Anova acquisition could mean a sous vide chicken in every pot
Appliance giant Electrolux bought the cooking startup for $250 million.
You might see even more smart cooking gadgets at your favorite retail outlet soon thanks to industry giant Electrolux's purchase of popular sous vide maker Anova.The $250 million acquisition allows the smaller company to continue as a brand with Electrolux's resources and reach.
Anova makes a connected, wand-like gadget that perches on the side of a pot. As you cook the food in a sealed bag in a water bath, the wand keeps the temperature stable as long as needed. Proponents of this recently-revived slow-cooking style claim that it makes perfectly-cooked food that tastes amazing, while critics downplay the results. The newfangled connected devices, like those made by Anova, let you range a little farther from your kitchen while the meal takes its sweet time to finish.
You can already purchase an Anova sous vide system from places like Amazon, Best Buy and Target, but you might start seeing them at even more big chains like Walmart, Sears and Bed, Bath and Beyond. Don't be surprised to see prices drop below the $99 entry point and into impulse-buy territory.
The power of a big appliance company goes beyond distribution channels and economies of scale, though. Electrolux promises to help Anova bring more kitchen gadgets to life, creating an entire kitchen full of smart, easy to use devices to fill your home with like Anova's smart oven coming later this year.
If you haven't had a chance to slowly cook your food in a bag for hours on end, your time is coming. With the joy of sous vide capturing the attention of massive appliance manufacturers like Electrolux, even non-foodies might pick one up.
