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When it comes to sous vide cooking, sticking with a slow cooker (like an Instant Pot Accu Slim) isn’t an authentic experience. Instead, proper sous vide cooking comes from the use of an immersion circulator.
However, using these kitchen appliances is a bit daunting to those unfamiliar with sous vide cooking. Find out the best sous vide machines for any home cook.
We have come up with the best four sous vide devices you can consider as a home cook to address this issue. For beginner-friendly sous vide cooking, check out the following four products on this list.
| Best Sous Vide Machines | Product Information | Check Price |
|---|---|---|
Top | Anova Culinary AN500-US00 Sous Vide Precision Cooker (WiFi), 1000 Watts | Anova App Included, Black and Silver | Check Price |
Top | Anova Culinary Sous Vide Precision Cooker Nano | Bluetooth | 750W | Anova App Included | Check Price |
Top | Breville CS20001 Joule Sous Vide, White Polycarbonate | Check Price |
Top | Sous Vide Cooker Kit ALL-IN-ONE - Sous Vide Machine 800W | Check Price |
The Four Top Picks for Aspiring Sous Vide Home Cooks
Anova AN500-US00 Sous Vide Precision Cooker
- Never over or under cook your food again. The Anova Precision Cooker circulates water at the exact temperature required for perfectly cooked meals, no matter whats on your menu.
- Sous vide (pronounced “sue-veed”) cooking offers the perfect level of doneness for nearly any food.
- Whether cooking a simple meal or an extravagant feast, the (ANOVA)ᴿᴱᴰ Precision Cooker heats water faster and holds temperature precisely so you can get cooking quicker than ever.
Anova sous vide products are some of the most popular options available. The Anova AN500-US000 is no different, as the phone application is what makes Anova products simple.
The AN500 is only the second most popular Anova sous vide cooker available. The Anova Nano Precision cooker takes this slot, but it isn’t the most beginner-friendly option due to its reliance on a less potent connection choice: Bluetooth.
The AN500 uses WiFi connectivity, resulting in a better overall experience. This makes tracking the cooking times of your sous vide much easier, as you are less likely to lose connection.
This cooker also comes in multiple forms; you can choose to include a container, vacuum sealer, or precision base (lid). However, you can only choose one accessory.
This sous vide cooker is at 1000 watts, enabling fast cook times. It also has a stainless steel construction, ensuring this sous vide cooker will last quite a while. Overall, this is the best option for quick and easy water bath cooking.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| High-quality construction. | Larger than the Nano, making it less useful for storage. |
| Reaches peak cooking temperatures quickly. | Somewhat noisy compared to other models. |
| You can use a simple app from anywhere. | |
| Best Sous Vide Machines Reviews |
Anova Precision Cooker Nano
- Never over or undercook your food again. The Anova Precision Cooker Nano sous vide (pronounced “sue-veed”) circulates water at the exact temperature required for perfectly cooked meals, no matter whats on your menu.
- Sous vide cooking s the perfect level of doneness for nearly any food of your choosing. Chicken, fish, vegetables, eggs, beef, lamb, pork and more are all ideal candidates for sous vide circulation.
- At almost 2 inches smaller than the original Anova Precision Cooker, Nano is small enough to fit into your kitchen drawer for quick and easy storage, but powerful enough to prepare food for a table of four.
The second Anova product on this list, the Precision Cooker Nano, is the most popular sous vide cooker on Amazon. As the most popular sous vide cooker, it also has access to the Anova app, enabling you to apply cooking settings quickly.
Its quick response time enables you to set your precise temperature quickly, and it is pretty great at reaching the perfect temperature. It can also fit into your kitchen drawer, making it smaller than most other sous vide machines.
The drawback behind this device comes from its choice of material: plastic. While plastic is known to last quite a while (plastic bags are used with sous vide), it won’t survive the same drops and mistakes as the other Anova model in our number one slot.
So while it is more convenient in general, it is a bit pickier with this cooking method.
The smaller size also results in a lower wattage, sitting at 750W. As a result, it can take up to 15 minutes for larger pots of water. It isn’t recommended for water exceeding eight gallons.
Still, if you want to simplify the sous vide cooking process, any Anova product can help you out.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| It also has access to the useful Anova app. | It is less suitable for batch cooking. |
| It reaches a precise water temperature. | It is made using inexpensive materials. |
| This device is easy to store. | |
| Best Sous Vide Machines Reviews |
Breville CS20001 Joule Sous Vide
- Smallest, sleekest sous vide tool available at just 11 inches tall and 1.1 pounds, with streamlined white body and finishes.
