Hi Everyone,

I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.

In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.

What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?

I would appreciate your insight greatly.


Take care,
Julie

Hi, Julie!

It sounds like it's definitely time for you to get a vacuum sealer. I
wouldn't want to go back to a time before we started to use one. Very
few freezer burn incidents due to bad bags/bad seals. Cheese lasts
longer. We don't have to throw away half a pound of bacon any longer,
etc. Are vacuum sealers perfect? Do they work for everything? No,
of course not. But they're light years ahead of zipper bags for
longer term storage.

We are on our second FoodSaver, not because the old one died but it
was getting slower and slower to suck out all the air in a bag. We
saw a sale on a newer model and grabbed it. Both the old and new one
are from Costco so the model numbers don't coincide with any other
vendor. I noticed on FoodSaver's website that all their current
models have a different "footprint" than ours has. The new ones are
more vertical to, I assume, take up less counter space.

I suggest getting a variety of bag/roll sizes if you go with a
FoodSaver. They offer canisters as well as other items but stay with
just premade bags (or rolls that you can make into your own bags) for
now. I found the canisters' seals to be unreliable after awhile.
Rolls are cheaper than premade bags and you can make custom sizes but
the premade stuff is convenient.

A few tips that should hold true for any brand you decide to get: when
vacuuming "wet" foods it isn't enough to use the "wet" setting on the
machine. If it's to be frozen, I always partially freeze the item
before I vacuum seal it. For something like bacon that you will put
into the fridge, place a folded paper towel in the bag a few inches
back from the edge in an area where the towel won't interfere with the
seal. That will trap excess liquid. The partial freezing I
mentioned works well for soft foods as well. Wait to vacuum seal
those foods when they're solid enough not to get squashed flat by the
vacuum.


bluechick

In article >, bluechick
> wrote:

> A few tips that should hold true for any brand you decide to get: when
> vacuuming "wet" foods it isn't enough to use the "wet" setting on the
> machine. If it's to be frozen, I always partially freeze the item
> before I vacuum seal it.

Amen. Fish, I always freeze flat first. Tried sealing bagels once
without freezing them... Bagel chips. Very dense bagel chips. I mean an
entire bagel 3/8" thick.

When I worked at Cabela's I had one customer tell me she even sealed
fresh lettuce and spinach, as it kept a lot longer that way.

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On 6/4/2014 7:42 PM, Dave Balderstone wrote:
> In article >, bluechick
> > wrote:
>
>> A few tips that should hold true for any brand you decide to get: when
>> vacuuming "wet" foods it isn't enough to use the "wet" setting on the
>> machine. If it's to be frozen, I always partially freeze the item
>> before I vacuum seal it.
>
> Amen. Fish, I always freeze flat first. Tried sealing bagels once
> without freezing them... Bagel chips. Very dense bagel chips. I mean an
> entire bagel 3/8" thick.
>
> When I worked at Cabela's I had one customer tell me she even sealed
> fresh lettuce and spinach, as it kept a lot longer that way.
>
It's been a long time since I caught enough fish to freeze any Dave. I
will have to try the sealing lettuce and spinach. As it is we bought
some of those green bags with silver incorporated into the plastic a
good many years ago. They work just fine for storing greens of any kind.
Fortunately we grow lettuce and other greens for a good half the year
and by the time they bolt we're tired of eating them.

How's the weather up there this time of year? I'm off Friday to see
about doing some hog and deer hunting at a friends place. Gives me a
chance to see an old friend I haven't seen in four or five years, we've
both been busy getting old. He turns 75 in July and I catch up again in
September, we have a ritual of calling each other on our birthdays.

George

In article >, George Shirley
> wrote:

> How's the weather up there this time of year? I'm off Friday to see
> about doing some hog and deer hunting at a friends place. Gives me a
> chance to see an old friend I haven't seen in four or five years, we've
> both been busy getting old. He turns 75 in July and I catch up again in
> September, we have a ritual of calling each other on our birthdays.

Summer is underway here. Everything is green. Have my name in our tag
draw for mule deer, elk and moose, but that's in the fall. I'm looking
for someone to go after hogs... They're vermin here and it's open
season year round. Other than that it's fishin' season. And road repair
season.

Great that you're still hunting at 75! Hope I am, too!

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On Wed, 04 Jun 2014 18:42:52 -0600, Dave Balderstone
> wrote:

>In article >, bluechick
> wrote:
>
>> A few tips that should hold true for any brand you decide to get: when
>> vacuuming "wet" foods it isn't enough to use the "wet" setting on the
>> machine. If it's to be frozen, I always partially freeze the item
>> before I vacuum seal it.
>
>Amen. Fish, I always freeze flat first. Tried sealing bagels once
>without freezing them... Bagel chips. Very dense bagel chips. I mean an
>entire bagel 3/8" thick.

