Best Vessels/Containers for Precision Cooking

General
22

I use clear,  polycarbonate food containers like this

https://www.amazon.com/Camwear-Polycarbonate-Square-Storage-container/dp/B0015R9VXO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=anovacommunity-20&linkId=df594731bd963d2be26d772295d55c4c

they retain the heat much better than a steel pot and I bought two lids, one has a hole cut out for the anova and the other is intact so I can also use it for large scale food storage (it’s a food safe container) when it’s not sous viding. It doesn’t take up that much room and it’s very light.

1 Like
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@gmacted @Kevin These cooler mods are awesome! I have one question though: A 24 x 14 x 13 cooler is over 40 qt capacity—have you found that to be too big for the Anova to work with? How long does it typically take to heat up?

24

@Alex B The 40qt cooler you mention holds twice the amount of water that the Anovas are rated at. I would think it would have a problem getting that much water up to temperature. A tub that size would hold a lot of food. I have the a Cambro that is a little under half the capacity and it holds a lot.

25

@gmacted said:
Here are pictures of my cooler:


gmacted, 

This looks to be a great setup, especially when I figure under $25.00 for the entire setup!

I do have one question for you.

Is there anything you would do different next time?

26

In Australia a good cheepish option the same quality as Cambro is the 

Vogue from Nisbets $25
and lid $10
Cambros seem hard to find and ship to Australia.

You will need to cut the lid with a 60mm hole cutter, I think and then a table saw, etc…



27

@mitsured said:

gmacted said:
Here are pictures of my cooler:


gmacted, 

This looks to be a great setup, especially when I figure under $25.00 for the entire setup!

I do have one question for you.

Is there anything you would do different next time?

@mitsured

I would not change anything. I did add a silicon mat with a hole in it to act as a gasket to keep the steam in.

It is a big container though. I use a stock pot when I only cook a few steaks.

I used this to cook ten pounds of corned beef a few weeks ago and I could have easily fit another ten pounds in there.

28

@john.jcb said:
Alex B The 40qt cooler you mention holds twice the amount of water that the Anovas are rated at. I would think it would have a problem getting that much water up to temperature. A tub that size would hold a lot of food. I have the a Cambro that is a little under half the capacity and it holds a lot.


No issues at all.  My tap water is quite hot, and in combination with the insulative qualities of the cooler the Anova is not stressed at all.  It temps up quickly, and I’ve done 48-hour pork shanks or brisket - fire and forget.  If I’m cooking alot of bags for a group or doing a big piece of something then I like to have lots of water gap to ensure good circulation.  The only issue is that a cooler full of water is heavy - you’re not going to move it much!  Post-cook, we use the water on our plants.

29

Good to know.

30

The Rubbermaid FG631200CLR seams to be popular :

a great fit (might just need to remove one row for the anova to fit) :
General PDP Template | Canadian Tire

31

@jim777 said:
I’m closer to a Canadian Tire than an Ikea, so this is a great fit (might just need to remove one row for the anova to fit) :



I tried this one last night. It fits the Rubbermaid fine, but the racks do interfere. Last night I left all of the day asks in and put the Anova in the corner, but I didn’t like the Anova’s water vents being in the corner.

Next time I will take out the centre upright and try it with the Anova on a side.

If all else is unsatisfactory, I have a rib rack for the BBQ. :slight_smile:

32

I went the cooler route, found a coleman party stacker on amazon.  $27 shipped.  Tested how high I could get it, quit when I hit this.



[missing image removed]

Also have a rib rack that fits inside perfectly, so plan to use it.   Inside it is 12" wide x 22" long x 10" deep.


[missing image removed]
33

Quick note - if anyone is looking for the rack that @apalmer405 mentioned and doesn’t have an Ikea close-by, it’s also sold on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Ikea-701-548-00X2-Variera-Organizer-Stainless/dp/B00PNJTBMG/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=anovacommunity-20&linkId=03df78efa155383f41eeac5ea5ec320f


Cheers,

Alphax

34

Double wow. 8 in stock in my store. Will check it out.

35
We knew our sous vide setup was always going to be a permanent addition to the kitchen bench.  Meaning that as being appropriate to cook in - I wanted it to look good too. The Anova itself is a very sexy appliance.... but some of the easy setups are less so. Insulation is a very important consideration - I add the meat early in the morning,  a bunch of ice,  and then it needs to keep the bath safely at fridge temp until I remotely start the cook early to mid afternoon. And also not lose (much) water on those long cooks and trigger a power off when we're not around...

So looking at the cooler options,  but not wanting the standard plastic blue and white coleman look, this is what we came up with. Initial plan had been to cut a hole in the cooler lid,  but it looked so nice I made an alternative lid with a nice timber chopping board and a piece of Styrofoam, so we can also use the cooler as designed. With the hole as is,  we don't use the Anova clip, it just slots right in.  So far it's working really well. Plan is to add a rubber seal to the cut edge of the timber, to stop any steam escape,  but there really isn't much if any.  Only con is that being quite tall and narrow,  you need a fair bit of water to reach minimum on the Anova, even on a small cook, but that does mean it takes up less bench space. And it has a built in bottle opener.  Added bonus! 