- Half the size of other sous vide machines, it’s small enough to slip into a top drawer.
- 1100 watts of power for hyper-fast water heating. Operating Requirements: Frequency 50 to 60 Hz, single phase
The Breville CS20001 Joule Sous Vide Cooker combines the best of both words regarding Anova products. Specifically, it includes both Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, enabling you to use either (or both) as needed.
You’ll find that some of this contributes to its 1100W of power, enabling the quick creation of hot water. The larger size also makes it able to heat that pot of water, despite reaching the ten-gallon mark. If you want to batch cook, this sous vide machine is excellent for you.
The Breville Joule sous vide device does not have physical controls. So, if you want to transition away from the Joule app, you can’t; you are stuck. This is a problem if you’re going to take your Joule sous vide cooker to a friend’s house or just want to take it on a long-term vacation.
While it reaches that target temperature fast, the app isn’t as developed as what is offered by Anova. Also, it is better known for having connectivity issues with WiFi.
While Joule outperforms Anova regarding cooking speed and accuracy, Anova Precision Cookers beat Joule in reliability.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Fairly simple application interface. | No physical controls. |
| Simple to program with both WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. | Known for WiFi connection issues. |
| Fast and quick cooking, regardless of how many inches of water you have. | |
| Best Sous Vide Machines Reviews |
SousVide Art Sous Vide Cooker Kit
- When using Sous Vide Immersion Circulator, products retain more vitamins and nutrients than other cooking methods. Sous Vide Cooker delivers incredibly tasty, juicy, and delicate dishes.
- All that you need to start your Sous Vide culinary journey is in our kit: Sous Vide Cooker, 30 vacuum-seal sous vide bags, pump, clips, clamps and cookbook
- You don’t need to waste time in the kitchen while Sous Vide Cooker prepares tasty and healthy food for the whole family. Get restaurant results at home with minimal effort and time!
SousVide Art is easily one of the lesser-known companies on this list. Compared to Anova, they do not have brand recognition. So you can expect this setup to be a lot cheaper than other sous vide devices.
Despite the lower cost, this comes with more overall accessories than other options. The cooker comes with either 15 or 30 bags, one cookbook, and a hand pump. This is virtually everything you need to be a sous vide home chef, making it incredibly beginner-friendly.
Because this device relies on onboard controls, there is no application you need to download. This is preferable to some, as adding “smart technology” tends to complicate simple processes.
Granted, being able to track your sous vide cooker from any room in the house is still missed.
You’ll find that the cost-effectiveness stretches a bit to the quality of the bags, as they don’t last as long as you might expect. The side-facing “bag port” tends to get water in it.
Regardless, the cooker is of solid quality and still maintains its value. As an entry-level sous vide cooking device, this is a great selection.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| It comes with a vast array of accessories. | The bags are of poor quality. |
| Has precise temperature control on the device. | The sous vide device is heat-sensitive, making it less responsive if you have cold fingers. |
| Simple interface that doesn’t rely on external tech. | |
| Best Sous Vide Machines Reviews |
What Should I Look for in a Beginner-Friendly Sous Vide?
Below, we will take a quick peek at what beginner chefs should watch regarding sous vide products.
Who Makes the Best Sous Vide Phone App?
When comparing the available sous vide phone applications, Anova makes the highest quality one. Looking at the Google Play ratings tell us everything we need to know:
- The Joule app averages at about 2.5 stars to 3.5
- The Anova Culinary App is about 4 to 4.5 stars on average
You’ll find that both apps are great when it comes to looking up recipes. The step-by-step instruction is amazon for beginners, which helps people understand how this cooking technique works.
People also think that Google Play is a great place to express their frustrations about cooking devices. So when looking on Google Play or the iOS store, be sure to filter how people complain about the machines.
The best sous vide devices understand that technology breaks. So Anova products also have onscreen controls, enabling you to program them manually.
What are Some Important Safety Features of Sous Vide Devices?
The only safety feature that sous vide cookers come with is a low water warning. This feature warns the user that the sous vide has low water (due to evaporation). This is typically a problem with smaller sous vide containers or appliances.
Ideally, this will also shut down the device, eliminating any chance of burning your container or ruining the sous vide machine. All the devices on this list have some form of low water warning.
Do I Need a Vacuum Sealer?
To simplify protecting your food, a vacuum sealer is great for removing bacteria. However, it is not a requirement to have a sous vide device. Instead, food-safe and temperature-resistant food bags are a good substitute.
