New Toy: Breville/Polyscience Control Freak!

[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.   

[Kerry Beal]

4 hours ago, eugenep said:

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.   

Strangely my experimental bent doesn't want to take me down the road of trying this.

Edited October 29, 2019 by Kerry Beal (log)

[blackp]

I won't experiment as I am certain that it will not work.  The Maillard reaction which gives sautéed meat it's characteristic brown outside occurs between 300°F and 500°F.

Crank your Control Freak up to Sear using a cast iron pan and enjoy the steak!

[eugenep]

thanks for the tips but - excuse me for not clarifying - I'm not trying to get  a sear but use the skillet to warm the meat to 150 F (sorry not 140 F for chicken breast). 

 

Put oil in the pan 

But chicken breast in 

The pan heats to 150 F and oil heats to 150 F 

The chicken in the oil should heat to 150 F but the issues seems to be the thickness and whether or not the 150F will hit the inside on time (might take like 1 -2 hours) unless you cut it super thin 

 

I didn't want to use the word "pan heat the chicken" bc it might sound too weird or confusing and just use the word "saute" to describe the pan heat technique of cooking 

 

I"m aware that meat and vegetables brown at higher than the boiling temperature of water 212 F - sort of assumed that everyone that cooks know you can't brown meat in boiling water temperature 

 

 

There's this issue with drying out too. Proteins retain a lot of their juice a 150 F and the temp needs to go higher to squeeze the water out (so that's why I think the protein will stay moist at 150F)

The drying seems to come from the open air (like letting meat sit on the table too long) and dry heat from the fry pan 

I'm interested to see if the air and heat drying would dry out the protein in the 1 - 2 hour it takes for the heat to penetrate the thickness of the chicken 

 

** I have a feeling someone is going to tell me you can't pan fry something at 150 F because frying is technically done at 375 for optimal results and 150 F won't cut it. But I'm not trying to pan fry but "pan heat."   

Edited October 31, 2019 by eugenep (log)

[PositiveMD]

I wanted to post an update. Earlier this year, I had some issues with the control freak constantly tripping my circuit. 

 

I moved to a new place and I'm happy to report I haven't had any issues with any of my induction hobs tripping the circuit. 

 

I have another thing I wanted to ask y'all. How have you been cleaning your control freak? I have this white circle on mine and I'm not sure what the best way to clean it.

 

 

 

 

[gfweb]

On 10/31/2019 at 10:21 AM, eugenep said:

thanks for the tips but - excuse me for not clarifying - I'm not trying to get  a sear but use the skillet to warm the meat to 150 F (sorry not 140 F for chicken breast). 

 

Put oil in the pan 

But chicken breast in 

The pan heats to 150 F and oil heats to 150 F 

The chicken in the oil should heat to 150 F but the issues seems to be the thickness and whether or not the 150F will hit the inside on time (might take like 1 -2 hours) unless you cut it super thin 

 

I didn't want to use the word "pan heat the chicken" bc it might sound too weird or confusing and just use the word "saute" to describe the pan heat technique of cooking 

 

I"m aware that meat and vegetables brown at higher than the boiling temperature of water 212 F - sort of assumed that everyone that cooks know you can't brown meat in boiling water temperature 

 

 

There's this issue with drying out too. Proteins retain a lot of their juice a 150 F and the temp needs to go higher to squeeze the water out (so that's why I think the protein will stay moist at 150F)

The drying seems to come from the open air (like letting meat sit on the table too long) and dry heat from the fry pan 

I'm interested to see if the air and heat drying would dry out the protein in the 1 - 2 hour it takes for the heat to penetrate the thickness of the chicken 

 

** I have a feeling someone is going to tell me you can't pan fry something at 150 F because frying is technically done at 375 for optimal results and 150 F won't cut it. But I'm not trying to pan fry but "pan heat."   

 

Would the chicken be covered in oil?