horseflesh

Got my Control Freak! I have just barely plugged it in but it's obvious it is going to require a very different way of doing things. What do you set if you want water to boil ASAP? Maximum speed and 212F / 100C? What if you want water just barely simmering? Technically, that water is still at 100C right? I can imagine the true target temps would depend on your pan too, and how it conducts heat to the central spot. Edit: I see it prints guides like "simmer" and "high" so for crude tasks like boiling and simmering you can just go my the overall percentage?

The Control Freak is 20% off at Breville's online shop right now ($1200). I have a unique coupon that actually stacks and brings it down to $900. I gotta sleep on it, but this may be the year I pull the trigger. I doubt I'll find a better price. EDIT: I did it. Now, where are cool Control Freak user groups and resources, besides this thread?

Hey @Steve Irby one more quick question about your JVR... I cannot figure this out from the manual. When it is pumping down, can you use the Stop button to stop pumping and immediately begin sealing? Or, does it only abort the cycle? I am hoping for the former as when sealing liquids I find it easiest just to watch what is happening, and seal instantly if there is an overflow risk. Edit to add: If I understand this JVR video correctly, at 5:27 he says that hitting the Down button during pumping will skip ahead to sealing. That's exactly what I was hoping for.

This is great to hear, thanks!

@Steve Irby another year has passed, how do you like that JVR Vac100? My mom is looking for a vacuum sealer, so I'm looking for recommendations on units a lot like this, with a good compromise between counter space occupied and interior space... And an oil pump. I've been out of the chamber sealer shopping game since I got my Minipack about 10 years ago so I don't know what the current value picks are... If anyone has suggestions, please lay 'em on me.

That pic from the Prodigy manual could be done in the Control Freak, it's just software if you have the right sensors, which the CF does. In fact, not having a CF yet, that is the kind of thing I thought it also did in addition to temperature control.

Thanks for the alert @CanadianHomeChef. Man, I have been wrestling with this decision for a couple of years now... Quick, someone come tell me that a Hatco or a Vollrath is a better value...

Man, nothing is more confusing than induction... People seem to love it or hate it. So far, I hate it! I have to live with it though since I am currently without a range and do all my cooking with one miserable cheap induction cooktop. (If my experience with what I have wasn't so bad I would have long ago upgraded to a CF or other commercial grade cooktop.) Can anyone recommend a non-stick frying pan with really good induction performance? I have a Circulon Symmetry in my cart but if there is something objectively better I want to know about it. I don't care how much it costs, I just need one righteous nonstick pan to make the best of my induction life.

I wish I could trial a good induction cooktop with optimum pans. I could get a lot of use out of one but my only experience has been terrible and it makes me skeptical of even the nice models.

Wait, so if I want the Control Freak to keep a pot at a certain temperature, that cannot be done without use of the mobile app?! If that's the case it's an absolute deal killer and I'm unsubscribing from the thread, LOL.

Ah yes that makes sense... I don't have a 20A circuit for it either. Thanks for verifying the warranty info. Nice looking unit, I need to read some more about it.

Is this your guy? And, do you happen to know if this is one of those brands that won't provide a warranty for home use? https://www.webstaurantstore.com/hatco-irng-pc1-18-rapide-cuisine-stainless-steel-black-countertop-induction-range-cooker-120v-1800w/413IRNGPC118.html

I'm definitely going to check it out. I like the idea of saving a thousand bucks, let me tell ya.

Thanks @jaw. Interesting that the CF is fussy about cookware... that's a trait I already have on my junky cooker and I is not awesome. Do you have an induction cooktop you favor? I cook outside a lot -- especially now that I am mired in a months long warranty issue with NXR -- and I need something decent... I am limited to 120V, though.

Did you ever figure out if the Control Freak would play nice with your carbon steel pans? I realize carbon steel is not the best for induction but I too want to know how it will perform on the CF. I can live with a compromise... but if the CF is unsuited to even simple tasks like heating up a quesadilla in a CS pan that's something I need to know before I bite. Based on the teardown image and the CF dimensions the coil looks to be between 8-9" across, which is MUCH bigger than the coil in my current junky induction cooktop... it makes a vicious 3-4" hot spot in the middle of a carbon steel pan. It's nearly useless. But it is also perhaps the worst induction cooktop money can buy.

A few weeks ago my NXR gas range/cooktop bit the dust... gas leak! While I've been dealing with the warranty rodeo I have been doing all my cooking outside on a pretty junky induction cooktop. And I hate it, I absolutely hate it... primarily because the heating element is really small, so pots tend to get a hot spot in the middle. It's especially bad with cookware that doesn't have a good heat spreader, like carbon steel... or especially cast iron. It's almost unusable with either of those kinds of pans. I've been eyeing the Control Freak for a couple of years but with my new recent induction experience I am increasingly gun shy simply because it is an induction cooktop. Those of you who have and love the Control Freak, I would love for you to tell me that there's nothing to worry about in this regard. Or if it IS a drawback, knowing that up front would be a big help too. It would be too bad if I could not use my nice Darto carbon steel pans on the Control Freak, but it might not be a deal killer.

Yep, exactly. I have 2 other sous vide gadgets but could maybe see myself using this. I would likely dedicate counter space to it, if I had one... and hooking up its circulator MIGHT be easier, or as easy, as hooking up one of my other gizmos. But, without more reviews, it is too risky. Even the Control Freak seems to have some quirks at 3x the cost.

Here's a Kickstarter for a product like the Control Freak, the Njori Tempo. Looks like it will be about $500. Looking forward to seeing a comparison review. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/njori/njori-tempo-the-smart-cooker-for-adventurous-chefs

That looks great! I have got to find a proper ice cream maker, this is killing me.

@ErwinR -- I've made overnight caramelized onions in a slow cooker but since you have a CF I would try 300F and save some time. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1azCSYUU4I25VbHfaPnhOvF_fHplbhMvy/edit#gid=1369374172

Man, I am gonna have to get a CF, aren't I? One of my interests is making candy sugar syrup in various grades of darkness, as it is an important ingredient in some kinds of beer... and I am an avid homebrewer too. The CF looks ideal for that.

If you have not set the emissivity specifically for the kind of surface you're measuring, it can be way off.

I'm here because I have that opportunity and I am trying to figure out if it is worth it. I am a super serious home cook with other crazy appliances, so I am definitely interested in the Control Freak. I can't yet tell if it's merely very cool, or life changing like sous vide was. If any fans or haters want to weigh in I am really interested in what you have to say!

I'd expect to need more time for a 4 mil bag, yep, though I don't know how much. (FWIW I decided against stocking thicker bags. I have learned what kind of uncommon foods benefit from a thicker bag to resist punctures, and for those items, I just double up 3 mil bags. That's been working out well for me.)

@m61376 can you post a seal photo? Hard to say if you are over or under, but my guess is your seal time needs to be longer. I would seal 3-4 ice water test bags each at + 0.1 second. Check the seal bar each time and look for discoloration, because if you go way over where you need to be, you can scorch it. I think these machines are all different. My Minipack came preset to 2.2 sec but I found that was too long for my 3 mil bags. It overcooked and weakened the seal, and scorched the Teflon tape. 1.8 is what I use now.