Jamie Oliver 17L cooler - http://www.victoriasbasement.com.au/Product/Details/70267
36

Inspired by some of the solutions here I got a cheap cooler (esky) and was all set to start using it. However the depth is such that the Anova probably only goes 2/3rds of the way down. Will the water circulate enough to ensure that the water at the bottom is the set temp, do you think?

37

I don’t use a cooler but many people do. Should be fine as the water is constantly stirred. More water more time to temp though.

38

@Siqueue said:

Inspired by some of the solutions here I got a cheap cooler (esky) and was all set to start using it. However the depth is such that the Anova probably only goes 2/3rds of the way down. Will the water circulate enough to ensure that the water at the bottom is the set temp, do you think?


I have a 48 quart cooler that I cut the corner of the lid out on for doing large volume cooks with the Anova. The anova is capable of circulating and maintaining a temp, along with minor temp adjustments, but it’s not powerful enough to heat that much cold water in any reasonable length of time, assuming it doesn’t just die trying.  So I fill it with hot water (165F -ish) as adding 20lbs of cold meat tends to plummet the temp. It’s not uncommon for me to even bucket part of the water out after adding the meat (which drove the temp way down) and then adding more hot water to bring the temp back up closer to where it needs to be for cooking.  Don’t worry about overshooting when adding hot water at the beginning, it’ll drop back down pretty quickly due to the cold meat.   Once it gets close, temperature stabilization can take almost an hour for that volume so allow some extra time for the cook.

39

Colwellcat, your setup is by far the most stylish one I’ve seen so far! Not exactly cheap, but I guess you get what you pay for.

Does anyone know of similar watertight retro-style cool boxes by other brands, which are available in the UK? 
40

I recently created my second vessel as a wedding gift and thought I’d share the original.

Parts list:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001449BMO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?pldnSite=1&linkCode=ll1&tag=anovacommunity-20&linkId=de8b9aa5eb585c29da2117601c29cb24
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PMO6YU4/ref=as_li_ss_tl?pldnSite=1&linkCode=ll1&tag=anovacommunity-20&linkId=69e0155c3713d6b555b521810ae68062
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005LEZE/ref=as_li_ss_tl?pldnSite=1&linkCode=ll1&tag=anovacommunity-20&linkId=e91a68b05b9b5381540041dfbeb6dc2e
(Any 2 1/2" Hole Saw will work, but wanted to provide a picture.)

The cutout is large enough to hold either model of the Anova, but the original fits nice and tight and the mount goes right over the lip of the cooler.  The Bluetooth model can turn freely in the hole and doesn’t need the mount at all because the lip towards the top of the circulator stops it from falling through.  If you’re concerned about the circulator turning freely, I’d probably try attaching some velcro to the circulator just below its lip.

I fill the cooler with hot water and it only takes about 15 minutes to get to 140 degrees.  I also used Great Stuff to fill the hollow lid a bit, but it’s really not necessary.  If you decide to do this, make sure the screws are removed from all holes, so air can escape and allow the Great Stuff to fill the lid easier.  You’ll need to insert the Great Stuff tube at most of the screw holes to ensure you fill as much as possible.  Finally, I removed the rear hinges and the interior “holder strap” because you can’t really tilt the lid with the circulator mounted.

Sorry about the noisy pictures from my old phone.

Exterior shot:

We store it under the stairs just like this.  If you don’t like the circulator sticking out during storage, remove the water diverter to pull the circulator out and the Anova fits nicely inside the cooler.

We store all the accessories inside the cooler:


Here’s how nicely the rack fits in the cooler:

Here’s how the Anova sits in the lid:

I removed the adjustable tightener from the mount since it simply isn’t necessary.

This is the underside of the lid, so you can see how close to the edge the mount is:


Here’s the cutout:

I made it like a keyhole so the mount would fit nicely over the cooler’s edge.  I just used a sharp blade (e.g.  drywall knife) to carefully make the notch.

41

@acs said:


I have a 48 quart cooler that I cut the corner of the lid out on for doing large volume cooks with the Anova. The anova is capable of circulating and maintaining a temp, along with minor temp adjustments, but it’s not powerful enough to heat that much cold water in any reasonable length of time, assuming it doesn’t just die trying.  So I fill it with hot water (165F -ish) as adding 20lbs of cold meat tends to plummet the temp. It’s not uncommon for me to even bucket part of the water out after adding the meat (which drove the temp way down) and then adding more hot water to bring the temp back up closer to where it needs to be for cooking.  Don’t worry about overshooting when adding hot water at the beginning, it’ll drop back down pretty quickly due to the cold meat.   Once it gets close, temperature stabilization can take almost an hour for that volume so allow some extra time for the cook.

Ok thanks a lot for this, I’m not sure of the volume of the cooler so I may try and experiment tonight.