Foodsaver..

[johnnyo]

Good morning, I just bought a Foodsaver model V1085 on e-bay.. It'll be delivered in a week or so.. Before I use it I have a couple of questions..

1... would this be a good way to store my sausage seasonings, by vacuum packing them? would storing them in the freezer after they're vacuumed be OK??

2... With fresh meat & gravies etc. there's bound to be some liquids, blood, water etc. would that get into the vacuum pump.. do you have any suggestions for me to freeze fresh meats etc..

Thanks for any help you can give me.. I don't want to ruin the machone..

 

[smokin stang]

Johnnyo,
For liquids I would freeze them first in a container or bag. Once frozen enough to hold solid shape you could then put them in your foodsaver bag and vacuum pack. You can do this with your meats as well. Freeze the meat enough so that when you vacuum pack in your FoodSaver bag the juices won't run into the pump. Or, if you do not want to freeze the meats, just put the meat in the bag and take a paper towel and put it in the bag to contain the juices when vacuuming. The cannisters are not designed for the freezer. You could also vacuum pack your sausage seasonings and store them in your cabinet if they are solid spices I would think. You could also freeze them I would think

 

[up in smoke]

Johnnyo, you wont get anymore life by freezing than if you would vaccum and throw in pantry!

 

[jrollins]

I have a foodsaver i smoke a whole chicken let it cool down put it in bag and vacium and freeze then when i am ready for it i cut the bag and wrap it in foil and heat it up and it is as good then as off the smoker

 

[dacdots]

Johnnyo,dont freeze your spices,it dries out the oils contained in them and causes major flavor loss,David

 

[johnnyo]

Thanks for all your replies.. Just think,if I hadn't found this forum, I could have gone through the rest of my life being a dummy.. but seriously this is a very informative forum.. Thanks to all for your help.

 

[royknives]

What size chickens...4 or 5 lbers....? Just curious...I cook Chicken all the time..but never thought of freezing a whole bird...

 

[Dutch]

johnnyo- for food stuff that has a lot of liquid or blood, use the double seal method. 1st> Cut your bag a bit longer than you need and seal one end. 2nd> Take a couple of sheets of paper towels layered together and folded accordion style with 1 inch folds. 3rd> Fill the bag with your foodstuff and insert the folded paper towel about one inch below the opening of the bag. 4th> Place the bag into the vac-track and vacuum seal the bag in the normal manner. Any liquid in the foodstuff will be absorbed by the toweling and won't end up the vac tube. 5th> Reposition the bag so that the sealer strip is below the folded paper towel and hit the "Seal" button again. Then trim off the top portion of the bag that contains the first seal and the paper towel.

 

[pyre]

That's pretty smart, Dutch. Our foodsaver came with directions for sealing liquid stuff.

They say to put the food into one bag, fold it over and put into another bag and seal it that way. You still get a little bit of liquid sucked out but it works.

I'm going to try the paper towel method the next time I need to do this. Saves a bag that way.

 

[pyre]

On the subject of vacuum sealers, I thought I would share something that the health department told me.

Whenever you are sealing cooked meat, you should cool the meat before vacuum sealing. There is a certain toxin that can form when meat is cooled through the danger zone in the absence of oxygen.

I didn't know that.

 

[jrollins]

royknives I do 3 or 4 lb I do 4 at a time . but what size you can get in a bag is good

 

[smokyokie]

We usually thaw it and stick it in a pot of boiling water. Right now, we probably have 5 slabs od spares, 10 slabs of BBs, 10# of pulled pork, and 5# of brisket in foodsaver bags in the freezer. How did we ever get by w/o one?

The new models have an instant stop button thatallows you to stop the vacuum process and seal when the juices or liquid gets near the top. I freeze aolt of soup, gumbo,chili, etc., and I want one of those so bad I can taste it.

Keep on foodsaverin',
Tim

 

[buzzard]

i use one too, and i seal some liquids such as chili, moist meats such as chicken, pulled pork with sauce allready on, etc. the one i have has a liquid selection that when it gets to a certain point quits sucking and seals. i have never had a problem. i just clean my tray from time to time.
well i act like i do but really i forget a lot.

 

[Dutch]

So Tim. . . What does it taste like? Courious minds would like to know. :P

 

[johnnyo]

Wow, that's a bunch of info for this old head to absorb, thanks to everyone, & dutch I will try that double seal, sure will save one bag.. my FS hasn't arrived yet, but should be here by the first part of next week.. How will it work & freeze with smoked sausage.. I froze it without using the FS, but I'm thinking it'll be much better with the FS, no frost build up, etc.

 

[smokyokie]

Surely wouldn't want to stifle your inquiring mind Dutch, it tastes about halfway between spotted owl and bald eagle. :P :lol: :lol: :lol:

On the serious side, I'm trying to figure out your double seal directions. If I understand right, you're dropping down below the paper towel where the liquid is. My unit won't give very good seals if liquid is present on the sealing surface.

Tim

 

[royknives]

Thanks... :D

 

[cheech]

Dutch again your knowledge is incredible. These tidbits are worth more than any book I could read or experience I could gain on my own. Thanks