New Toy: Breville/Polyscience Control Freak!

[SantiagoDraco]

4 hours ago, CanadianHomeChef said:

Nice! I just recently put away my second control freak for counter top space. Plan is to only take it out when needed.... bet I'll have them both out by the end of next week

You're kitchen is oddly familiar. I just recently bought one of those giant wire shelves and put a bunch of pans and appliances on it. I also see you have a VacMaster, a Le Creuset bimaterial ladle, and a Breville Smart Grill I'm actually getting rid of my grill. Packed it away when I got the control freak as I find a large frying pan or grill pan works even better on it Just haven't sold it yet. 

 

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  

[CanadianHomeChef]

Woke up and found a link to this on the comment section of my website. Looks like an excellent resource: http://thecontrolfreak.breville.com/  (I think someone from Breville might be reading this thread and saw that there was a demand for this )

[ElsieD]

6 hours ago, CanadianHomeChef said:

Woke up and found a link to this on the comment section of my website. Looks like an excellent resource: http://thecontrolfreak.breville.com/  (I think someone from Breville might be reading this thread and saw that there was a demand for this )

 

I saw this too.  It's great!

[Anna N]

8 hours ago, CanadianHomeChef said:

Woke up and found a link to this on the comment section of my website. Looks like an excellent resource: http://thecontrolfreak.breville.com/  (I think someone from Breville might be reading this thread and saw that there was a demand for this )

Can one access this without being a Facebook member?

[Kerry Beal]

I can't seem to make it work - I have Breville login but it hangs up.

 

 

[CanadianHomeChef]

So I received a complimentary Hestan Cue to test out. It arrived the other day, but I’m in Italy. Will be back in Canada in a couple weeks and will test it out.  Any specific questions that anyone would like answered as part of the review?

[CanadianHomeChef]

I will probably do a comparison between the OneTop, Cue, and CF. While I was disappointed by the OneTop, the Cue seems to have a good reception amongst owners. Excited to try it out. 

[Kerry Beal]

I’d like you to run it side by side with the Control Freak and compare the results. 

[KennethT]

1 minute ago, Kerry Beal said:

I’d like you to run it side by side with the Control Freak and compare the results. 

Yes... this... definitely!

[Kerry Beal]

Poached eggs, deep fat frying temp recovery

[CanadianHomeChef]

5 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

I’d like you to run it side by side with the Control Freak and compare the results. 

 

The thing is I don’t have two Hestan pans. So I think to be absolutely fair I’d have to run them separately.  But it isn’t like anyone’s going to use a Hestan pan on a CF. 

[CanadianHomeChef]

5 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

Poached eggs, deep fat frying temp recovery

 

I only have the frying pan,  not the saucier/chef’s pan. Should still be able to do poached eggs, but only shallow frying, if that, in the frying pan. I could use my own cookware but it won’t have precise temperature control.  

Edited August 15, 2019 by CanadianHomeChef (log)

[Kerry Beal]

3 hours ago, CanadianHomeChef said:

 

I only have the frying pan,  not the saucier/chef’s pan. Should still be able to do poached eggs, but only shallow frying, if that, in the frying pan. I could use my own cookware but it won’t have precise temperature control.  

 

That kind of limits your ability to truly test the unit. Perhaps you should suggest they provide the other pans so you can do a proper comparison!

[eugenep]

my unit has been making this zapping/whirring sound lately when I use a small fry pan - 8 inches - when it's on intensity FAST 

 

and the pool of cooking oil on the pan vibrates a little almost like the energy is conducted through the pan and into the oil 

 

not sure if anyone has this happen - like this zap zap noise - almost piercing? or what's going on? 

[KennethT]

43 minutes ago, eugenep said:

my unit has been making this zapping/whirring sound lately when I use a small fry pan - 8 inches - when it's on intensity FAST 

 

and the pool of cooking oil on the pan vibrates a little almost like the energy is conducted through the pan and into the oil 

 

not sure if anyone has this happen - like this zap zap noise - almost piercing? or what's going on? 

I don't have one of these (yet) but when you hear something like that, it reminds me of arcing - I wonder if there's a loose connection in there or something causing that.  Can you contact Breville/Polyscience?  I'm pretty sure something like that is not normal, and potentially could be dangerous, especially if the arcing gets to the point where it can either start a fire, or let's power touch the metal case which could be shocking.

[CanadianHomeChef]

That zapping will happen on my control freak, full size induction range, and other portable units. I tend to find it happens more on smaller pans when the output is very high. It seems to go off and on. When I first got induction I was told this sometimes happens with clad pans due to space between each layer. I’ve never let it worry me. 

Edited August 15, 2019 by CanadianHomeChef (log)

[SantiagoDraco]

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

[KennethT]

I was just doing some more reading about the Hestan Cue... I'm not a huge fan of how necessary it is to use an app to control it.  Plus, the idea that in order to take advantage of it you need to use their pans - it doesn't seem like they have that many choices - just 2 pans?  Still, I'm curious what you think about it after using a bit, especially compared to your experience with the control freak.

[SantiagoDraco]

On 8/16/2019 at 6:27 PM, KennethT said:

I was just doing some more reading about the Hestan Cue... I'm not a huge fan of how necessary it is to use an app to control it.  Plus, the idea that in order to take advantage of it you need to use their pans - it doesn't seem like they have that many choices - just 2 pans?  Still, I'm curious what you think about it after using a bit, especially compared to your experience with the control freak.

