Sous-Vide Home Cooking: Really Slow Food

Fancy sous vide cookers are targeting home chefs. But is a 24-hour steak worth the wait?

Andy Richter for TIME

PolyScience immersion circulator ($1,129, pot not included)

I have been to the edge of culinary innovation, and I want my Easy-Bake oven back.

I recently spent an entire week eating only food that I had shrink-wrapped and cooked in tepid water for an inordinate amount of time: eight hours for a chicken breast, 24 hours for a steak, 36 hours for short ribs that came out rare. Although this culinary method may sound fit for a survival camp, a growing number of foodies are embracing sous vide , French for "under vacuum," as the ideal way to slowly cook meat in its own juices.

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