Absolutely. Anything tender or wet gets frozen flat before vac'ing.

Ha at the bagels incident! I sure most of us have had similar
learning encounters like that with a vacuum sealer. First time I ever
vac sealed hamburger patties before freezing them, I never dreamed I'd
get squished squares of meat instead of patties. I quickly redid that
package and no one ever knew. Until now.

When we got our first Food Saver that featured a "wet" setting I was
so excited that I wouldn't have to use a paper towel in the bag with
whatever I was trying to seal. So, silly me put a half package of
bacon in the bag and hit the "wet" button. Bacon juice went into
every crack and cranny. Ewww. I learned my lesson though!

>When I worked at Cabela's I had one customer tell me she even sealed
>fresh lettuce and spinach, as it kept a lot longer that way.

Huh. Does it? I'll have to try that. Thanks for the idea!

On Tuesday, June 3, 2014 6:24:51 PM UTC-7, bluechick wrote:
> Hi, Julie!
>
>
>
> It sounds like it's definitely time for you to get a vacuum sealer. I
>
> wouldn't want to go back to a time before we started to use one. Very
>
> few freezer burn incidents due to bad bags/bad seals. Cheese lasts
>
> longer. We don't have to throw away half a pound of bacon any longer,
>
> etc. Are vacuum sealers perfect? Do they work for everything? No,
>
> of course not. But they're light years ahead of zipper bags for
>
> longer term storage.
>
>
>
> We are on our second FoodSaver, not because the old one died but it
>
> was getting slower and slower to suck out all the air in a bag. We
>
> saw a sale on a newer model and grabbed it. Both the old and new one
>
> are from Costco so the model numbers don't coincide with any other
>
> vendor. I noticed on FoodSaver's website that all their current
>
> models have a different "footprint" than ours has. The new ones are
>
> more vertical to, I assume, take up less counter space.
>
>
>
> I suggest getting a variety of bag/roll sizes if you go with a
>
> FoodSaver. They offer canisters as well as other items but stay with
>
> just premade bags (or rolls that you can make into your own bags) for
>
> now. I found the canisters' seals to be unreliable after awhile.
>
> Rolls are cheaper than premade bags and you can make custom sizes but
>
> the premade stuff is convenient.
>
>
>
> A few tips that should hold true for any brand you decide to get: when
>
> vacuuming "wet" foods it isn't enough to use the "wet" setting on the
>
> machine. If it's to be frozen, I always partially freeze the item
>
> before I vacuum seal it. For something like bacon that you will put
>
> into the fridge, place a folded paper towel in the bag a few inches
>
> back from the edge in an area where the towel won't interfere with the
>
> seal. That will trap excess liquid. The partial freezing I
>
> mentioned works well for soft foods as well. Wait to vacuum seal
>
> those foods when they're solid enough not to get squashed flat by the
>
> vacuum.
>
>
>
>
>
> bluechick

Thanks so much for your quick response, Bluechick. I appreciate your helpful hints. I will be at Costco next week so will check it out.

Julie

On 6/3/2014 6:31 PM, wrote:
> Hi Everyone,
>
> I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.
>
> In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.
>
> What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>
> I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>
>
> Take care,
> Julie
>
Foodsaver is a good brand but there are others out there that may be
better. If you go for the Foodsaver brand look around for a deal,
sometimes the company has a big sale but sometimes other stores have a
better deal. I'm on my third Foodsaver in twenty odd years of using
them. One I just wore out, another wasn't suitable for heavy duty and,
the last one I bought is about five years old and still going strong.
With that being said I am looking at other brands because Foodsavers
latest models make you waste about two inches of each bag you vacuum and
seal. The earlier models only used about a half inch of bag.

I quit buying the Foodsaver bags as I can get generic ones online much
cheaper by the fifty foot roll and make my own bags in short time.

Another hint is to reuse the bags. I rinse them well, then turn them
inside out and pin them to the top rack of the dishwasher with clothes
pins. I can use the down to where they will only hold a quarter cup of
something or a single wiener. I'm not really cheap, just thrifty. <G>

Personally I think vacuum sealers are the greatest invention for food
preserving that I know of. I have very expensive steaks in the freezer
that have been bagged for three years at least and are still good and
will be that way until they are thawed. I take out meat for two or three
days use and let them thaw in the still sealed bag on the bottom shelf
of the fridge and they turn out as good as new.

Another hint: We grow a lot of greens, I blanch them for two or three
minutes in boiling water, let them drain a bit, put the amount for two
people in a pile on a bun sheet, when the sheet is full I put them in
the freezer for at least an hour and then vacuum bag them. Really wet
stuff doesn't bag very well. For berries I wash, let dry, put them on
the bun pan and in the freezer for two to three hours, then bag them.
Once they're frozen they don't crush when vacuum sealed. Chop sweet
peppers, put them on a bun sheet, freeze thirty minutes to one hour,
then bag. I use a lot of the little bags on peppers as we don't need a
lot at any one time. I shred squash such as yellow summer and zucchini
and put them in small bags in one cup increments to make bread come
winter time. I put the open bags on the bun pan and let them freeze for
an hour then vacuum seal. Best way to do wet food without sucking water
into the machine.

