Cookaholics Bulletin Board

I just got a vacuum sealer, it was a great deal, 50% off with an extra pack of rolls and bags. It is a Solis EastVac Pro (don't know if you can get that brand, it is Swiss). It does wet and dry food and you can also purchase cannisters that can be used with it. The vacuum pressure goes to -0.8 bar. And, as you may have guessed, I have no real idea what this means.

I am not on the sous vide track, or not yet anyway; you people are dangerous. I just want to preserve things. So... tips, tricks, ideas. Has anyone used canisters? Is that enough bar? I can still return it. The only other vacuum system I have seen here (besides the big professional ones) is from Bamix but the cost is prohibitive.

Thanks!

Mary

I like mine quite a bit. I use it for many things. My favorite tricks are to freeze something before sealing (like soup) so it will not have any liquid to prevent a really good seal, to double bag anything pointy (lobster tails) and to seal meat right from the butcher (I poke a bunch of holes in the butcher packaging and put the entire thing in the bag. Keeps the bag clean and me lazy.).

I also like the mason jar sealer and have been using the !@#$% out of it.



--Lisa

I have a Food Saver. I place about 90% of what I seal in cheap baggies and then seal so that I don't have to sanitize the FS bag. And like Lisa, I freeze a lot of items first and then seal so that the liquid doesn't get sucked out.
Nance

Mary,

Your sealer will end up paying for itself, and, if you are like me and some others I know, you will end up using it more than your food processor! Besides the tips above, you will some up with all sorts of things to do with it, once you get using it.

Not sure what your brand does, but Foodsavers make about a 1/16" wide seal (some more expensive brands make wider seals), which sometimes breaks, getting knocked around in the freezer, FI. So I almost religiously make two seals now, as I have never had two seals break. And my FS, though they may have corrected this, makes a seal with a time proportional to the strength of the vacuum, so it is only being sealed a brief time, and very early on I learned that those break easily. So I keep mine on max, but as soon as it has sucked all the air out (easy to see on near-frozen meats and the like), I hit the Manual Seal button, and it makes a seal in the maximum time (theen. Hopefully, yours isn't like this, but something to look for.

I got some of those canisters, too, and use them to keep things fresh tasting that would normally get a bit off tasting, though I found out that it did not keep WW flour from going rancid - just delayed it a while. But brown rice stays good, and a number of other items I keep in there keep very well until I use them up. Just not WW flour.

ditto to all the above, but wanted to add that the cannisters when filled with marshmallows make a great way to occupy an idle mind or a toddler. However, after several times of squishing all the air out they are pretty much useless.

The kid or the marshmallows

Cheese lasts forever without moulding if vacuum sealed. That alone pays for my food saver. I buy the big chunks of parm and asiago at Costco, divide them into smaller chunks, food saver, and use one at a time. I've also had good luck with meat, and small casseroles will fit in the large bags too. Great for freezing. I think you'll love yours once you get going.

Ditto for all said below. I just got a shipment of bags, including some zipper ones that are great for cold cuts, and everyday cheese. E.g. fridge stuff and some pleated ones and some with moisture seal to try (it was a bogo sale free shipping).


I also love the wine sealer. I forgot I had a bottle of white wine in the fridge and it was still good 2 weeks later (at least to my untrained palate) I do know that would not have happened with the vacuvin and others I'd tried. I too use the canisters for things like potato flakes to use in CI's great Salisbury steak recipe.
I also seal all my KAF stuff if unopened, whether for the pantry or freezer (e.g. dried milk, cocoa, etc.) Once I open them most go into jars, but because of shipping costs I tend to buy ahead. Keeps the bags from being punctured in the pantry or freezer.

Great for sealing stuff when traveling. I seal my shampoo and any other bottles that might leak onto my clothing. Granted can't do it for the trip back, but then I'm coming home and can easily wash.

I vote for buying an immersion circulator. You'd love it.

Amy

Thanks for all your tips. I am sure I will get a lot of use out of it.

Alina, what is this "leftover wine" thing you speak of? I do not know that term.

And get thee behind me, Amy.

Mary