A question: of science! and cooking!

[desperance]

So I have been thinking about cooking things slowly; and many of my recipe books are filled with things like "Preheat your oven to 300°F and bake until the interior temperature reaches 175°F" - and it occurred to me to wonder, in an overnighty kind of way: if my oven was heated to 175°F, and I put in f'rexample a ten-pound hunk of pork on the bone, how long would it actually take before the interior of the meat reached 175°F? Presumably it would have to eventually, wouldn't it...?

[Note: this thought-experiment assumes that the thermostat on the oven is accurate, or at least close enough for Chaz.]

Oh, and while we're talking about slowly cooking things, has anyone out there ever done anything with sous-vide and a vacuum sealer? And if so, how did that work out for you? Because I am kinda tempted, I must confess. But if you need professional-level equipment to get a decent result, then it's not going to happen this side of a lot of other toys.

Comments

[wordweaverlynn]

Dunno about sous-vide, but I love my crockpot, AKA slow cooker. It comes with several settings: High, Low, Keep Warm. Some crockpots are programmable. It uses less electricity than the oven, and it doesn't heat up the kitchen. I can make meltingly tender pulled pork, stews, and pot roasts. Also useful for winter parties; I can keep a pot of mulled cider hot all evening.