Vacuum sealer -- worth it or not?

[LindaJay]

OK, I've been coveting one of these for a while now, and actually bought one as a gift at Christmas for DH's brother and SIL -- thought I see if they really like it and use it, then decide!

I've just finished reading another post when a couple of you all mention that you love this thing! Well, every time I go to Sam's, I eyeball it, but always back down -- so please advise. Currently the only kid is away at school, but we do buy our meat at Sam's (it's much better and cheaper than our local grocery!), so we would primarily be using it for meat. Is it worth it?

[sharbur2002]

Yes, yes, yes, yes!!!!!!!!

I have had mine for about 10 years! I do not want to live without it. I buy meat in bulk, divide it up and seal it up. I get no freezer burn at all. I also have the canisters and for Christmas my DH bought me the Square canister for marinading meat. I also cook extra food, freeze and then seal it up for use later. Right now I have a half a cheese cake in the freezer that I make a few months ago. We ate half and I froze the rest.

I almost burned my Food Saver up this past summer! lol I froze so much veggies out of the garden and everything was frozen in Food Saver bags.

I not only use it for food, I seal up all my important papers to preserve and protect them. I have sealed up a baby outfit that belonged to my husband. The outfit is 54 years old. I have some letters that my Grandmother wrote in the 1930's that I have sealed up. (no air gets in so the paper will not deteriate!) My DH is terrified that I will seal him up in one of the bags to preserve him.

[JoanOH]

It may have been my post you read earlier - but I definitely vote YES. My vac-sealer is a real money saver. I buy lots of things either on sale or in bulk, and seal them up. I also have the cannisters and use those for dry goods. Too bad we can't eat marshmallows anymore because those are FUN to seal -- they flatten out to a little disk until you open the bag and let the air back in! LOL

I also use it for portion control for DH. He loves LC bagels (he's on pre-maintenance) but will eat too many if they're out and about. I seal them up in individual packets and stick them in the freezer! Cheese keeps for a long time in the fridge when sealed. So does salad greens, believe it or not! The air can't get in, so they stay fresh for a much longer time -- I've had some salad greens last nearly 3 weeks.

Joan J

[2big4mysize]

I love mine and I love not having to figure out if the hunk of meat is a qt or a gallonsize too. I can make a bag of frozen berres get out the amount I need and reseal it so the rest stay fresh too and I fon;t habe a bag full of frost when i fet to the last 1/2 cup.

[risarenee]

Truely it is worth it. And not just for atkins. This thing will save you so much money it's not funny. Foods don't go to waste anymore! I buy my bags from walmart because they are the cheapest I have found. I put all my meat in these things after I get home from shopping, and I buy cheese in bulk and seperate it and seal it. I'm a costco shopper, so I buy a lot of everything and the sealer keeps it all fresh for when we're ready to eat it.

[MotherOfGizmo]

OK, since everyone seems to love theirs, what brand do you own? I've noticed a big difference in the cost of those things! I have always wanted one but don't want to get stuck with a piece of junk!

[sharbur2002]

Food Saver is the only way to go in MHO! I've had mine for over 10 years and it is still going strong! My mom has the same. Actually she got hers and talked me into getting mine.

I bought my DD an off brand one years ago and she never liked it. I got her a Food Saver 3 years ago and she loves it.

http://www.foodsaver.com/?ovchn=GGL&ovcpn=topkw-foodsaver&ovcrn=food+saver&ovtac=PPC

Sharon[/url]

[MotherOfGizmo]

Sharon, thanks for the link! That looks like a really nice one!

[risarenee]

yea, foodsaver is the best IMO too. If you have a costco around, they sell a whole kit that saves money if you were to buy all of the things it comes with seperately. If not, walmart probably has it for cheaper, but not necessaraly the latest model available. I think the very first time we purchased it, it was from the TV commercial. Now you can get it online too.

[MotherOfGizmo]

No costco around here, but I'll check out Walmart--thanks girls!

[sharbur2002]

Of course, you can re-use those bags! Just wash them out and store them for the next time you need a bag.

You can also cook right in the bag. Just cut a corner to vent and pop into a microwave, crockpot or pot of boiling water (don't vent for pot of water!)

I have steaks in the freezer for 6 months and they look like I put them in there yesterday!

For soups, freeze in a bowl overnight then pop out of the bowl and seal in a bag and put back in the freezer.

Lettuce...I use one of my canisters. OMG it last so long! Just take out a little then reseal and put back in Fridge.

Like I said, I don't want to live without my Food Saver.

Sharon

[MotherOfGizmo]

Of course, you can re-use those bags! Just wash them out and store them for the next time you need a bag.

You can also cook right in the bag. Just cut a corner to vent and pop into a microwave, crockpot or pot of boiling water (don't vent for pot of water!)

I have steaks in the freezer for 6 months and they look like I put them in there yesterday!

For soups, freeze in a bowl overnight then pop out of the bowl and seal in a bag and put back in the freezer.

Lettuce...I use one of my canisters. OMG it last so long! Just take out a little then reseal and put back in Fridge.

Like I said, I don't want to live without my Food Saver.

Sharon

Cool tip on the soup! I make alot of huge batches of homemade soup so that would be really handy! I have a really nice salad spinner that helps w/ the life of my lettcue, that's one thing that gets eaten up so fast at my house that it rarely goes bad.

[theredhead]

I LOVE my foodsaver. It stays on the counter and gets used every day. Even if you're just re-sealing plastic bags like pork rinds and flaxmeal, it's great!

[JoanOH]

Another helpful hint for using the bags for fresh meats. If you start to seal it and see some of the juices from the meat heading up to the top of the bag, stop. It won't seal properly. Take a paper towel and fold it down to a strip about 1 1/2 inches wide and the width of your bag, and place it in the bag, just below where you're going to seal it. This will stop the juices from preventing a good seal.

They SAY you can also seal canning jars with the vac/seal cannister attachment. I've not had any luck with it, unfortunately.

Joan J

[sharbur2002]

I have used the Jar sealer and it works for me!

I have some of the very old canisters and they quit holding a seal. I called the company and they told me to take the seals out of the lids, boil in water for 10 minutes. I added a tablespoon of olive oil to the water and they now seal fine. I guess the rubber seals got old and dried out. I remember that Tupperware recommends boiling their lids when they get older to reintroduce the plyableness <is that a word?> of the lid.

I also use the paper towel to keeps meats from bleeding juices.

Sharon