Get a vacuum sealer, you will find it will pay for itself within a year
or less. If you need more info my email addy is not munged.

George

In article >, George Shirley
> wrote:

> Another hint: We grow a lot of greens, I blanch them for two or three
> minutes in boiling water, let them drain a bit, put the amount for two
> people in a pile on a bun sheet, when the sheet is full I put them in
> the freezer for at least an hour and then vacuum bag them.

Seal first. Blanch in the bag.

Give it a try, George!

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On 6/4/2014 7:43 PM, Dave Balderstone wrote:
> In article >, George Shirley
> > wrote:
>
>> Another hint: We grow a lot of greens, I blanch them for two or three
>> minutes in boiling water, let them drain a bit, put the amount for two
>> people in a pile on a bun sheet, when the sheet is full I put them in
>> the freezer for at least an hour and then vacuum bag them.
>
> Seal first. Blanch in the bag.
>
> Give it a try, George!
>
I will, the bags should be able to withstand two minutes at a high boil.

In article >, George Shirley
> wrote:

> On 6/4/2014 7:43 PM, Dave Balderstone wrote:
> > In article >, George Shirley
> > > wrote:
> >
> >> Another hint: We grow a lot of greens, I blanch them for two or three
> >> minutes in boiling water, let them drain a bit, put the amount for two
> >> people in a pile on a bun sheet, when the sheet is full I put them in
> >> the freezer for at least an hour and then vacuum bag them.
> >
> > Seal first. Blanch in the bag.
> >
> > Give it a try, George!
> >
> I will, the bags should be able to withstand two minutes at a high boil.

The Cabela's bags do, for sure.

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On Wednesday, June 4, 2014 5:43:43 PM UTC-7, Dave Balderstone wrote:
> In article >, George Shirley
>
> > wrote:
>
>
>
> > Another hint: We grow a lot of greens, I blanch them for two or three
>
> > minutes in boiling water, let them drain a bit, put the amount for two
>
> > people in a pile on a bun sheet, when the sheet is full I put them in
>
> > the freezer for at least an hour and then vacuum bag them.
>
>
>
> Seal first. Blanch in the bag.
>
>
>
> Give it a try, George!
>
>
>
> --
>
> �Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
>
> sobered, but stupid lasts forever.� -- Aristophanes

Thanks for the Cabelas idea. I do occasionally order from them so I will check it out.

Blanch in the bag, hmmm, that sounds like a good timesaver. When I get mine, I will try it.

Thanks,
Julie

On Tue, 3 Jun 2014 16:31:11 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

>Hi Everyone,
>
>I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.
>
>In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.
>
>What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>
>I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>
>
>Take care,
>Julie

Over many years we have used several makes of home vacuum sealers with
varying degrees of satisfaction.
Last year I decided to purchase one of the models offered by Weston.
http://www.westonsupply.com/Weston-P...-0501-w.htmone
It's a bit more expensive than some of the other brands. But, it's
solidly built, has many options such as hands free operation, seal
only, pulse vacuum for more fragile items, nice wide sealing element,
two automatic marinating settings, etc. I'm sure if we had purchased
it first we'd probably be money ahead.
The biggest drawback is that our dog doesn't like the sound it makes
during operation. A soon as we start sealing anything with it she
start whining and heads for the door to be let out.

Ross.
Southern Ontario, Canada

On 6/4/2014 8:49 AM, Ross@home wrote:
> On Tue, 3 Jun 2014 16:31:11 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
>
>> Hi Everyone,
>>
>> I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.
>>
>> In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.
>>
>> What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>>
>> I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>>
>>
>> Take care,
>> Julie
>
> Over many years we have used several makes of home vacuum sealers with
> varying degrees of satisfaction.
> Last year I decided to purchase one of the models offered by Weston.
> http://www.westonsupply.com/Weston-P...-0501-w.htmone
> It's a bit more expensive than some of the other brands. But, it's
> solidly built, has many options such as hands free operation, seal
> only, pulse vacuum for more fragile items, nice wide sealing element,
> two automatic marinating settings, etc. I'm sure if we had purchased
> it first we'd probably be money ahead.
> The biggest drawback is that our dog doesn't like the sound it makes
> during operation. A soon as we start sealing anything with it she
> start whining and heads for the door to be let out.
>
> Ross.
> Southern Ontario, Canada
>
First time I've seen the Weston Ross, doesn't cost enough more than the
Tilia version to make me flinch. I'm looking at giving my old one to
daughter, might get a Weston. Does it eat two inches of every bag like
the Tilia? That's one of my biggest gripes, the originals would seal on
about a half inch or less of bag.

