Just spent 4 hours fixing a broken immersion circulator seal before a 60-cover service

The seal on my main circulator gave out right as I was about to drop 30 bags of short ribs in for a 48-hour cook. I had to strip it down, find a replacement part in my kit, and reassemble it while my sous chef handled prep. Has anyone else had a circulator fail at the worst possible time and what's your backup plan?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_viola2mo ago

Honestly that's just part of the job, you should always have a backup circulator ready to go.

josepha322mo ago

You're absolutely right. I learned that the hard way when my main unit died right before a big show. Had to run to the shop across town and beg to borrow theirs. Now I keep a cheap but reliable backup in my case at all times. It's saved me more than once.

kellys782mo ago

Can't argue with that logic... a backup is just cheap insurance.