[Snuffy]

I just picked up my very first Food Saver vacuum sealer and I am totally looking for tips.  Anything you have learned that isn't in the manual?

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You don't find yourself standing at the top of a mountain without having started out in the valley.

[EJ]

I've been using mine a lot recently, since I'm dehydrating food for spring/summer backpacking season.

The best feature on mine is the port that allows me to use the food saver with mason/canning jars. I like that I can seal jars of stuff (dehydrated veggies, fruits) that I'll use a little bit of at any given time. Open, use, reseal - easy!

I also learned that I sometimes have to double bag items that have a tendency to poke holes in a single bag (pasta, dried ground beef).

[Navy salad]

One tip: If you cut a bag to fit something, make it a titch bigger (like an inch in both dimensions) than you think you'll need. I've found that if you cut them too small, then it creates a bit of pressure on the seam and it eventually starts leaking.

[Snuffy]

[Snuffy]

[Gregory]

Pre-freeze wet goods.I do mostly fish and game.Salmon steaks for example.I will dip them in water and lay out on a pre-chilled cookie sheet and place in the freezer for a half hour or however long it takes to lock in the juices of the fish.Then when going through the vacuum process the juices do not get sucked up and ruin the seal.If I do lasagne or similar I will put in the bag and then into the freezer just long enough to seal in the wetness then vacuum pack.Buy bags at Costco.

[Schenk]

Great tip Gregory!
Getting liquid sucked into the sealing zone makes good seals difficult. This should help a lot.

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Nature exists with a stark indifference to humans' situation.

[Navy salad]

Another tip using the pre-freeze method is that it's also good for people who make up little packets of oil or pesto or anything else that would get sucked up by a vacuum sealer at room temperatures. For example, make a little packet, fill it with your choice of gooey stuff (being careful to not get it on the sides of the packet), freeze it solid, then vaccuum pack!

[Schenk]

I have used ice cube trays to freeze liquid items into nice little serving sizes.

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Nature exists with a stark indifference to humans' situation.

[Snuffy]

Thanks, Gregory! And I'm glad to hear the bags at Costco are a deal.

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You don't find yourself standing at the top of a mountain without having started out in the valley.

[Snuffy]

I like that tip, Navy Salad. The idea of making minis of things. 🙂

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You don't find yourself standing at the top of a mountain without having started out in the valley.

[Snuffy]

Schenk, do you seal the cubes individually?

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You don't find yourself standing at the top of a mountain without having started out in the valley.

[Bandanabraids]

I will double bag things as I've had the foodsaver bag fail every once in awhile for whatever reason.  So, I will foodsaver it and then put it in a freezer ziploc.

I second the mason jar sealers!  I have the regular and wide mouth.  They are the best!

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"Do or do not.  There is no try"  --Yoda

[sarbar]

If you are sealing dry pointy items, like rice or pasta, line the bag with a plain paper towel. Helps prevent pokies in the bags, and you have a napkin every meal ;-)

[EJ]

sarbar, I tried your paper towel trick. It works great!