Putting things in a vac bag for sealing, help/advice?

[grumpyoldman]

the other day i was trying to put bacon in a vacuum bag and seal it , i didn't want it to look like i just crammed it in , but trying to put some things in those bags is like trying to give a cat a bath , its almost impossible to get things that are even slightly moist in those things
and make it look decent

 

[Gone Hiking]

I like to buy the bags that come on a roll, rather than the pre-cut ones, for the reason being that I can cut them to whatever length I need and don't need to cram stuff in sideways that doesn't fit well. (Albeit, sometimes you have irregularly shaped things that aren't ideal.) I also like to blot the meat as dry as possible, so the juices don't get sucked up and cause a poor or failed seal. A trick I've also learned to prevent the juices from even getting near the seal is to fold a paper towel into a narrow strip and place that completely across the top of the bag. Then when the vacuum starts, any juices that are sucked up get wicked up by the paper towel and don't reach the end that is being sealed.

 

[caseydog]

I like to buy the bags that come on a roll, rather than the pre-cut ones, for the reason being that I can cut them to whatever length I need and don't need to cram stuff in sideways that doesn't fit well. (Albeit, sometimes you have irregularly shaped things that aren't ideal.) I also like to blot the meat as dry as possible, so the juices don't get sucked up and cause a poor or failed seal. A trick I've also learned to prevent the juices from even getting near the seal is to fold a paper towel into a narrow strip and place that completely across the top of the bag. Then when the vacuum starts, any juices that are sucked up get wicked up by the paper towel and don't reach the end that is being sealed.

Grumpy has one of those chamber sealers, so liquids aren't an issue when sealing. But, getting moist meats into the bag is the same for his sealer, and my Foodsaver. The only way to make it easier is to use a bigger bag than you need, which is wasteful. I just grin and bear it.

CD

 

[grumpyoldman]

CD, getting grease on the seal line is still a problem and can prevent sealing if i don't see it and wipe it very clean ,
i am going to try stacking the bacon and partly freezing it to see if that works

 

[Andy M.]

I fold the top edge over to keep the sealing surface clean.

 

[FrankZ]

You can:

• cuff over the top edge.
• use a funnel of some sort
• get a bag stand to hold the bag open.
• get used to using a paper towel to wipe down the seal area.

 

[grumpyoldman]

i have used a canning funnel for some wet things such as beef stew
guess i never thought of folding the top over
i might look for a bag stand on Amazon and see what i can find

 

[caseydog]

CD, getting grease on the seal line is still a problem and can prevent sealing if i don't see it and wipe it very clean ,
i am going to try stacking the bacon and partly freezing it to see if that works

Partially or entirely freezing things is how I vacuum seal moist, or even liquid foods. I'll put things like sauces into a Foodsaver bag, put the bag into the freezer, and when it is frozen, use the Foodsaver machine to vacuum seal it.

CD

 

[grumpyoldman]

until a few minutes ago i never knew they even made bag stands

 

[taxlady]

I was going to suggest freezing, but you already thought of that.

I'm thinking that if you want the bacon to lie flat, you could put it on a sheet of parchment paper or waxed paper and then fold that over the top. Then, you could slide the bacon into the bag without having the meat touching the plastic and hanging onto it.

 

[dragnlaw]

I was going to suggest freezing, but you already thought of that.

I'm thinking that if you want the bacon to lie flat, you could put it on a sheet of parchment paper or waxed paper and then fold that over the top. Then, you could slide the bacon into the bag without having the meat touching the plastic and hanging onto it.

If you use this method, which is what i do (not for vac, just for freezing) I suggest using only parchment paper. The wax paper will end up getting wet and disintegrating. Very time consuming scraping wax paper, which has now become invisible, off the defrosted bacon.

 

[grumpyoldman]

after FrankZ suggested bag holders , i went on Amazon and found a couple of different ones , i think i'm going to get one and try doing it that way, i did not know they even made such a thing , but they look promising

 

[pictonguy]

I just wipe the area clean as possible with a cloth or paper towel, never thought of buying equipment to help prevent that.

 

[grumpyoldman]

nor did i pictonguy but there are 2 different kinds of bag holders on Amazon. just search for " kitchen bag holders " i haven't made up my mind which one i want yet but i think i'm leaning towards the clip on ones

 

[pictonguy]

I don't know, maybe use a pot, I've done that before.

 

[FrankZ]

nor did i pictonguy but there are 2 different kinds of bag holders on Amazon. just search for " kitchen bag holders " i haven't made up my mind which one i want yet but i think i'm leaning towards the clip on ones

We have something similar to:

https://www.amazon.com/Jokari-Adjustable-Hands-Free-Leftovers-Ingredients/dp/B0049NQEKO?crid=1VGPZ84QHTRHZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.A7MceHeLEk2eJh4_i9-xTXSzKp_43HqPDD6-pI22ahNmciWYGGRDTOkf760n1cO1NdvH0LQbaqmMkXqGN1uZb4uEo_b5CshbrhVY0Sn7OCD6dzwI4oXi55vBbPULzKzFVDaAeDJ3IpLBzY3OApZ_YbcpVdgGGxpvhTJSLJ4E6Gu7mK847JszvQtR_dvuy7s2A_M8iv9b-h1CbxdWUZ92oGG0-uW3qGNh1tgs6ke7pnOEZp_S4vR47XrYeEEDNpaGnbzKu0DCXETCHTC5H3bI4E93i8zvy09THLwI6RrOqg8.YOFnylPX-4Slfo1QWd5OKx3ecesV9nkqg3VtyES1Pa4&dib_tag=se&keywords=ziploc%2Bbag%2Bholder%2Bstand%2Bfor%2Bfilling&qid=1771266316&sprefix=bag%2Bholder%2Bfor%2Bzi%2Caps%2C156&sr=8-6&th=1

 

[grumpyoldman]

thats the ones i was looking at , what i liked about them is they are adjustable

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I bake a whole pound of bacon on a cooling rack set in a sheet pan, then I take it off the rack and put it on paper towels to drain. Once cool, I just roll up the paper towels with the bacon inside and stuff it in a zipper bag.

 

[Andy M.]

I bake a whole pound of bacon on a cooling rack set in a sheet pan, then I take it off the rack and put it on paper towels to drain. Once cool, I just roll up the paper towels with the bacon inside and stuff it in a zipper bag.

i do the same. Usually two pounds at a time. We'll have BLTs that day for dinner and freeze the remainder.

 

[taxlady]

If you use this method, which is what i do (not for vac, just for freezing) I suggest using only parchment paper. The wax paper will end up getting wet and disintegrating. Very time consuming scraping wax paper, which has now become invisible, off the defrosted bacon.

I don't find that to be the case. I have used waxed paper for freezing for many years. I recently tried using parchment because it's harder to find waxed paper around here at the moment and parchment had been suggested. I didn't like that as much. I found that the moisture from the food soaked into the parchment paper and really froze onto the food. I have never had the waxed paper disintegrate. The wax repels moisture.