SantiagoDraco

Because 2 is better than 1! I use 1 daily, the second is more for when I'm cooking something in big batches where I may need to brown a lot of meat (say Green Chili Pork Stew, or Beef Stew, etc), or cooking multi-part recipes in parallel. I cook a lot of omelets and sauces. The second unit is also the one I take with me camping or for parties or events with friends. Overkill quite likely

Well, it's been a while since I last posted here. probably 3 years. I'm going on 4+ years for my 2 Control Freaks and both work like they did when they were brand new and look brand new as well. Probably the best purchase I've made for kitchen equipment ever. Well worth the price. How are you other old timers doing with your units?

Cast iron would be a bad choice since cast iron has very poor heat conductivity. Heat would be focused at the coil and not spread evenly compared to steel.

Just saw this. Interesting but not sure why anyone would pay those prices for the Vollrath over the Control Freak which to me seems to be a much more capable (and certainly better looking) product. I'm sure the Vollrath is rugged and all but the CF has it all, including an actual physical probe for the pan (very important for accurate temps) vs the under glass probe of the Vollrath.

That is the set. I have it myself and it's super. I don't have any issues with tipping.

So how's everyone enjoying their Control Freaks? I'm curious how they've worked for those that have used them for some time. My experience has been pretty stellar I have to say and I haven't used my gas range but maybe a few times in a couple of years as a result. I bought my first unit in 2018 and it's still going strong with daily use. Second unit bought a bit over a year ago. Other than great experiences so far if I had anything that I found to be an issue it would be that I had difficulty using it with one of the T-Fal nonstick thermospot 12" pans since the pan is not flat and is even less flat when heated. This caused the surface to "lift" far enough up in the middle that the probe did not have good contact and the pan would not heat. Gave the pan to a friend and have been using my Anolon and All-clad pans ever since then. For liquids I find I don't use the probe much with the possible exception of frying. I'm currently thinking about ways to make a lid that will have a slot for the probe to fit, maybe some kind of semi-rigid silicon lid that I can cut a slot in for the probe. For deep frying it's not an issue of course. Overall I think the CF has had the biggest impact on my cooking experiences than any other tool I've used.

I think the Paragon surface probe is likely shorter and maybe has less upward pressure/resistance. Also the mat on the Paragon likely helps reduce tipping by keeping the pan from sliding relative to the probe. To tip there needs to be some minute movement across the surface. Now if we are talking about tipping due to the weight of a handle being too much in relation to the pan that would be a different story. I have pans that tip on any surface. Not sure why they would even build them this way

Yep, you won't regret it. The Analon's are especially good for Induction as they have a copper core in the base which further enhances heat distribution. Fantastic pans.

If referring to the tipping issue it's due to the temperature sensor that protrudes from the glass top of the Breville. It has some resistance to it (it drops down as you put a pan on it) so that it remains in constant contact with the pan it is sensing the temperature of. Very light pans, or pans with an ungainly handle weight (in relation to the pan itself) can wobble. This would likely be somewhat of an issue on any surface for those pans but the sensor adds a bit of pressure that can be enough to cause the tipping.

Oops! Sorry I thought they were older pans with issues lol. Didn't mean to imply you made a bad purchase

To be honest? You probably need to replace the pans. I use the Anolon Nouvelle Copper Hard Anodized Nonstick skillets. Super pans for induction (or other). I also have a pair of All-Clad non stick skillets (8 and 10") and like them both. The smaller pan is a bit lighter and can tip slightly when empty. The only real solution to the problem you describe is a different pan. The Anolon Nouvelle are really great pans for the money.

Sorry for the late reply. Sorry, no idea

Are you using a non-stick pan? I generally do for poaching. Not that it's necessary. As for temps you should probably be closer to a very very low simmer with the Breville. But I'm not an expert though. I think the other suggestions are good also. I use some poaching cups that are non-stick for my poached eggs. The Breville will make for some wonderfully easy eggs benedict

I have several AC and Demeyere pans and they all work great. I have no D5. The D5 isn't as good as either the D3 or the D7 for heat distribution due to it having thinner AL layers than the other two. At least that's what I understand has been found in testing. This is more important for induction since the induction ring is not as big as the pan itself so heat conductivity is critical for even heat distribution. I have a 12" D7 frying pan, one of the best pans for high heat frying I've used. I also have the D7 dutch oven which is great if not using my La Creuset. But yeah too bad they discontinued it. If you can find a 12" D7 fry pan I'd recommend grabbing one. Otherwise I'd go D3 or if your budget is higher Demeyere. As for sets.... my recommendation is to never buy a set. Buy the pieces you need as you can afford them. Sets almost always have half of what you need and half of what you don't. I'd suggest waiting for the next All-Clad VIP sale on homeandcooksales.com where you can get some great deals on All Clad. I also highly recommend the Demeyere "Silver 7" line which is exclusive at Sur La Table. I love the conical saucier and saute pans.

Hmm, ok. Not sure what they got wrong but maybe there's more to the story than what I see on the free article pages.

I just read the article and don't see where they said they were equivalent. They said the MB can hold "consistent" temperatures but my reading of that is that they are not talking at all about precision but rather a general range. I did not read the paywall parts of the article but the write up was completely available for free. They also stated that only the Breville could do "sous vide" which essentially tells you the MB doesn't compare to the CF in terms of temperature control. That said it's likely a great cooktop for the money.

