All Things Sous Vide

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Looking at an Anova, but are there other brands you’d recommend?

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Joule

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What accessories do i need? Is the container worth it, and do i need the insulated one or is the plastic enough?

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I've only ever used a stock pot

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We have an old vacuum sealer, but is that necessary? I’ve also seen reusable silicone bag instead. Do those actually work?

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Vacuum sealer is not necessary, but useful. I make "sous vide bags" that I keep in the freezer. Vac seal some thighs, backstrap, whatever with some seasoning and herbs. You can take them straight out of the freezer into the water bath.

Otherwise, I just use gallon freezer bags and seal with the displacement method.

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lso, i searched the forum first, so if this has already been covered, I’m sorry.

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Oh its been discussed a lot the search function here just sucks

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I usually add a whiskey stone to make it sink.

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a spoon clamped to the side also works here

I'd recommend not buying a bunch of accessories until you have it and know you're going to use it often. I only use mine once every couple of months, so I'm glad I didn't run out and buy a bunch of accessories for it.

I use the pot from my rarely used Instant Pot and it's been plenty big enough for my needs.

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Vac seal some thighs, backstrap, whatever with some seasoning and herbs. You can take them straight out of the freezer into the water bath.

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Good idea. I actually do the opposite in that I cook then throw into the freezer for later use. Can defrost and warm in a SV water bath. I like this route too, which I never really thought of taking

Anova here. We use a large mag slits pot for steaks or smaller cuts. And a bus tub for large pieces of meat. We have the plastic balls to reduce evaporation. They help, but aren’t really needed unless you are doing long cool times.

I would recommend a food saver vacuum sealer. We haven’t had much success with reusable vacuum bags. It could be from buying Amazon garbage though.

I have the Ink Bird from Amazon and it has worked perfectly but it's only 6 months old.

I have an Anova that I bought 2 1/2 years ago and I still use it a lot. My only issue is that the front part of the bracket keeps cracking, but Anova has sent me a replacement bracket for free both times.

For cooking, a stock pot, or an ice chest work well. If you're going to do long cooks, I'd recommend buying a big box of ping pong balls from Amazon to use in order to reduce evaporation.

One big recommendation. Don't overcook meats that don't need extended cook times. The internal temperature might not increase further, but the texture can easily be ruined, especially steak and chicken.

eta: Sous Vide Everything is a great YouTube channel to get ideas from.

Anova wifi is the tits.

Also, don’t miss out on using SV for reheating leftovers. It’ll bring leftovers to a level that seems almost entirely fresh and is especially good for reheating things like rice and pasta.

Don’t need a special tub. I use a soup pot and ziplock bags. PRO TIP: Double bag your ziplocks. I’ve discovered that a small imperfection in a ziplock can ruin a cook in a hurry by literally bathing the food, thereby washing off the seasonings.

I made some copycat sous vide starbucks egg bites this weekend. Freaking awesome. Super easy breakfast to heat up in the morning. And i think they are 1-2 carbs each and 19 grams of protein. Put the egg mixture in little 4 ounce pickling jars and it was perfect.

I have a big stock pot i use. I would second the "dont buy too many accessories" comment. This wont be a daily cook for you. I use my sparingly but i am glad i have one

Once you get all these questions answered, and have a machine, go buy one of the pre-seasoned tri-tip roasts from either Sam's or Kroger. Those things are amazing.