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.

[kelvie]

New to this forum...

 

Has anyone tried deleting or editing a program? The manual says I should be able to use the right two buttons to edit or delete a program, but when I select a program, the two icons don't show up on the right side like it shows in the manual.

 

[edit: fired it up again today cold, and it seems it lets me edit it now. Perhaps it doesn't work during cooking?]

Edited October 2, 2019 by kelvie (log)

[eugenep]

QUESTION: to get precis temperature in meat like fish fillet or chicken breast, I create a sous vide using the CF thermometer and pot of water 

 

Has anyone tried to get this precise meat temperature using a saute fry pan - like set it at 140 F and then put a chicken breast on it ? 

 

I'm guessing this works but it's going to take like a 1-2 hour sear for the low heat to penetrate the thickness of the meat. 

 

This is because heat can transfer easily in water but not through meat and air (without a water medium)??? 

 

I never tried precision meat searing but has anyone tried it? And do you think my above picture is correct (like it works but it'll just take 1-2 hours)?

[KennethT]

8 minutes ago, eugenep said:

QUESTION: to get precis temperature in meat like fish fillet or chicken breast, I create a sous vide using the CF thermometer and pot of water 

 

Has anyone tried to get this precise meat temperature using a saute fry pan - like set it at 140 F and then put a chicken breast on it ? 

 

I'm guessing this works but it's going to take like a 1-2 hour sear for the low heat to penetrate the thickness of the meat. 

 

This is because heat can transfer easily in water but not through meat and air (without a water medium)??? 

 

I never tried precision meat searing but has anyone tried it? And do you think my above picture is correct (like it works but it'll just take 1-2 hours)?

I don't think meat would brown at 140F, no matter how long it sits there.  Plus, it would take a lot longer to cook through this way since you're only getting heat from 1 side, as opposed to SV where the contact is on all surfaces.  As the penetration time goes by the square of the thickness, heating from one side only would take 4 times as long to penetrate all the way to the top side - I think it would be really dried out by that point, as well as spend an inordinate amount of time in the danger zone, bacterially speaking.

[eugenep]

50 minutes ago, KennethT said:

I don't think meat would brown at 140F, no matter how long it sits there.  Plus, it would take a lot longer to cook through this way since you're only getting heat from 1 side, as opposed to SV where the contact is on all surfaces.  As the penetration time goes by the square of the thickness, heating from one side only would take 4 times as long to penetrate all the way to the top side - I think it would be really dried out by that point, as well as spend an inordinate amount of time in the danger zone, bacterially speaking.

 

I was thinking though - what if we just cut the chicken breast or fish thin so that the heat doesn't have to penetrate a thick cut - thereby reducing the pan frying time ? 

 

If we could saute the meat without creating a water bath (sous vide) every time we do delicate meats on the CF it would be a lot quicker. 

 

I use the precision saute pan heat for sauces - holandaise - and caramel (like 320 degrees?) and it's very precise, uniform heat that never ruins my sauce or burns my caramel and it's fast but I'm thinking the heat is always through a liquid medium (so heat transfer is fast) 

 

***Lastly, I think Americans are used to a long braise but not a long saute frying. If the temp is kept low at 140-150F the meat would not dry out owing to a long cooking time (just like how we sous vide meat at low temp without drying it out). It might be possible to do a lengthy pan-fry (saute) just like a long braise but I think Americans aren't used to the concept - like something so foreign or alien to how we cook (with saute being fast and braise being long) that it's just mere custom, habit that's preventing us from doing this method - of a braise style pan fry. 

Edited October 29, 2019 by eugenep (log)

[KennethT]

@eugenep I think there may be a flaw in the logic... meats don't dry out at 140 in SV because they are in a 100% humidity environment.  In an open pan, I imagine 140 would be more like a dehydrator.  By definition, saute uses high heat, not low heat.  Even a thin cut won't get any browning when cooked on a 140F pan.  Again, your reference to braising refers to a high humidity environment - this is what breaks down connective tissue.

 

What you are looking to do seems similar to how some advocate cooking a steak, but the method requires higher heat, and you flip the steak every 30s to 1min to cook evenly.

 

No matter how you slice it, I can't imagine getting a good result "frying" on a 140F surface... but don't listen to me - I'm no one of any authority - the true way to know is to try it!  And report back!!

 

[eugenep]

20 minutes ago, KennethT said:

@eugenep I think there may be a flaw in the logic... meats don't dry out at 140 in SV because they are in a 100% humidity environment.  In an open pan, I imagine 140 would be more like a dehydrator.  By definition, saute uses high heat, not low heat.  Even a thin cut won't get any browning when cooked on a 140F pan.  Again, your reference to braising refers to a high humidity environment - this is what breaks down connective tissue.

 

What you are looking to do seems similar to how some advocate cooking a steak, but the method requires higher heat, and you flip the steak every 30s to 1min to cook evenly.

 

No matter how you slice it, I can't imagine getting a good result "frying" on a 140F surface... but don't listen to me - I'm no one of any authority - the true way to know is to try it!  And report back!!

 

maybe I'll try it one day. But hoping someone else more experimentally inclined or maybe did it before might make it easier for the rest of us.