This review is for the Dash Chef Series Sous Vide water oven. I've been using it almost daily, and it works as advertised. I am mostly pleased with it; however, I do have some reservations. Getting it to start required me to read the manual, as when you plug it in, its LED display flashes on and then turns off. For some reason, the designers thought it was a good idea to make users hold down the power button for three seconds to re-enter display mode. I'm not sure how this helps anybody. It seems to me a waste of time and an unnecessary added step. However, perhaps this is how the device hibernates in energy saver mode. This water oven has a hybrid design in that it combines a temperature controlled water tank with a circulator. The circulator element looks like a large white pill or vitamin. It's a magnet that spins under a cylindrical protector housing at the bottom of the tank. It's kind of a cool design actually. However, its far from silent. For low temperature "cooks" (of about 140 F or less) this device is fairly quiet. However, when preheating the water oven to cook veggies at 183 F, this device makes quite a bit of noise. It's not unbearably loud, just full of surprising sounds. For example, there's the sound of the heating element causing the metal to heat up and creak. There's the sound of the circulator humming as it spins and the gurgling sound the water occasionally makes. I could see how this onslaught of weird little noises would annoy some users. However, it's not a significant drawback in my opinion. A quieter circulator would have been nice, though. The most significant design limitation is the size of the vacuum packs you can put in this water oven. It comes with a 4-slot rack with a central well, which prevents foods from resting on the bottom of the oven where the heating element is. While this design protects against uneven cooking, it greatly limits the size of portions you can cook without investing in a third-party rack. To fit sous vide bags in this rack, you'll need to portion food carefully so that your vacuum bags are no taller than 4 inches, no longer than 9.5 inches, and no wider than 1 3/4 inches. Ideally, your bags should be a bit smaller than this to allow for circulation. Even small-to-medium-sized roasts or four cobs of corn, which the oven could probably otherwise accommodate, would be impossible to cook with the rack in place. If you take the rack out, you'll probably want to replace it with an elevated cooling rack that provides enough space for water to circulate under and around your sous vide bags. The nice thing about the rack is that you can turn it on its side (although this is not recommended by the manufacturer). Doing so allowed me to fit two bags of veggies that otherwise would have protruded out of the water with no problem (except for that they touched the side wall limiting circulation, but shorter, longer bags could have solved this problem). If Dash sold an optional rack designed for stacking larger proportioned bags one on top of the other, that would be useful, as would a flat rack for medium sized roasts or multiple corn cobs. However, such racks can be procured from 3rd party vendors.
On the up side, the oven is easy to clean. The rack comes out, as does the cylindrical housing for the water circulator and its "magnetic pill." Emptying the water and wiping it down is all that is usually needed, although I did notice a build up of a white plaque-like substance after two successive uses without cleaning. Perhaps my local water has some unique chemicals in it! Perhaps one of the units best features is its cover. What makes the cover well designed is its sturdiness and snug fit. Judging from user reviews of other water ovens on Amazon, this is not a universal design feature. True, when you take it off, you need to hold it at an angle to let the water condensation poor back into the tank. However, this is standard for water oven covers, based on the reviews I've read. While the Dash water oven is on the small side, this might be attractive to those who live in apartments and want to keep the device on their countertop. This is certainly one reason we chose it.
What's my final verdict on this product? If you don't mind its quirky noises and small portion sizes, the Dash is an effective hybrid circulator with an attractive design and sturdy, snug cover. I'd say it is an effective sous vide water oven for a couple, an individual, or perhaps a family of four who are very light eaters. With 3rd-party racks, the size of the portions you cook in the dash can be greatly increased, only be careful to ensure comparable water circulation to that of the original rack and avoid letting bags touch the floor or walls of the tank to prevent uneven heating.
