Selecting the right resistor

[Rich Grise]

I'm not here to advocate anything one way or another. In fact,
I too was skeptical at first, dismissing sous vide as yet
another, soon to pass, fad. I decided to build this
experimental DIY rig to settle the issue one way or the other
and, to my surprise, am glad that I did.

Ah! An experiment!

I, too, love Science. ;-)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

PS. Guess I could look up acetone and alcohol boiling points.
Hmm.... Acetone 133*F
Ok, what dissolves in acetone?

I once read somewhere that acetone and water are 100% miscible, but
I'd be pretty reluctant to taste it!

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

Yeah, the whole point of pot roast is to turn the dripping's into
gravy. You've got to know about rue, to make a good gravy.

Off topic??

Nah, I think we've got an unwritten agreement that if it's about food,
it's usually allowed - everybody likes good recipes.

And for that other thing,
http://www.google.com/search?q=roux

It's essentially flour mixed in with the drippings, and cooked like
gravy or sauce.

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

Hey don't worry about it. Life is dangerous, you could die at any
moment.
I love raw shellfish. Some day it might make me sick or worse.

That's pretty much sushi. Ever tried any live? Can't get any
fresher than live! ;-)

Remember when Riker was on that Klingon ship in some officer-exchange
program? He looked at the goch, and said, "It's still moving!" and
some Klingon said, "goch is always best when served live." ;-)

 

[amdx]

It's a resistive element with e thermostat? put it on a lamp dimmer
and dial whatever power level you want. Go really crazy and put it in
a servo loop. THAT would be a learning experience.

G²

If you want to turn a cooker into a constant temperature bath just get
a SousVideMagic controller. It has been in use by thousands of users
over the world for over 3 years. It is the same controller is being
featured in Modernist Cuisine.

Dual Digital Display PID Temperature Controller.
$40.00
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B002PIM3R8

 

[Rich Grise]

Ahh, Thanks for the correct spelling. I always use butter and flour,
cooked very slowly over very low heat for ~1/2 hour.

That might be what distinguishes it from "sauce" - in my Betty Crocker
cookbook, it's got "white sauce" in the inside cover. 1 TBSP butter,
1 TBSP flour, heat until butter and flour are melted, then add 1 C
milk while stirring, then "cook quickly, stirring constantly, until
mixture bubbles and thickens." Gravy in an envelope has instructions
like that also. But this is the first time I've heard called out
cooking very slowly.

My favorite TV show, right after "The Big Bang Theory," is "Cook's
Country from America's Test Kitchen."

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Jesse]

groups.com... On May 9, 11:23 pm, [email protected]
wrote:

Thanks, freshmeals, for the tip.

I was aware of this option. The reason I didn't pursue it was
that this controller & heater/bubbler system was almost $300.
I thought the probability that sous vide would produce food
that would be remotely interesting was so low that I believed
I'd be better off assembling a test rig - which I did for less
than $60 - to satisfy myself that the whole thing was just a
waste of time.

I was amazed to discover that THIS TIME the reality actually
lived up to the hype.

So, having built my present configuration, I was trying to
tweak it to get the temperature just a little more stable.
Thanks to the good folks in this group, generous with their
insights, I should be able to keep the temperature to within
..3°C - more than adequate, I think, for my purposes.

Dual Digital Display PID Temperature Controller.
$40.00
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002PIM3R8?ie=UTF8&tag=kitc
henhacker.net-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&crea
tiveASIN=B002PIM3R8

Thanks for the link, Mikek.

Now that I know what I know, if I had it to do all over again
I would be tempted use this controller. Others have found that
it keeps the temperature almost rock solid. I've only just
discovered that it has an auto tweaking mode to set the
various PID parameters.

Still, having already bought the (far simpler) STC1000
controller, I don't want to obsess over tiny temperature
fluctuations (right Peter?) so I'm content to simply add a
rotary dimmer to lower the heat and thus reduce overshoot.

Another tweak pertains to water circulation. Bubbling air thru
warm water is not only cooling it, it's evaporating it at
about a quart per 24 hours. Acceptable most of the year, it
might be annoying in the summer.

So I'll not only cut the heat by half with the dimmer, but set
the bubbler on the controller as well. So as a first try, both
will be on for about two minutes out of ten and hopefully the
currents already in motion will adequately distribute the
residual warmth in the heater. Adjust things as I may, maybe
it'll work, maybe it won't.

If not, perhaps I'll take my chances on a little fountain
pump. Others have found that some tolerate the 55°C water
quite well.

Perhaps some who have followed this thread will have already
done some reading on the subject via the links I supplied in
an earlier response.

I think sous vide cookery shows real promise. After only a few
attempts, I've gone from skeptic to convert. I don't see that
it will be of much help to vegetarians, but it works real
magic in making cheap and tough but flavorful meat cuts
tender. Another area of interest is in pasteurization. Eggs
can be made safe IN THE SHELL, for those concerned about their
use in Caesar dressings or meringues. Hamburgers, now urged to
be cooked well done, can be similarly pasteurized and still
served medium rare.

I've open a new thread on alt.binaries.multimedia.cooking on
sous vide, using my usual nick in that group. Anyone who'd
care to participate is warmly invited to do so.

Thanks again for all the feedback.

You guys are great.

Jesse

 

[Jesse]

My favorite TV show, right after "The Big Bang Theory," is
"Cook's Country from America's Test Kitchen."

In case you're not aware, these are regularly posted to...
alt.binaries.multimedia.cooking
along with America's Test Kitchen and lots of other cooking
shows.

I've opened a thread in that group on sous vide. Please see my
response, in this thread, to amdx / Mikek.

Jesse