Gourmia GSV115 Review

Performance Comparison

Likes

There was only a single one of the best our tests where the Gourmia delivered a particularly noteworthy performance in sous vide testing: temperature stability. This sous vide delivered an essentially perfect performance in our stability test, maintaining a steady temperature within 0.1°F over 60 minutes. We tested this by vacuum sealing a data-logging thermochron in a bag held in the center of the water bath and recording the temperature every minute for an hour. Points were awarded based on the amount of time each sous vide held the water at a stable temperature, with our data logger showing no variations whatsoever.

Besides that, this product's interface and clamping system aren't amazing, but they are perfectly passable. The touch buttons are decently responsive, but the controls aren't terribly intuitive, forcing you to hit the key with a “play” symbol to start it heating and to start the timer counting down once the water is preheated.

It has the typical screw action clamp mount, but it doesn't spin freely, so it can take a bit longer to get it mounted securely than other products.

Dislikes

The Gourmia scored average or below in the remainder of our tests. It didn't heat water or recover its set temperature impressively fast, taking 56 minutes to heat 9.5 quarts of cold tap water to 147°F when other sous vides took less than 40 minutes. It also didn't do particularly well in our accuracy tests, having an average error of 0.89°F under when the temperature was set to 135°F and 1.12°F under when it was set to 147°F. We measured this by taking the temperature with a calibrated precision lab-grade thermometer in six different locations throughout the water bath.

The Gourmia also delivered an uninspiring performance in our circulation evaluation. We ranked and scored each sous vide machine by how long it took to disperse a small amount of food coloring injected into the corner of the water bath throughout the entire vessel to achieve a constant color shade. It was one of the slowest we have seen to accomplish this, taking over three minutes. The fastest models did this in 15 seconds or less.

Should You Buy the Gourmia GSV115?

All in all, we didn't find the Gourmia GSV115 to be one of the best sous vides. You can use it for cooking a tasty meal, but it pales compared to other models that cost less and are considerably worse than other products that don't cost much more. We would suggest you check out alternatives to this product. To be fair, it did cook more than acceptable meals on many occasions, but it can't compare to the premium models. It's one of the least expensive sous vides we tested, but it also delivered one of the lowest scores.

What Other Sous Vide Machine Should You Consider?

If price is the reason you considered Gourmia, we get it. Given the lower performance of the budget options, it can be challenging to find an excellent choice for a lower price. To find a reasonably priced selection with impressive test results, we recommend a product that costs almost twice as much. The best value sous vide is the VPCOK Sous Vide Cooker. With better temperature test performance and being easier to use, we think it is worth spending the extra money to avoid the frustration of a less expensive product.