I love this product. I enjoy cooking for company and the Dash Digital Sous Vide removes any anxiety about serving a perfectly cooked steak. I tried a very thick strip steak and filets. No more cutting into the meat to check for degree of doneness. The steaks were medium rare, just as I had entered, and very tender- delicious. The entire process is taken out of your hands except for a very fast sear just before serving. Another nice feature- you may put the steak in hours before serving- the temperature will hold exactly.
I highly recommend this product.
WOW! This product is amazing. I wish I would have been using this cooking method years ago. The steaks it produces are simply amazing I would highly recommend this product!
And everyone enjoys everything it's involved in. It turns you into the most consistent of cooks. Prepare to buy a lot of extra bags for it, because you'll be looking for excuses to use it. Any meats you think you can do well on the grill, you can knock out of the park with this thing and finish on a cast iron pan.
I've been doing steaks in this then finishing on a portable stove with cast iron outside. My barbecue is now giving me the side eye. We haven't spoken in a while.
I tried this last weekend. I made chicken for a salad. I just put some butter and lemon pepper for seasoning. It was moist and delicious. I threw in some carrots, butter, brown sugar and fresh thyme. Delicious. My friend wanted to take home the leftovers. Can’t wait to try streak!
Feature Product
- GOURMET QUALITY: Create restaurant quality meals right at home with precise sous vide cooking and temperature control (within 0.2 degrees) to retain natural juices and flavor of your meat, fish, vegetables, soups, desserts, and more
- NO OVERCOOKING: Magnetic-driven water circulation system cooks ingredients evenly, eliminating dryness or overcooked food, and seals in flavor
- ONE TOUCH DISPLAY: The LED digital timer display is sensor touch, for easy control. Temperature setting ranges from 104-194°F with a time range from 10 minutes to 72 hours
- LARGE CAPACITY: The perfect kitchen accessory for picky eaters, larger families, or entertaining - make a variety of items at once in the 8.5qt space! Makes a great wedding or new home gift (Add to your registry NOW!)
- INCLUDES: Backed by a 1-year manufacturer warranty (2 year if you register product) and includes a hand pump vacuum sealer, 10 sealer bags, recipe book and recipe database access
Description
Create a gourmet, restaurant-quality meal in your own kitchen with the Dash chef series digital sous vide. Precise temperature control with a magnetic-driven water circulation system allows the ingredients to cook through while maintaining moisture and heightening the flavors. The Dash chef series digital sous vide produces consistent, tasty results that actually reduce waste as the food retains its natural juices and is precisely cooked to the perfect level of doneness. The appliance brings an ingredient to a certain temperature and keeps it steady, eliminating the possibility for overcooking. As a result, a steak that is cooked in your sous vide will hold its volume, moisture, and lock in the savory flavor of the meat, while a steak that is pan-cooked loses up to 40% of volume as it Dries out.
So far so good. Only bummer is It only does Fahrenheit. At least as far as I could tell. I love the heavy lid and the fact that it doesnt pull much energy. It is a bit shallow but Good enough for me. I have a ChefSteps and Kitchen Gizmo when I need a deeper vessel. The price is good and came well packaged.
Don’t really like name brands on my appliances but this is a great water bath ! So many uses in my laboratory
Love this thing I've been using it almost daily for a few months now and it's the best cooking device I own I put everything else away after I got this!
What I like is the stable temperature that I’ve observed over 36 hours of making a roast. However, the temperature scales in the accompanying literature do not fit my cooking style. I now refer to internet recipes that require much lower temperatures. Also, I have to use smaller cuts of meat but it’s not a big issue. Other than that, the unit is self contained, enclosed, no mess, no fuss, and very quiet. I’ve cooked a roast and two sets of eggs, hard boiled and soft. I’m still learning its nuances, specifically picking the right temperature for the food I’m cooking. I’m impressed overall.
The Sous vide is so easy to set up and includes some great recipes. So far I have only used it to make some perfect steaks. Restaurant quality if I do say so myself! Looking forward to getting brave enough to try some other recipes. It is so convenient and easy that I really have no excuse!
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