Back in town & time to party!
Update on the DREO Chefmaker:
1. Got it in, played around with it
2. Very nice as an airfryer. Most only hit 400F & are loud. This is 450F & is SUPER quiet!
3. The sous-vide function works via pre-programming, no customization. So you can't do a steam-baked potato or a Combi grilled cheese sandwich with steam (comes out crispy!) like the Anova can.
Tips:
1. The key is to make sure the meat is 1.5" thick because it sous-vide's it using steam & then air-fries it.
2. I've had luck air-frying steaks for 6 minutes, flipping it, THEN running it on the pre-programmed cycle. 450F is pretty low for a fan pushing air to get a "real" crust on meat.
3. The best luck I've had is using a separate wireless thermometer to know when the sous-vide process is finished, then searing it in a cast-iron pan myself rather than letting it try to air-fry the crust. Waaaay better results this way.
Verdict:
1. At $360, it's a pricey machine. There is no manual sous-vide control & it doesn't alert you to the different steps, like if you want to sear it yourself.
2. Adding a BYO wireless thermometer helps ($70+), but you're still limited to only the protein options the menu has.
3. It's very compact, VERY quiet, has 450F max temp in a compact unit, lots of great presets. If you're willing to get your own wireless probe & sear the meat separately on a grill or skillet, it does a really great job. But right now the Anova is on sale for 20% off, so for like $100+ more, you can just get the do-everything model.
This is pretty neat as a second-gen residential countertop Combi appliance:
1. They've figured out how to make it compact, which is amazing
2. They've figured out how to make it quiet, which is incredible. It's the most quiet airfryer I've ever owned.
3. The temp goes up pretty hot for an airfryer. Not many of them hit 450F. I like to dump raw wings in & the higher temp = more crispy wings.
4. They have some sort of filtration system so it doesn't smoke out your house. SUPER nice! Great for rentals, dorms, etc.
5. The color screen has touch controls on each side (not a touchscreen itself). The menu is super easy. Feels like the future.
If they gave you more data from the built-in probe (like when a step is done, such as the sous-vide step), then you wouldn't need a separate wireless thermometer if you wanted to sear separately. If they let you use the water feature manually, that would give you full control over the steam times & temps. As it stands right now, it's a pretty good device that has the potential to be great, and can be made better with a couple process tweaks (wireless probe & DIY sear). Within those parameters, I've been able to get some pretty tasty meals out of it, so if you need something advanced yet compact & are willing to go the DIY route, it's a pretty good unit! Otherwise the Anova is 20% off right now & is a much larger, more capable device.