Foodsaver vacuum sealers

I saw this mentioned on the Press and Seal thread.

Dh has been begging for one for ages, but Im afraid it will end up like the dehydrator. Used 2 or 3 times, then thrown in the storage room.

I have looked at them at walmart and target, but there are just so many different brands that I get overwhelmed and tell myself no.

I'd love to hear opinions. And please tell me what brand you have. Thanks.

[Alice Chalmers]

I have a FoodSaver. I use it frequently during deer hunting season because my brother is an avid hunter (and a poor college student so he eats everything he kills). Using the FoodSaver definitely makes food last longer in the freezer, but it's not as simple as the commercials would have you believe.

When we put a fresh cut of meat in a bag and tried to seal it, it just sucked up the blood and a seal wouldn't form. So what we do it wrap the piece of meat in butcher wrap and *then* vacuum pack it. Using this technique, the meat is still in very good condition after a year in the deep freezer. BUT if you don't need to freeze things for such a long time, I don't think it's worth the bother.

Same problem with other foods--if there's any water it just gets sucked up and won't allow the bag to seal. With fruits and veggies you pretty much have to freeze them individually on a tray and THEN pack them in the vacuum bags. I get just as good results with Zip-loc bags and the plastic tupperware-like containers.

Another problem is price. Zip-locs are cheap and can be re-used forever. The foodsaver bags are very expensive, and you have to cut off a significant portion each time you use it.

So it does work, but in my opinion it's not worth the extra effort and expense unless you're freezing something for a long time.

Thanks.