foodsaver
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Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
Junk-- save your money
jeffywestcoast
Well-Known Member
I am sure a cheap vacuum sealer is better then no vacuum sealer NO??? I don't have one and its one of the reasons I give 80% of my fish away.. not everyone can afford a chamber sealer @ 1500 bucks..
scott craven
Well-Known Member
Yup, some work better than others but sure a lot better than a plastic bag in the freezer.
wishiniwasfishin1
Well-Known Member
Ive owned a foodsaver for a while and for the money they work fine if you know all the quirky tricks. Nothing like a chamber but day and night over a ziploc.
Old Blue
Well-Known Member
X2
They're for sure quirky but I've had halibut, ling, yellow eye, springs, coho and chum that I've pulled out of the freezer over a year later and has been in top notch shape.
I disagree I have this one and I'm very happy, I've done well over 200 seals with it since august 2013, tons of raw fish, smoked salmon, pesto cubes, beef jerky, recently started doing smoked cheese, and I often buy meat from Costco and vacuum seal in smaller portions. It still performs like the day I bought it. I tried one of the automatic stand up ones before and I returned it and bought this one, I prefer this ones simplicity. I do agree it can be a little quirky but once you figure it out it works really good. I just opened a salmon filet from mid august 2013 and not a hint of freezer burn. It'll fit in any cupboard when your done and even comes with a 12 volt accessory plug and is built for portability. Buy your bags online and your good to go.
Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
I just recycled two coho fillets into crab bait because the seal went "poof" ..... that hurt...... I have tried a bunch of the Food Savers..
I have not found ONE that measures up to the advertizing......
I have not found ONE that measures up to the advertizing......
That sucks, did you prefreeze the fillets or use a moisture barrier between the salmon and the sealing area? I had a few go on me when I first got the food saver, and it was most likely due to moisture being sucked into the sealing area, luckily I caught them early and re sealed them. Now I put all my filets on a baking sheet and put it in the freezer for about 20-30min the outside gets a frozen crust and no moisture leaves the salmon when sealing, Some people put up a folded piece of paper towel between the salmon and the sealing area and it absorbs any moisture coming out. They are a little quirky but for the price you can't beat it, not everyone can afford a rolls even if it will last 20 years.
Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
I use the paper towel trick where possible... both packages had the towel, and they were from different dates too..... I have a friend that has three freezers and he freezes all his fish in water. Claims they last over a year....but it sure uses a lot of freezer space.
eaglemaniac
Well-Known Member
If you want to ensure that your fish will be as fresh as the day you caught it then this is the way to do it. Be it whole fish or steaks or fillets this always works. First freeze your fish for at least 24 hours. Then prepare an appropriately sized cooler and put enough cold water to fully immerse the fish your preserving. Dump a bag of ice cubes etc. into cooler and let cool for 15 minutes. Meanwhile ensure you have enough freezer space to put a thin piece of plywood etc. to lay in your freezer. Cover with black garbage bags or film plastic etc. Totally immerse your fish in the ice water and immediately put on board in your freezer. Leave for 15 minutes or so to freeze up and repeat process. Immerse and replace. Continue with this process until you see a thick glaze forming on your fish. Continue to add ice to the cooler as it melts to keep the water ice cold. You can do whole fish this way head on or off. Fillets of any size as long as your cooler is big enough to allow you to totally immerse. I've also frozen meal size portions of salmon steaks and used this process with excellant results. The thickness of the glaze depends on how often you repeat the process. I've done it over a period of two days and have created a glaze of a 1/4 inch which will last for at least a year and longer. Just keep in mind the bigger the fish or fillet then the bigger the cooler will have to be to accomodate it. If it's just small batches of salmon steaks etc. Just pre freeze them in a ziploc bag etc. overnight then start the glazing process in an appropriately sized cooler. After fish is glazed to your requirements you then can vacuum seal or wrap in something appropriate to protect the glaze. If you decide to vac seal ensure there are no sharp edges on your glaze. I apologize for my long winded solution, but I think you will find the end result is well worth the effort. When you are ready to thaw out your whole salmon or fillet etc. Just run the glaze under cold water until it melts and you will have perfectly preserved fish for the barby, smoker or whatever your recipe requires. Just thaw your deglazed product in your fridge overnight as per usual. Phew!
eman
emanI have a Food Saver and as many have pointed out, they are can be finicky. Mine has gone 3yrs and just started my 4th season with it and did up 30 packages tonight. Something I have learned is the quality of bags makes a huge difference. I used to buy Food Saver rolls and make bags. Now I am buying Weston premade bags from Isl. Out. Pat fillets dry, into bag and seal! There are threads on the site about locations to buy commercial bags, but it seems they are sold in 1000 units, so I personally would need to split that purchase with a few local Victoria people.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
You don't need all these things if you don't seal them wet and you wrap in saran before then do the seal... I started wrapping in saran before sealing last year. Guess what this year nothing in my freezer has gone bad. I was losing at least 20% per year not doing this. And the strange fishy smell I used to get from when I thawed them out is no longer there.... Even pink salmon from last summer is the same as when I froze it..
This is the only thing I found that works besides a chamber sealer. Seriously next time wrap a couple of fillets, seal and test it really works.
This is the only thing I found that works besides a chamber sealer. Seriously next time wrap a couple of fillets, seal and test it really works.
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Thanks SV. Next time I will wrap in saran, I always pat dry, but this sounds good. I still stand behind the quality of bags being important.
Dave S
Active Member
He guys, anyone want to go in on some foodsaver bags? I'm in Victoria and would be willing to split an order for some 4 mil, 8x12" bags. $210 for 1000pcs. That works out to 21 cents per bag. Compare that to $1.14 for an 8x12" foodsaver bag that you have to cut and seal the end yourself. Seems like a no brainer to me. I have wanted to do this but have not found anyone to split the order with. I'd be willing to split it with 1-3 guys.
https://www.halfordsmailorder.com/e...12___4_Mil__1_000_Pcs__/i_1_0_/_BSBAGVAC812BC
https://www.halfordsmailorder.com/e...12___4_Mil__1_000_Pcs__/i_1_0_/_BSBAGVAC812BC
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