How to Clean Your Sous Vide Immersion Circulator

Sous vide machines heat a water bath to cook food in a vacuum-sealed bag. This pristine setup makes you wonder, do I need to clean my sous vide immersion circulator, and if so, how do I do it?

Immersion circulators may not have direct food contact while cooking, but they are like any home appliance. Over time, dirt, limescale, and even grease can build up your equipment.

Without regular or thorough cleaning, these can lead to machine malfunction or destruction. Also, it’s unhygienic to let a dirty immersion circulator cook your food for hours.

Besides, sous vide cleaning and upkeeping are easy. It only takes a few minutes with cleaning agents you probably have at home.

Here’s everything you need to know to keep your sous vide machine in tip-top shape.

Why Clean Your Sous Vide Immersion Circulator

Your sous vide machine works with clean water and has zero contact with your vacuum-sealed food bag. So, why clean it?

• To prevent bacterial growth. A moist and unclean immersion circulator can encourage bacteria to grow and thrive. They can contaminate your water bath used for cooking your food. Check out this article on sous vide safety for more info.
• To remove water mineral deposits. Sediments in tap water can get into your sous vide machine. They usually accumulate as white, brown, black, or green deposits.
• To protect your sous vide machine. Any foreign substance, be it bacteria or limescale build-up, can affect the internal components of your immersion circulator. It may lead to inefficient heating, irreversible damage, or total breakdown.

Keeping your sous vide machine is essential to ensure food safety. We don’t want unwanted gunk floating and cooking with our food, even when sealed in a bag.

Plus, immersion circulators are kitchen investments. Regular cleaning and maintenance ensure years of quality performance.

How Often Should You Clean Your Sous Vide Machine?

There is no fixed time and frequency for cleaning your immersion circulator since it depends on your usage and water hardness. However, I do suggest the following general guidelines:

• Wipe it dry after every use. Make it a habit to completely dry your immersion circulator after cooking to avoid bacterial growth. Use paper towels or clean cloth, depending on the manufacturer recommendation.
• Deep clean it every 6 months. Descale and degrease your immersion circulator following your manual or the steps I’ll mention in the next section. You can schedule it based on your busiest sous vide days. For example, deep clean your machine any time after and months before Christmas.

Deep cleaning your immersion circulation does not have to be done twice a year. If a water bath accident occurs, like from a broken jar or leaky plastic bag, it is time to deep-clean your sous vide.

Steps and Procedures on How to Clean Your Sous Vide

Here are a few ways to clean your immersion circulator based on how dirty your device is.

Vinegar Bath

Setting up a vinegar bath is the easiest and default method for deep-cleaning your immersion circulator.

It works for sealed circulators and those with removable casings.

For this method, prepare a pitcher or jar large enough for your circulator to work, white vinegar, water, and dry kitchen towel. Next, follow these steps:

1. Clip your immersion circulator unit onto the pitcher or jar.
2. Fill the container up to the circulator’s fill line with equal parts of water and vinegar.
3. Plug in your sous vide machine, set it to 60°C (150°F), and run for 1 hour.
4. Afterwards, turn off the circulator and remove the vinegar bath from the container. At this stage, you can let the circulator cool down, remove its casing, carefully wash with water and dish soap, then rinse.
5. Next, refill the container with clean water. Put the circulator back, set it to 60°C (150°F), and run for 30 minutes.
6. Finally, turn the circulator off and use the kitchen towel to wipe it dry thoroughly.

Calcium, Lime, and Rust Remover

Some water mineral deposits are too stubborn for vinegar bath cleaning. The calcium, lime, and rust remover (CLR) is a more potent cleanser that could take care of these hard-to-remove stains.

However, CLR requires careful handling and may react with various materials. These precautions should be in the product package.

For this method, prepare a pitcher or jar large enough for your circulator to work, CLR, water, and dry kitchen towel. Here are the steps:

1. Clip your immersion circulator unit onto the pitcher or jar.
2. Fill the container with water and 10% CLR (or follow the package instructions for the correct water-to-CLR ratio).
3. Plug in your sous vide machine, set it to 60°C (150°F), and run for 1 hour.
4. Afterwards, turn off the circulator, then empty and rinse the container. At this stage, you can let the circulator cool down, remove its casing, carefully wash with water and dish soap, and then rinse.
5. Next, refill the container with clean water. Put the circulator back, set it to 60°C (150°F), and run for 30 minutes.
6. Finally, turn the circulator off and use the kitchen towel to wipe it dry thoroughly.

Tips to Maintain Your Sous Vide Machine

Learning how to clean your sous vide immersion circulator is easy and doable. Still, the ideal approach is to protect it from getting too dirty.

These maintenance tips and best practices should help:

• Use the recommended plastic bags for sous vide cooking. Also, use a vacuum sealer to ensure your food bag won’t leak.
• Keep the water level within the minimum mark. Sufficient water in the cooking pot protects your circulator from damage.
• Remove the immersion circulator from the water bath after use. Avoid leaving it off while soaking in hot water.
• Allow the immersion circulator to cool down and release any residual humidity. Covering it with plastic wrap will only trap moisture and encourage bacterial growth.
• Store the circulator in a dry place, away from sources of dust, oil, and electromagnetic fields. An induction hub is a usual electromagnetic field producer in the kitchen that can react with and damage your sous vide machine.
• Inspect your circulator for signs of wear and tear. Do a weekly or monthly inspection, depending on how often you use your sous vide machine. Test its performance and temperature calibration, too.

Final Thoughts

An immersion circulator is an excellent kitchen addition, especially if you want precise and consistent cooking results.

While sous vide does not have direct food contact, dirt, limescale, and other water mineral deposits can still accumulate over time.

So, to keep your device in good working condition, ensure you know how to clean your sous vide equipment properly. Also, apply the maintenance tips cited to protect your machine from damage.

Ready to start cooking sous vide dishes? Our sous vide machine buying guide and reviews have more details on which model to get.