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[Free Mr. Tony]

Getting ready to cut a hole in that 48Qt Coleman as soon as the device gets here!  Will see how well it holds temperature with 4 gallons in it, and how much water circulation goes on!  Will also see how many pounds of beef can realistically be cooked if they start at close to room temperature.  I would venture to guess 20-25lbs will be a stretch at one time.

FWIW - Most, if not all, portable sous vide machines have a min. and max. water level requirement. If your cooler is too big, you will have to add enough water to reach the min. level. For my 32 qt. cooler, min. is about 3-4" off of the bottom and requires ~16 quarts to reach. Taller coolers will require more. I normally fill mine to the midway point which is ~24-26 quarts. My 800W Anova has no problem keeping the temperature at 140°. So far I've only cooked brisket in the cooler and I cook at 132° for 48-54 hours. As I've noted before, I separate the point from the flat and trim off all visible fat before smoking. I smoke at 150-160° and vacuum pack at an IT of ~120°.

I never messed with the BBQ meats when I had the anova. What's the texture like of a 132 brisket? What's your opinion on going a more traditional holding temp of like 180 for a day or two after smoking? I'd be interested to do it that way to see if the lower internal temp kept it juicy while still breaking everything down at 180 to get the more traditional BBQ meat texture.

[bregent]

I've yet to try a brisket but plan to soon. I did pulled pork last year - SV for 26 hours at 165F then smoked with Slow N Sear for 90 minutes. It turned out good, moist and tender but was more effort than it was worth. Pork butts are easy enough to just throw on the smoker and forget about with much less hands on. I can see the benefit with a brisket, especially the flat.

Did a chuck roast last night for the first time. It was choice that was on sale for $2.29. Followed the ChefSteps recipe. Trussed, seasoned with S&P, seared and then SV at 133F for 40 hours. Then rolled in salt and herbs and roasted for 10 minutes at 475F. Taste and texture like prime rib. Next time will SV at 131 for a little more towards rare.

[Bar-B-Lew]

That chuck certainly looks good.  Was it tender like prime rib or thin sliced rib roast or tri-tip?

[Bar-B-Lew]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off?  It looks like it may.  It would be useful if it did if you had a container that had a hole to slide the machine into as it looks like there is a rim right above the max water line that would keep it from falling in the water.  I guess I am getting antsy waiting for mine to see.  I am looking at some lids for containers I already have that have the hole to slide the machine into the container through the lid.  I guess I will wait until it arrives to see if that is the case and if those lids will work before I going buying them.

[hughver]

What's the texture like of a 132 brisket? What's your opinion on going a more traditional holding temp of like 180 for a day or two after smoking? I'd be interested to do it that way to see if the lower internal temp kept it juicy while still breaking everything down at 180 to get the more traditional BBQ meat texture.

Texture is just like any good steak. It's medium rare, very moist and taste is great. I once let a brisket cook for 72 hours at 132° and the meat started to get a little mushy. Cooking at 180° for two days would probably result in moist mushy over cooked meat that doesn't taste bad. If I had to guess, I'd say that 18-20 hours at 180° might yield meat with similar taste and texture as traditional smoked brisket.

[hughver]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off? 

I believe that the clips that you are referring to are intended to keep the top of the bag out of the water. They may be good insurance if you are using Ziploc bags, but I vacuum seal my bags and they have never leaked so I do not use them. The clips that I've seen have a pretty strong spring and are unlikely to slip.

[bregent]

That chuck certainly looks good.  Was it tender like prime rib or thin sliced rib roast or tri-tip?

It was close to prime rib but not as soft. I was afraid it was going to be mushy if left too long. Next time I'll go another 8 hours or more, and run at 131F.

[Free Mr. Tony]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off?  It looks like it may.  It would be useful if it did if you had a container that had a hole to slide the machine into as it looks like there is a rim right above the max water line that would keep it from falling in the water.  I guess I am getting antsy waiting for mine to see.  I am looking at some lids for containers I already have that have the hole to slide the machine into the container through the lid.  I guess I will wait until it arrives to see if that is the case and if those lids will work before I going buying them.

