests I used a stainless steel pot, 11 inches diameter, 8 inches deep, with 5.5 inches of water, nominally half way between the minimum and maximum markings on the unit. The pot was moderately insulated on the bottom and the sides with several layers of a folded towel, admittedly not great, but surely helped retain heat.Thermometers. The digital thermometer was verified as accurate using ice water and boiling water, and it tracked well throughout the test with two, older analog thermometers and an ordinary fever thermometer at 100ºF.First target temperature set at 104ºF. Unit was drawing nominally 768 watts at startup in 88ºF water; within a few minutes water was at 100 and unit was cycling on and off rapidly, several times per second, until beeping at 100.36ºF and very slowly increasing to 104ºF. I assume this was as designed, and seems reasonable considering the use and precision expected from such a device. Analog thermometer reported 100, fever thermometer reported 100, digital cooking thermometer reported 100.5.The ambient temperature was 76ºF throughout with no significant air circulation in the vicinity of the test vessel. Heat loss from 143º down to 133º took 20 minutes; nominally 0.5ºF per minute. The rate of heat loss is also dependent on the difference between the water and ambient air, and the system began to struggle at around 184ºF, though no fault of the unit being tested, which consistently showed 5.5 amps in its attempt to move from 183ºF to the set point of 184ºF. Evidently the heat loss of the vessel was approaching the maximum capabilities of the 800 watt heater.Since most use will be between 130ºF and 165ºF, only with the most inefficient vessels in unreasonably cold rooms should ambient heat loss be of major concern. More interesting was the difference between the reading of the unit and the reading of the digital thermometer. My unit seemed to report temperatures about 3.5ºF above actual water temperature between 104ºF and 120ºF, but from 135ºF to 175ºF it was only 1.1 to 1.6 degrees above measured temperature, for an average of 1.4ºF above actual water temperature as read by a digital and two analog cooking thermometers. Thus, re-calibrating 1.4º would seem to give more accuracy during use, but likely not significant.Caveat! One must also take into consideration that articles/recipes making comparisons and recommendations might also use units that are not accurate, not properly calibrated, and perhaps not uniform in deviation along their temperature operating range.The test setup was clearly inefficient, and the use of a plastic or insulated container and sous vide balls or insulated cover would be a more reasonable setup for extended cooking times in a large volume of water. With a medium size cooler, say 12 to 28 quarts, filled to near the maximum water level mark, this unit would likely operate for many hours, perhaps days, using very little electricity and easily maintaining any reasonable cooking temperature.As with your household oven, take notes, and make adjustments according to your results and preferences. And, I repeat, you will likely look a long time for a better deal than this one.Addendum, September 18, 2017Large Scale Cooking. After considerable use, I found this unit more than adequate for use in a Coleman 33 qt. Stacker Cooler with nominally 24 qt. water. I cut a 2 5/8" hole in the lid to maximize heat retention and avoid the need for the clamp-on holder. I believe it would easily hold most any reasonable cooking temperature in a much larger cooler, or other well-insulated vessel, were the ambient temperature moderate.See: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BMB8QK/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1Small Scale Cooking. The clamp-on holder and a 7.5" diameter, 5.5" deep, stainless stew pot easily cook meat for one or two.Glad I tried some smaller pots before yielding to the temptation to order one of the latest, low-priced, sous vide "ovens" recently available. The versatility, economy, and efficient storage continue to confirm the wisdom of this purchase.Update, July, 2018.Unit still working without fail and appears accurate as ever.Since writing the above, I have acquired additional coolers, cut holes in the lids, and can cook small batches with minimal heat loss. Photos show the largest and smallest of my four sous vide "ovens."

After I figured out how to make it work, I love the food that I can make with it. But I only gave it four stars because there are some issues. The manual says that you can remove the stainless steel housing for cleaning, but the housing on my unit is jammed on so tightly that I cannot remove it, and I don't want to force it.The other problem is the entirely inadequate set of instructions. For some reason they don't list the set up instructions in order. The first thing they tell you is how to change the temperature, the next thing they tell you is how to start the machine, and only then do they tell you how to set the timer. I suppose you could do it that way, but the logical way to do it is to set the temperature, set the timer, and then turn the unit on. Having never used one of these units before, I found these instructions somewhat confusing.Finally, the manual does not contain any time or temperature charts or any advice regarding actually cooking anything. I have not found a website from this manufacturer yet. I suppose that it's out there, maybe I just missed it. In the end, I spent a lot of time online tracking information down (sometimes from other manufacturers).Still, so far I can't complain about the quality of the unit, or about the food that I have cooked sous vide.

I am sure the cooker will work as its intended however this item is advertised and coming with three bonus items, a 13.5" cast iron skillet, an oven mitt and a sous vide cookbook. All items were missing from my order and after reading a bit I can see that I am not the only one. Aside from the cookbook all other items have nothing to do with the cooker but if you are going to advertise something as coming with bonus items you should make sure you fulfill your promotion, otherwise you sour your customers experience entirely. I have contacted the seller, we shall see if they hold their end of the deal.

This thing is amazing, I have wanted one and wanted to try this Sous Vide cooking method for a long time and finally purchased this one on sale for under 100.00 with a life time warranty(great deal). I took it out of the box and installed it on a tub, the set it up was easy and the controls are accurate. My first attempt, split chicken breast seasoned with S/P and a few sprigs of thyme with a pan sear finish, it was excellent, we have never tasted anything so tender and moist. My second attempt was to simply Sous Vide some frozen chicken thighs and drum sticks with a BBQ grill finish.

I'd been borrowing my uncle's Anova but he recently asked for his back so we looked for a new one. We saw this one and took the chance and are pleasantly surprised. This one came super quick and at half the price it's as good as its pricier alternative. Just as easy to use, connect, and clean. This one also has a longer cord than the anova which gave us additional options for where we placed the container.

Extremely easy to use, tons of recipes online, and probably safer than a slow cooker. Bought with water tank to use with Sous Vide units for convenience (instead of trying to find a big enough pot). Just seal your food into a sealable bag, set and forget until it's done. Works perfectly every time.

This item is amazing. Tried it out to make rib eye steaks and wow they were the best also the company is amazing where else would you get an email from owner asking how your product works. Love to give this item and company 10 stars if I could.

This did not come with the bonus sealer as promised. I'm not sure whether to send it back or wait.

Just made Starbucks egg bites this morning. The device was easy to setup and use. Yummy eggs for breakfast. The blue tooth feature of other devices would be a nice to have but not required and saved $100. Great product.