Gadgets

I’ve recently been fascinated by the idea of sous vide cooking – a method of slowly cooking vacu-sealed foods in a precisely controlled water bath to achieve the optimal doneness.  Last year, Sur La Table started carrying the world’s first “home” sous vide cooker, the SousVide Supreme.  This was fantastic, since commercial sous vide cooking machines cost north of $2000.  However, the home model (priced at $450) is still a steep investment for something that essentially just keeps water warm.  I was determined that I could build a better device on-the-cheap.

Behold, the $75 DIY sous vide heating immersion circulator!  By scrapping together parts that are readily available on eBay and Amazon, I was able to build a self-contained device that heats and circulates water while maintaining a temperature accurate to .1 degree Celsius (yes, point one degrees!).  And unlike the SousVide Supreme, my device can be mounted onto any container (up to a reasonable size, perhaps 15 gallons) allowing you more room to cook, if needed. 

To build your own device, you’ll need some basic soldering skills, the list of stuff below, about 6 hours of free time (plus time for glue to dry) and the can-do attitude of a geek who doesn’t want to pay $450 for a water heater.  Click the “more” link for complete step-by-step instructions.

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I’m a huge geek, and I love carving pumpkins.  So, when I found out that I had access to a 30W CO2 cutting laser, there was only one thing that came to mind: laser-carved pumpkins.  Every October, I spend a few weeks in the lab working on new techniques for perfecting my laser pumpkins.  Below is a research paper I wrote detailing the process.  It might be a little dry, but the results are, well, scary!  And, in case you haven’t seen the results, here are my laser-carved creations from the past few years.

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I just came across this Electrochef concept all-in-one kitchen design, and I think it’s a marvelous look into the future, from the past.  I’m not sure if the designer imagined us all living in Blade Runner / 5th Element-style high-rise cubby apartments, or if he just never imagined cooking paella (requires a big pan).  Either way, I’m pretty sure that oven, with it’s shiny white enamel and rounded corners, was the inspiration for the first-generation iPod. 

[Dornob via Gizmodo]