I read the question answer thing on Amazon. I believe it said the clip was part of the unit, and non-removable. On most stuff, you don't really need a lid. Unless you are planning a days long cook, i wouldn't bother. I didn't use a lid most of the time on mine. If nothing else, a piece of styrofoam with a hole would work fine. I also think serious eats said ping pong balls work well for insulation.

[Bar-B-Lew]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off? 

I believe that the clips that you are referring to are intended to keep the top of the bag out of the water. They may be good insurance if you are using Ziploc bags, but I vacuum seal my bags and they have never leaked so I do not use them. The clips that I've seen have a pretty strong spring and are unlikely to slip.

Apologize I wasn't clear.  I meant the clip on the unit that holds it to the container as this unit does not have the screw clamp that gets tightened. It is more like a chip clip type lever that you press to open the mouth up to attach to the side of the container.  The pictures looked like that part of the unit may slide down the shaft so it could be removed.

[Bar-B-Lew]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off?  It looks like it may.  It would be useful if it did if you had a container that had a hole to slide the machine into as it looks like there is a rim right above the max water line that would keep it from falling in the water.  I guess I am getting antsy waiting for mine to see.  I am looking at some lids for containers I already have that have the hole to slide the machine into the container through the lid.  I guess I will wait until it arrives to see if that is the case and if those lids will work before I going buying them.

I read the question answer thing on Amazon. I believe it said the clip was part of the unit, and non-removable. On most stuff, you don't really need a lid. Unless you are planning a days long cook, i wouldn't bother. I didn't use a lid most of the time on mine. If nothing else, a piece of styrofoam with a hole would work fine. I also think serious eats said ping pong balls work well for insulation.

Fair point.  I don't plan to make a brisket out of the gate.  I should use it and learn a bit before buying all of the extra equipment.  Thanks for your insight and potentially saving me money to spend on some other cooking related item since you already cost me $55 on buying the unit.

[Bentley]

They sell things like them on Amazon just so you don't lose a lot of your water through evaporation!

I also think serious eats said ping pong balls work well for insulation.

[Free Mr. Tony]

Anyone know if the clip that holds it to the side of a container slides off?  It looks like it may.  It would be useful if it did if you had a container that had a hole to slide the machine into as it looks like there is a rim right above the max water line that would keep it from falling in the water.  I guess I am getting antsy waiting for mine to see.  I am looking at some lids for containers I already have that have the hole to slide the machine into the container through the lid.  I guess I will wait until it arrives to see if that is the case and if those lids will work before I going buying them.

I read the question answer thing on Amazon. I believe it said the clip was part of the unit, and non-removable. On most stuff, you don't really need a lid. Unless you are planning a days long cook, i wouldn't bother. I didn't use a lid most of the time on mine. If nothing else, a piece of styrofoam with a hole would work fine. I also think serious eats said ping pong balls work well for insulation.

Fair point.  I don't plan to make a brisket out of the gate.  I should use it and learn a bit before buying all of the extra equipment.  Thanks for your insight and potentially saving me money to spend on some other cooking related item since you already cost me $55 on buying the unit.

One of my negatives from my first go round was having a big vessel sitting in the corner of my kitchen for days at a time. Not a huge deal, but just one of those things. The other day I got a 20 quart stock pot at a restaurant supply place to hopefully run this on my stove top instead of elsewhere in my kitchen. I think I will like this setup better, but I will have to use a cooler or something if I want to do a big cut.

They sell things like them on Amazon just so you don't lose a lot of your water through evaporation!

I also think serious eats said ping pong balls work well for insulation.

That's a boatload of ping pong balls.

[Bar-B-Lew]

I think those are closer in size to moth balls than ping pong balls.

[Bentley]

Pretty sure they are smaller then ping pong, although I think they have some that size as well!

[leppolite]

Gotta be a bit careful with those balls, I was using ping pong balls but when I did a 185 cook on green beans they started to melt and deform.