Sous Vide Tech

UX Research Project

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Project Goals:

The intention of our study was to learn more about the attitudes, behaviors, responsibilities, and interpersonal relationships of smart cooking device users.

• Attitudes: Understanding what they think, feel, and say

• Behaviors: Understanding what they do and how they act

• Responsibilities: Understanding their responsibilities and accountabilities within their households

• Interpersonal Relationships: Understanding how they relate to and interact with others in their households

We were interested in the actions, appearance, and behavior of participants and how they change over the course of the interview

We wanted to learn about what our participants’ perspectives and the actions they take in the physical space settings of their cooking area.

We also wanted to better understand how and where our participants like to cook, and the composition and organization of their smart cooking devices within the larger kitchen setting.

Methodology:

We approached our research of people who use sous vide smart cooking technology using Grounded Theory Methodology. Our approach to using Grounded Theory involved identifying our area of interest, avoiding preconceived theories, focusing on data only, and the use of open coding to define and develop the categories of our research.

In general, our open coding approach included taking notes based on observation, recording interviews, gathering photographs, and often marking important sections and adding descriptive names or codes to it as a way to sift through the data (i.e. interviews) in effort to break it down into pieces —enabling our team to discover key relationships, similarities, and dissimilarities. Throughout our process, different parts of the data were marked with appropriate labels or codes to identify them for further analysis and allow our team to affinitize similar information and concepts to better understand the data and report those findings.

We utilized three primary methods for capturing data: experiential research and observation, photographic diary studies, and interviews.

Experiential research and observation consisted of our four researchers preparing a meal with a sous vide device and capturing personal observations about the experience. This researcher-led method was instrumental in helping us develop a better understanding of the technological landscape before engaging with our participants.

Participants were asked to cook with their smart cooking device at least once in the week before their interview and take photos of the experience with their camera or phone. They uploaded their photos onto a cloud-based storage platform, where we were able to access the photos.

We conducted in-person interviews with participants for 60 minutes about their attitudes, behaviors, responsibilities, and interpersonal relationships as they related to smart cooking technology. The interviews were followed with a 30-minute discussion of the photos provided by each participant. Interviews consisted of at least two researchers - one leading the interview and one capturing notes - and were also video-recorded for reference in the analysis phase.

We asked our participants to capture photos of at least one sous vide cooking session. We had them send us these photos before their interviews, and we pulled them up after the main interview to talk through them together - getting a better understanding of the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes from their sous vide cooking endeavors.

Analysis:
The interview data was transcribed and coded to prepare for thematic analysis and categorization to identify prominent themes, both dominant and outliers. We used Atlas.ti Cloud to code the interview notes and observations.

The photographs from the participants were also coded and placed into common categories or themes based on the participants’ intention to share with others and the descriptors used when referencing the photographs during the interviews.

After the category analysis, we constructed the insights into a theoretical framework and key supportive findings.

Findings:

• Sous vide is generally considered to consistently produce high-quality results without some of the inherent risks of more traditional cooking methods. With fewer variables and potential points of error or failure, people feel more confident in their ability to deliver satisfactory results.

• We found that overall, sous vide users love cooking with all kinds of methods! And they liked it even before they got their sous vide. They tend to be very interested in experimenting with novel methods and cooking less familiar foods, and spend a lot of time looking up new recipes to try out.

• The look and feel of the smart cooking technology is less complicated and conveniently participants could keep track of their cooking time through the notifications they receive on mobile phones and other devices. Smart cooking technology can cook really well just with a push of simple button and the user can be hands free and multi-task often. It consumes less time compared to traditional cooking and encourages the users to cook meal more often at home rather than take away at restaurants.

• Due to Sous Vide's slow cooking process there is often quite a bit of time you end up having available. Most of our participants saw this 'Set it and forget it' aspect as a positive feature. Allowing them to disengage from the kitchen and have more time for things that matter such as focusing on their guests, working out, and connecting with family members.

• There is also an added element that goes into planning that's associated time. The time you have available for cooking, the time the device will take to cook the food, and what will work best using this slow cooking process. This means thinking more intently about your meals, planning or preparing those meals in advance, and finding recipes that call for Sous Vide.

Recommendations:

This study provided insight into the lived experiences of active sous vide users, and may provide significant value in the marketing and product development of future sous vide devices.

Current messaging for the Chefsteps Joule and ANOVA (two major sous vide manufacturers) focuses primarily on “pro-level results” and “perfect food, every time” on their promotional websites. Our study suggests that experienced home cooks may not respond to messaging about succeeding in the kitchen, as it is not a pain point for them. Marketing towards convenience and freedom for other activities may be more relevant and desirable for this audience.

Additionally, our study indicated that participants use many other techniques and cooking instruments alongside their sous vide devices, and they frequently multi-task between the sous vide and other methods to create full meals. These findings may lend themselves to the development of future products or integrated services that guide home cooks through creating meals leveraging both smart technology and traditional cooking methods.

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Documents created:
Research Plan
Interview Guide
Observation Plan
Participant Plan
Final presentation
Full Report