The first thing you need to consider when choosing kitchenware is of course your cooking habits. But this time, the choice is easy. Whether you're a novice cook, a gourmet chef, someone who seldom cooks or is always short of time, a sous vide cooker is no-brainer kitchen essential.

Sous vide or vacuum slow cooking technology was originally developed to improve the quality of hospital food while maintaining high-levels of nutrition, hygiene and cost efficiency. Slow cooking gradually made its way from hospitals to professional kitchens because of its ability to create the ultimate in taste and texture. Perfected by chefs over the years, the sous vide cooker is a reliable, no-fail piece of advanced cooking genius.

Sous vide cooking involves vacuum sealing ingredients and then immersing them in a hot bath at a specific temperature for long periods. This allows the ingredients to be heated evenly, so that they are not overcooked on the outside or undercooked on the inside. In addition, the ingredients never lose their moisture and flavour which often happens if cooked using steam or under high temperatures. The best flavours and nutrients are retained.

1. Taste

The flavour of the ingredients will not be lost due to high temperature heating, and your food will remain fresh and succulent. Simply put, meat tastes richer, seafood tastes sweeter and vegetables taste fresher. Every mouthful is a joy for the palate.

2. Healthier eating

Cooking at low temperatures reduces loss of nutrients or food disintegration. Slow cooking also preserves meat juices and maintains texture, even in lean cuts. And you can use less oil, salt, sugar or other seasonings to highlight the original flavour of slow cooking.

3. Reliable and easy to use

Traditional cooking methods are easy to learn, but difficult to master. However with a sous vide cooker, all you need to master is adjusting the temperature and cooking time! Before serving, fry or bake the surface of the meat or veg slightly. In this way, it’s easy to prepare meals while achieving the standard of a professional chef.

4. Convenient and time-saving

The sous vide cooker controls the water temperature and timing so there’s nothing you need to do after you’ve put in the ingredients. Just leave them to cook, freeing up more spare time. Those who never had time to cook in the past can prepare the ingredients in the sous vide cooker over the weekend and pop them into the fridge at night. Then break the ‘no home dinners' curse during the week. Cleaning is a breeze too. The sous vide cooker and water dispenser do not come into direct contact with the ingredients so there is no smell or grease. Simply rinse them clean after use.

5. Value for money

Sous vide cookers used to be large, expensive and only found in high-end restaurants. With the advent of the compact and space-saving sous vide cookers, however, you can now enjoy gourmet dishes at home any time. Sous vide cookers start from just a few hundred dollars up to a few thousand dollars for the more professional models. Although the food takes longer to cook, sous vide cookers consume less energy than other slow cooking methods.

Although sous vide is a no-fail method of cooking, we would like to share a few tips with you:

1. Poor quality plastic bags release harmful substances during the heating process so always use food-grade vacuum sealers or airtight bags with specified heat resistance levels.

2. Prolonged food exposure at temperatures between 4°C and 60°C can lead to the growth of pathogenic bacteria such as Clostridium perfringens. The Centre of Food Safety (CFS) in Hong Kong recommends that the core temperature for slow cooking should be at least 60°C and the duration 45 minutes or more.

3. When adjusting the temperature manually, do not confuse °C and °F.

4. A home sous vide cooker is of course not as powerful as a professional model, so avoid putting too many ingredients in at the same time. For steaks, for example, it is best to cook only two pieces at a time.

5. If you are cooking meat using the slow cooking method, leave for 5 to 10 minutes afterwards to allow the meat fibres to reabsorb the juices before searing or grilling. Similarly, leave the meat for 5 minutes after pan-frying before carving.

6. Food stored in vacuum bags for a long time in the fridge are conducive to the growth of anaerobic bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes and Clostridium botulinum. Sous vide ingredients can be returned to the fridge, but should be consumed as soon as possible.

7. The sous vide cooker stick should be dried thoroughly after a simple rinse.

Although many sous vide cookers use airtight bags instead of vacuum bags, vacuum packaging is the most effective as it preserves the moisture, flavour and colour of the ingredients and allows the seasoning to penetrate the ingredients better. This is why we recommend the following vacuum sealers and vacuum bags. Use them to preserve food even if you are not using sous vide cooking method. Enjoy cleaner, more hygienic food storage as sous vide slows down the rate at which ingredients oxidise or spoil.