brand: Kitchen Gizmo
gadget: Simplified Sous Vide Immersion Circulator
MRSP: $99.00 USD
available for purchase: on the Kitchen Gizmo site or on Amazon
Disclosure: Kitchen frolic received a Sous Vide Immersion Circulator from Kitchen Gizmo for review purposes. This in no way affected our opinions; all opinions expressed are our own. kitchen frolic received no monetary compensation for writing this review. Also, kitchen frolic is part of the Amazon affiliate programs. The product links to the Amazon sites are affiliate links – if you click them and purchase the product (or any other product during your visit), I’ll receive a very tiny commission fee which goes right back to keeping this site running.
Sous vide is a hot topic these days – just about everyone is talking about this cooking method that was usually reserved for fancy restaurant kitchens.
In a nutshell, sous vide cooks food by sealing it in a vacuum-sealed plastic pouch then placing the pouch in a water bath or in a temperature-controlled steam environment for longer than normal cooking times at a regulated temperature much lower than normally used for cooking. The aim is to cook the item evenly, retain moisture and ensure that the inside is properly cooked without overcooking the outside.
Paul has been very interested in trying out sous vide cooking for months now so when I was contacted to try Kitchen Gizmo’s sous vide machine, we jumped at the chance.
the first nibble:
The Kitchen Gizmo Simplified Sous Vide Immersion Circulator comes in three colours (blue, grey and red) and its features include:
– an easy-scroll selection wheel to set the temperature and time
– a touchscreen control panel to switch from °C to °F
– an ergonomic grip with a durable rubberized coating
– an indicator that shows when the device is working, charging or if there is an error
– a safety feature that ensures the machine only works when inserted in water above the minimum level
– a removable stainless steel sleeve for easy cleaning
how it works:
With an 800 watt motor and a water circulator that pumps 8 liters per minute, the Kitchen Gizmo circulator has all the power you need to cook sous vide at home.
am I impressed?
As soon as he knew he was getting a sous vide machine, Paul went out and bought some heavy-duty food-grade Cambro bins to test the sous vide cooking in. We had received a Food Saver vacuum sealer as a Christmas gift a couple of years ago so that also came in handy but you can just as easily use air-tight Ziploc bags).
The machine boasts “an ergonomic grip with a durable rubberized coating” and this is really true. I have tiny hands but had no problem holding the circulator comfortably. The heavy-duty clip that comes attached to the circulator (non-adjustable) kept the circulator firmly attached to the side of our bin with no worry about it moving, even as we shifted the food inside the bin several times (we use an IKEA adjustable rack to hold the food down)
We tested the circulator out by cooking rib-eye steak. We both like our steaks somewhere between medium and medium-rare so set the machine for 130°F and cooked them for 2.5 hours. After removing from the water bath, we finished the steaks off with a very quick pan sear.
How perfect do these steaks look? Was I impressed? Yes, definitely. The steaks tasted PERFECT.
kitchen regular, under the stairs storage, or recycling bin? I would probably say under the stairs storage, but Paul is already thinking of more sous vide experiments and has planned a trip to buy more Cambro buckets, so I have a feeling that this will be a kitchen regular for awhile.
the last bite:
The handy cookbook that comes with the machine makes it very easy to figure out the temperature and timing to cook pretty much anything that you can with a sous vide circulator. I found the scroll wheel a little hard to manage (I kept scrolling past the temperature I wanted) but that was probably the only trouble I had setting the machine up.
There was one small feature that I wasn’t crazy about. After you set the temperature and the timer, the circulator will start to heat the water up. The timer doesn’t start until the water hits the set temperature (since the timer is for how long the food should cook), however, as soon as the temperature is met, the timer starts – that means you need to be close by to drop your food into the water when the timer starts. It’s not a big problem if you miss it though since you can reset the timer easily enough.
Other than the timer issue this sous vide circulator works really well and I’m looking forward to our next experiment – chicken? fish? pork chops? vegetables? The possibilities are endless!
Thanks again to Kitchen Gizmo for letting me try out their circulator. Although sous vide sounds fancy and complicated, it’s actually a really simple way to cook and we’re definitely going to use this regularly in our kitchen.
Disclosure: kitchen frolic received a Sous Vide Immersion Circulator from Kitchen Gizmo for review purposes. This in no way affected our opinions; all opinions expressed are our own. kitchen frolic received no monetary compensation for writing this review.
Disclosure: Kitchen frolic is part of the Amazon affiliate programs. The product links to the Amazon sites are affiliate links – if you click them and purchase the product (or any other product during your visit), I’ll receive a very tiny commission fee which goes right back to keeping this site running.
