I'm going to buy my first ever freezer real soon. Have
never done this in bulk before

I will be breaking up large quantities of berries,
food, etc into smaller batches for freezing.

Should I use freezer bags, freezer containers, or one
of those vacuum packing deals?

In article >,
wrote:

> I'm going to buy my first ever freezer real soon. Have
> never done this in bulk before
>
> I will be breaking up large quantities of berries,
> food, etc into smaller batches for freezing.
>
> Should I use freezer bags, freezer containers, or one
> of those vacuum packing deals?

for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
eliminate all the air before sealing.

"Tamzen Cannoy" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> wrote:
>
>> I'm going to buy my first ever freezer real soon. Have
>> never done this in bulk before
>>
>> I will be breaking up large quantities of berries,
>> food, etc into smaller batches for freezing.
>>
>> Should I use freezer bags, freezer containers, or one
>> of those vacuum packing deals?
>
> for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
> No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
> single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
> solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
> soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
> eliminate all the air before sealing.

yup

Tamzen Cannoy > wrote:

>for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
>No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
>single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
>solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
>soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
>eliminate all the air before sealing.

I'm already buying frozen food.... including berries...
my question is more abt busting big packs up into
smaller ones

> wrote in message
...
> I'm going to buy my first ever freezer real soon. Have
> never done this in bulk before
>
> I will be breaking up large quantities of berries,
> food, etc into smaller batches for freezing.
>
> Should I use freezer bags, freezer containers, or one
> of those vacuum packing deals?

Have you frozen berries before?

http://www.pickyourown.org/freezingblueberries.htm

The website will recommend different storage methods.


--
Old Scoundrel

(AKA Dimitri)

> wrote in message
...
> Tamzen Cannoy > wrote:
>
>>for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
>>No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
>>single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
>>solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
>>soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
>>eliminate all the air before sealing.
>
> I'm already buying frozen food.... including berries...
> my question is more abt busting big packs up into
> smaller ones

Some schools of thought say to freeze berries beforehand and then vacuum
seal them. Others-particularly if you can control the amount of air being
taken out-is to vacuum seal them till the air is almost out of the bag. I
have a Tillia-you can vacuum seal wet ingredients and control the amount of
air being taken out.
One thing that I have found however. The pre-made bags are more durable than
then ones you make from a roll. I have had several instances where the bags
made from a roll 'pop' and they have to be resealed. This has happened with
two of the Tillia products.
If you are buying a vacuum sealer-I think most folks will tell you the
Tillia is the best-sign up at their website, and register the product. If it
dies in the first year, they will replace it. Do however take care of the
foam rubber piece in the machine-it only costs a buck (manufacturer only
item) but the shipping is about $6-found that out the hard way.
Also by signing up, you can get their specials on bags-cheaper than in the
stores and many times you cannot get the larger bags in stores.
You can also buy the plastic containers that can be sealed. I use them for
things like flour, sugar, etc., when I buy too much.
Buying in bulk and sealing them yourself is a big savings. And, you won't
get the freezer burn on meats that you would by putting meats into a Zip
Lock and squeezing out the air. It saves on freezer space as well.

One final thing: You buy say for example, a large bag of, oh, frozen peas.
You can divide them up into individual portions, vacuum seal them and then
just throw the bag into the nuker or boiling water. They say you can wash
out and reuse the bags, but I generally toss them as I use them mostly for
meats.

In article >,
wrote:

> Tamzen Cannoy > wrote:

> I'm already buying frozen food.... including berries...
> my question is more abt busting big packs up into
> smaller ones

If the berries you are buying are loose in the bag, leave them there and
just remove the quantity you need or want as you need or want it. No
need to repackage them.

If you are buying a carton of frozen strawberries frozen in juice, leave
it alone and use the thawed package within a couple days.

-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.mac.com/barbschaller , blahblahblog is back!
"rec.food.cooking Preserved Fruit Administrator
'Always in a jam. Never in a stew.'" - Evergene

"Kswck" > wrote in message
...
>
> Some schools of thought say to freeze berries beforehand and then vacuum
> seal them. Others-particularly if you can control the amount of air being
> taken out-is to vacuum seal them till the air is almost out of the bag. I
> have a Tillia-you can vacuum seal wet ingredients and control the amount
> of air being taken out.

They've really improved since I bought mine. I've had mine since 2001 and
you can't control the amount of air. I do have the cannisters and the hose
that still work well.

> One thing that I have found however. The pre-made bags are more durable
> than then ones you make from a roll. I have had several instances where
> the bags made from a roll 'pop' and they have to be resealed. This has
> happened with two of the Tillia products.

I've found the same thing with the rolls so I don't use them anymore.
Target has the large bags and I pick them up when I'm there.

Another thing that will cause the bags to puncture is if you freeze food in
it first before sealing, and I froze the food too long and there were sharp,
hard edges that poked through the bag while sealing. I have to freeze first
because mine can't seal anything with a liquid.

--
Cheryl

In article >, Tamzen Cannoy > wrote:
>In article >, wrote:
>> I'm going to buy my first ever freezer real soon. Have
>> never done this in bulk before
>>
>> I will be breaking up large quantities of berries,
>> food, etc into smaller batches for freezing.
>>
>> Should I use freezer bags, freezer containers, or one
>> of those vacuum packing deals?
>
>for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
>No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
>single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
>solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
>soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
>eliminate all the air before sealing.

Some years ago a friend had regular access to bulk supplies of
*excellent* prawns. They had to be bought in 10 kg lots, so he "got
smart" and bought one of those vacuum sealing machines so he could
make up packets of a more usable size to be frozen.

You're quite right with what you're thinking at this point...
It was actually a bloody *dumb* idea. You can't vacuum pack prawns in
plastic bags!

But the happy ending is that the family now use it when breaking down
a whole rump for freezing in convenient serving sizes, so they're
finally pleased with the purchase!

Cheers, Phred.

--
LID

On Jul 25, 5:05*pm, wrote:
> Tamzen Cannoy > wrote:
> >for non crushable foods like meat, etc the vacuum pack is the way to go.
> >No freezer burn. for fragile things like berries, freeze them first on a
> >single layer on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal them after they are
> >solid. Food will last a LOT longer if you vacuum seal it. Things like
> >soups and stews, though you can simply put in a freezer bag and
> >eliminate all the air before sealing.
>
> I'm already buying frozen food.... including berries...
> my question is more abt busting big packs up into
> smaller ones

Before you go whole-hog on a vacuum sealer (countertop type), buy a
$10 Reynolds Handi-Vac and some bags, and use those for a while. I
think they're great (I'm a single) and I don't have to worry about
counter space or cupboard space to store a regular sealer (and all the
supplies that go along with it).

N.