I've been using my Control Freaks for a couple years now (one since Jan 2018 and the second from mid 2019) and I just using either Windex or a general spray cleaner. I've had no issues and they look pretty much brand new. One of the key things is to be sure to not put a pan on if there's any moisture on the surface (or other gunk) or it will be harder to clean. However even when grease/oil splatters and makes it's way under it's pretty easy to clean the surface. Just don't let it go through a bunch of cook cycles without being clean. I clean thoroughly after every cook.

Sounds reasonable but like I say I am not an expert and haven't educated myself on the science of it. My point is that when Teonzo implied you can sous vide food directly in oil that is not true. The fish example is a specific technique and is not "sous vide".

I'm not a michelin star chef so I can't really comment from knowledge but my assumption is that this is a "special" case and does not mean this will work with other foods. I don't think that invalidates my point.

Sorry eugenep I missed this. For hollandaise I set the pan temp to around 150. It can vary but egg yolks cook at 170 (I believe) so staying under that is what you'd want to do. I'll go as low as 140 with just the yolks then bring that up after adding the butter but I won't exceed about 160 if I'm letting it sit for a while (and may even go lower than that.). Hope that helps.

I wanted to comment on a number of posts here I saw that talk about using the probe for liquids. I think there are some misconceptions. When using the probe the CF will energize the pan (heat) to raise the liquid temp to the target temp at the probe. This means that the pan itself will exceed that temperature for some time before the liquid does. When cooking sauces like hollandaise which can lead to undesirable results. You can end up overcooking the bottom portion of the food unintentionally. When cooking egg based sauces I never use the probe, I always use pan temp with slow ramp up. This means that the pan itself will never exceed the target temperature and you will never overcook the sauce. I regularly walk away from my heated yolks for hollandaise without fear of curdling. When cooking liquids such as stocks I tend to use the pan temp as well as the water temperature equalizes well and even though it may take longer to reach temp (because the CF will focus temp control at the pan not the liquid) the heat transfer within the water itself will assure that the overall temp reaches the target. I also use a lid on these which also helps. I've cooked tons of soups/stocks this way with no issues. Note that if speed is the issue then the probe helps as the CF will heat the pan faster as the liquid temp will read lower and the CF will apply more energy to the pan than when using pan temp. Again, I don't use the probe however. For deep frying I use the probe as maintaining a consistent temperature within the oil itself while cooking is key to a good fry. The probe does this. Do an experiment by cooking fried chicken in a pan without the probe and with and you'll see a better color and cook level on the chicken cooked in the pot with the probe. For chocolates I use pan temp not probe. Again, this helps prevent overshoot which is not just a function of ramp up speed but also a function of where the measurement is taking place. If the measurement is the pan then the CF will halt the energizing process when the pan reaches temp vs the probe which would halt as the food does. If you have a lot of chocolate in the pan you could end up with a higher heat than desired at the pan. Lastly always be aware of the heat rate setting to control the heat ramp up rate. If your recipe calls for precise temperatures that should never exceed a certain amount it's generally a good idea to use "SLOW" as the ramp speed.

You really don't want to cook something in oil like this. There might be specialized techniques that do this but they have a specific goal in mind. Here's the problem. The point of frying is to crisp the outside of the food quickly (like very quickly) which tends to "seal in" the food moisture and prevent the oil from soaking the food. You will have a disaster cooking in oil and pretending it's sous vide. Drop a sponge in the oil and you'll see my point Sous vide doesn't need oil either.... it would be an unnecessary mess. Water is used purely as the method of transferring heat directly to the food but is isolated from the food by the plastic bag which is the membrane. Oil COULD be used exactly the same way... but why? You'd have no benefit. It would just be a mess. If you want to cook a food to an exact temperature use traditional sous vide with water, not oil. And never put food directly in the oil unless it's at the minimum temperature to quickly cook the outside of the food. Otherwise you'll end up with food soaked in oil...not a pleasant result.

Completely agree. I'm curious to see how CHC's testing goes and that includes using regular pans (that support induction) vs the included pans. My guess is that temps will be wildly inaccurate if not using their pan and even then I'll be a bit skeptical. What a lot of folks don't realize about the CF is not just that it supports precise temps (and they are VERY precise) it also has far more sophisticated and capable power control electronics to assure that your temps stay in range and at the rate of variation you want. This is a pretty huge factor in many dishes. How many pans can you cook a hollandaise sauce and not have to think about the heat...and even feel comfortable walking away from it at almost any stage. I don't know of any that can do that.

The zapping is caused because of the way the magnetic waves are generated. It's not a smooth continuous signal instead it's very fast pulses. The frequency of these pulses vary based on the amount of power applied and the quality of the power control system in the unit. That combined with pans manufactured differently (such as the layers, etc) will cause the zapping sound you hear. It's not electricity arcing inside the unit or anything damaging like that

Love the ladle. I was skeptical at first but it's worked out pretty well so far. As to the grill... I haven't used it in about 3 years It may find a use one day but for now it's on extended leave. Have several other Le Creuset pieces off camera. Have an outlet store here and they have most pieces at around 40-50 off retail. I was using the All Clad 8qt D7 dutch oven quite a bit before I got the 9qt Le Creuset and I haven't looked back. The only piece I regret buying is the 6qt Copper Core saute... it's about 14" across and heat transfer across the pan is terrible...useless on the CF. I just get a hot spot in the middle. Oh well it looks good at least