Mellow Takes the Stress Out of Sous-Vide Cooking

For serious chefs and hardcore foodies, sous-vide is the crown jewel of modern cooking technology. The even heating, precision control, and moisture retention are all unparalleled among cooking methods.

Why? Because, in a sous-vide cooker, food is vacuum-sealed and heated at low, steady temperatures over several hours—or sometimes days. This method omits the Maillard reaction that creates the brown crust on meats and bread, but it ensures perfectly even doneness with no loss of moisture.

While interest in sous-vide has risen in recent years, it remains an expensive, time-consuming craft with a high barrier to entry. For sous-vide to really take off, what’s needed is a consumer-friendly gadget that doesn’t require an expensive vacuum-sealer or a big initial investment.

Well, Mellow may be just that. Set to launch next year, it's is an app-controlled sous-vide cooker that doesn’t require a vacuum sealer and can be pre-ordered for $400. That’s still pricey for novices, but compared to many other sous-vide cookers it’s quite a deal.

Through a smartphone app, users can remotely set cooking temperatures and update them according to their schedule. The app will also adapt to your preferences and customize recipes to taste.

The Mellow itself senses the weight of food items added to the water vat and requests instructions from the user. And because the temperature range extends from 41° F to 195° F, it can double as a food preserver.

If anything is going to get me into sous-vide cooking, it’s something like this: smart, app-controlled, elementary. I can’t say the bulky design would fit particularly well in my kitchen, but as far as functionality goes, the Mellow has some serious potential.

Pre-orders are expected to ship some time early next year.

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