Because I do not know, I would like o ask this question. You have a lot of technology governing that process inside the crock pot.
I have a crock pot. If I filled it with water, set it a low, and vacuum sealed "meat", would I be able to do this same thing with out the technology? The only thing that I would not know is the internal temperature of the meat if I want to keep the integrity of the bag sealed. Is this possible? How would I know how long to cook this? I could tell the temperature of the water using a thermapen and assume that what is inside the bag, inside the water, will not get any higher than the water temperature. Is that a bad assumption?
Thank you,
Ed
Ed the key to proper Sous Vide cooking is precision temperature over a long period of time. The reason why you can cook at these low temps(130F to 150F) safely is because you are using contact temperature and not air temperature. For example if you put your arm in a 210F oven for a few seconds you will feel the heat but not necessarily get burned. Now put your arm in 210F water for a few seconds and you will get different results!
So you could leave the crock pot on low but what actual temps would you be getting at that setting? You would need to test and find out what they are on your crock pot at that setting.
You can do Sous Vide on a stove top simply using a pot of water and your burner. You have to stay there and regulate the temps by adjusting the burner. It can be done that way. Kind of like tending the fire on your off-set right?
This would be very difficult to do for say a brisket that cooks at 130F for 48 hours however. But fish can be done in 20 minutes so no problem there.
You do not need to check the IT of the meat. Just monitor the water temperature. It is going to reach the temp of the water and will not go any higher. The meat can sit for many hours longer than the recommended cooking time and not overcook.
The cooking times I found on the web. There are many websites dedicated to Sous Vide cooking. A lot if great recipes for Sous Vide. There are also quite a few books available.
This new controller that I ordered from Amazon is a simple plug and play device that has great reviews. It is very inexpensive compared to what is out there so I will give it a try. There will be a review from me on it. Here is their website...
http://www.dorkfood.com/