George

On Wed, 04 Jun 2014 22:13:29 -0500, George Shirley >
wrote:

Snippage for brevity.
>>
>First time I've seen the Weston Ross, doesn't cost enough more than the
>Tilia version to make me flinch. I'm looking at giving my old one to
>daughter, might get a Weston. Does it eat two inches of every bag like
>the Tilia? That's one of my biggest gripes, the originals would seal on
>about a half inch or less of bag.
>
>George

Greetings George,

I think if you opt for the Weston model that I have you will be quite
happy. Over and above the features I mentioned and addressing your
concern, I just went and measured my Weston. The sealing strip is only
9/16 inch from the vacuum channel and the sealing strip is roughly
twice as wide that of our Tilia. Makes for a nice seal.
One caveat, you may have to buy Tilly Dawg a set of ear plugs if (s)he
is anything like our Ali ;-).

Ross.
Southern Ontario, Canada

On Wednesday, June 4, 2014 6:49:29 AM UTC-7, Ro...@home wrote:
> On Tue, 3 Jun 2014 16:31:11 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
>
>
>
> >Hi Everyone,
>
> >
>
> >I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.
>
> >
>
> >In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.
>
> >
>
> >What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>
> >
>
> >I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>
> >
>
> >
>
> >Take care,
>
> >Julie
>
>
>
> Over many years we have used several makes of home vacuum sealers with
>
> varying degrees of satisfaction.
>
> Last year I decided to purchase one of the models offered by Weston.
>
> http://www.westonsupply.com/Weston-P...-0501-w.htmone
>
> It's a bit more expensive than some of the other brands. But, it's
>
> solidly built, has many options such as hands free operation, seal
>
> only, pulse vacuum for more fragile items, nice wide sealing element,
>
> two automatic marinating settings, etc. I'm sure if we had purchased
>
> it first we'd probably be money ahead.
>
> The biggest drawback is that our dog doesn't like the sound it makes
>
> during operation. A soon as we start sealing anything with it she
>
> start whining and heads for the door to be let out.
>
>
>
> Ross.
>
> Southern Ontario, Canada

Hi Ross,

I will check out the Weston.

Funny about your dog Unfortunately we don't have a doggie anymore.

Thanks,
Julie

In article >,
> wrote:

> Hi Everyone,
>
> I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of
> fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in
> plastic containers.
>
> In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that
> maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags,
> one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this
> method.
>
> What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>
> I would appreciate your insight greatly.

I use an older model from Cabelas. Love it. Pack your veggies, seal,
and blanch in the bag. I use it for game, chicken, beef, pork, and
sausages, jerky, homemade liver treats for the dogs...

It handles up to 11" wide, and their newer ones will go to 15.

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On 6/4/2014 7:39 PM, Dave Balderstone wrote:
> In article >,
> > wrote:
>
>> Hi Everyone,
>>
>> I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of
>> fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in
>> plastic containers.
>>
>> In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that
>> maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags,
>> one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this
>> method.
>>
>> What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>>
>> I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>
> I use an older model from Cabelas. Love it. Pack your veggies, seal,
> and blanch in the bag. I use it for game, chicken, beef, pork, and
> sausages, jerky, homemade liver treats for the dogs...
>
> It handles up to 11" wide, and their newer ones will go to 15.
>
Where do you get 15 inch wide bags Dave, I've not seen any online? The
eleven's just aren't wide enough for some things I want to seal up.

GErge

In article >, George Shirley
> wrote:

> Where do you get 15 inch wide bags Dave, I've not seen any online? The
> eleven's just aren't wide enough for some things I want to seal up.

Cabela's stocks them.

<http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/brows...=SBC%3BBRprd15
77766>

djb

--
³Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness
sobered, but stupid lasts forever.² -- Aristophanes

On Tuesday, June 3, 2014 4:31:11 PM UTC-7, wrote:
> Hi Everyone,
>
>
>
> I am a lurker/sometimes poster who likes to freeze things. I freeze lots of fresh fruits for smoothies, as well as dinners that I usually freeze in plastic containers.
>
>
>
> In the past many years, I have frozen so much that I am now thinking that maybe a vacuum sealer would be useful to me. I have been using Ziplock bags, one inside the other, for a long time, but I think I need to change this method.
>
>
>
> What do you all have? What brand and what would you recommend to me?
>
>
>
> I would appreciate your insight greatly.
>
>
>
>
>
> Take care,
>
> Julie

Thanks so much, George. As always, your insights are very valuable to me. I particularly like the greens suggestions. I will be looking seriously next week.

Good idea about the various sizes of bags too.

I hope to let you know how this all works out.

Julie