You recall the number four slot (SousVide Art) being known for poor-quality bags. In many cases, the side chamber meant to hold the vacuum pump is a big reason for this.
If you press down on these bags with your hands to remove as much air as possible, this can also be a suitable replacement.
What are Some Good Foods To Sous Vide as a Beginner?
When cooking your first sous vide dish, be sure to follow a recipe for sous vide. Those recipes will provide you with an excellent step-by-step format you can use to get perfectly cooked food. Otherwise, you should start with one of the following items:
- Steak
- Chicken
- Fish
- Short ribs
- Carrots
- Green beans
- A vegetable medley
- Corn
- Sweet potato
- Onions
- Eggplant
When cooking any of the above items, separating different bags by available space and cooking times is essential. You don’t want to be cooking steak and sweet potato in the same bag as you cook foods like these at different rates.
Including herbs and a dry rub seasoning with your meat is an excellent option. So when it comes to making your meat flavorful, remember seasoning and searing.
How Do I Find Out the Water Capacity of my Sous Vide Machine?
The more water capacity your sous vide immersion circulator or water oven has, the more food you can cook. Finding out your water capacity can be done in one of two ways:
Option one is to look at the owner’s manual or product description. Companies are required by law to report accurate information. If you do not have your water hot by a reasonable time, you do have a reason to request returns.
Otherwise, running a test cook using different levels of water might be your best bet. Most sous vide cookers do not exceed ten gallons. Typically, a good test number would be seven or eight gallons.
Who is Sous Vide Cooking Best For?
Sous vide cooking is best for people who have time to step away from the pot. Busy students, parents, and everyone can benefit from not paying close attention to these meals.
As a beginner, you might be tempted to keep a close eye on things. However, you don’t need to hover over your water pot with water alarms and automatic stop features.
Best Sous Vide Cooker Brands
Today, we went through three of the best sous vide brands available. Here’s a reminder about what makes these brands worth it:
- Anova – Anova is the king of precision cooking. They have one of the largest sous vide stores available on Amazon. This company’s line of sous vide products holds many of the top slots available on Amazon.
- Breville (ChefSteps) – Breville is another well-known company that has been around for quite some time. They are best known for their advanced technology. Breville’s Amazon store sells espresso machines, ovens, and juicers.
- SousVide Art – SousVide Art isn’t one of the best-known brands available for sous vide. However, the company’s Amazon store supports a wide range of cooking supplies.
Sous Vide FAQs
What is an Immersion Circulator?
An immersion circulator is otherwise known as a sous vide stick. It is a device for sous vide that immerses the bagged meal in water, circulating it throughout for evenly cooked food.
The “immersion” part refers to the food being entirely immersed in water. The “circulation” part refers to the water being moved throughout.
The alternate form, otherwise known as a water oven, is a self-contained unit that does the same thing. Technically, you can call that an immersion circulator, but most people tend to separate the two.
How Many Sous Vide Bags Can You Cook At Once?
Sous vide bags are only limited by the amount of space and power of your machine. Provided your device can maintain the temperature, you still are under limitations. However, exceeding ten bags can be pretty complicated.
Should I Sear My Food Using a Pan or Torch?
When cooking meat sous-vide style, searing enables you to lock in the flavor of your food and create a pleasant crispy texture. For a consistent texture, always sear using a pan.
Torching your food will create the ideal “seared appearance,” but it won’t make a consistent texture. If you sear your food, be sure to use a food-safe fuel and food torch.
What is a Sous Vide Water Bath?
A water bath refers to a container of water meant for cooking. Sometimes, people refer to sous vide cooking as a “water oven” because it involves heat, water, and contained space.
Final Thoughts
Our top pick is the Anova AN500-US00 Sous Vide Precision Cooker if you are a beginner at sous vide. It provides excellent support, a vital WiFi feature, a good app, and physical controls just in case your smart features fail to work.
It is also made with stainless steel, making it more forgiving if you make a mistake.
The other options on this list might be more convenient. The Precision Cooker Nano is great for those who prefer Bluetooth, while Breville’s sous vide cooker is suitable for requiring 100% app-based controls. SousVide Art is better for those who like physical controls.
Regardless of what you need, this list has something for everyone. So if you like anything on this list, clicking our Affiliate links ensures that we can continue to make these articles.
We try our best to ensure that these reviews are honest and trustworthy, helping you select an excellent sous vide cooker. Thanks for reading!
