# Are those foodsver vacuum things worth buying? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 16, 2008, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402 "2008-12-16T15:14:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![emmaliminal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@emmaliminal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emmaliminal)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/21 "2008-12-18T02:34:54Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > in part because the vacuum pump will suck out liquid just as happily as it does air (to a lesser extent) so when you are sealing up food it can make a much bigger mess > > and the other part for me is that bricks of food stack much more neatly than random lumps of food do. Oh! That makes sense! One of my current pet peeves is being unable to poke around in our freezer without slithery lumps of frozen somethingorother falling out on my toes. What’s your technique for pre-freezing blocks before sealing them up? (I don’t mean to hijack, but this seems like a substantial enhancement of a vacuum thing’s utility to me.) ---
**Author:** ![hellpaso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecae2f/32.png) [@hellpaso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hellpaso)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/22 "2008-12-18T05:42:12Z")
I used to freeze the stuff in freezer bags first, then I realized I could just freeze it in a foodsaver bag, leaving enough room to later vac it. i.e. enough room to cut off the top after you sealed it in the foodsaver bag. works great–and doesn’t waste freezer bags. I’ve also frozen stuff in casserole dishes–sealed it up well so it doesn’t freezer burn–then the next day run it under enough warm water to allow it to slide out of the casserole dish into a foodsaver bag. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/23 "2008-12-18T05:56:45Z")
> [@emilyforce](#): > > Oh! That makes sense! One of my current pet peeves is being unable to poke around in our freezer without slithery lumps of frozen somethingorother falling out on my toes. > > What’s your technique for pre-freezing blocks before sealing them up? (I don’t mean to hijack, but this seems like a substantial enhancement of a vacuum thing’s utility to me.) pour or put your food to freeze into these [http://www.boscovs.com/StoreFrontWeb/Product.bos?assortmentDepartmentNumber=7059910&assortmentId=4&itemNumber=23298&type=Product](http://www.boscovs.com/StoreFrontWeb/Product.bos?assortmentDepartmentNumber=7059910&assortmentId=4&itemNumber=23298&type=Product) then freeze, then like a big ice cube you can pop it out into a bag. I have about 8 of those things for this purpose ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/24 "2008-12-18T06:08:32Z")
We’ve had several traditional food sealers over the years, and none of them worked worth a damn. The Reynolds Handi-Seal (which I’ve seen on sale at Market Basket for $4 recently) works 10x better than anything else we’ve tried. We’ve used it for several months, and with the exception of one defective bag, it’s worked great. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/25 "2008-12-18T13:43:47Z")
> [@emilyforce](#): > > Oh! That makes sense! One of my current pet peeves is being unable to poke around in our freezer without slithery lumps of frozen somethingorother falling out on my toes. > > What’s your technique for pre-freezing blocks before sealing them up? (I don’t mean to hijack, but this seems like a substantial enhancement of a vacuum thing’s utility to me.) I use a silicone cake pan. It’s non-stick and peels right on off a block of frozen stock. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402/26 "2008-12-18T13:52:14Z")
I don’t have one, but we receive chicken breasts from Omaha Steaks, and they’re vacuum sealed. They always leak once the food is thawed. I didn’t think it would be possible, but there ya have it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-those-foodsver-vacuum-things-worth-buying/477402.md?page=1)