While there are many options to preserve leftover food or any food for that matter, but when it comes to the easiest and safest way, then that would be ‘vacuum sealing’. Food that is vacuum-sealed doesn’t just remain safe, but fresh as well. The biggest advantage of vacuum sealing the food is to ensure the freshness of the food because the only reason you’re keeping the food is that you want to eat it later, so I’d like to know, will you be able to eat a stinky, stale food? Of course not, which is why you need a vacuum sealer using which you can seal the food for later use. Now, with so many vacuum sealers available, it won’t be easy spotting the perfect vacuum sealer, however, if you could go through the best vacuum sealer consumer reports, then you can easily make a decision regarding which vacuum sealer you want to buy.
Reviews Of 6 Best Vacuum Sealers
1. NutriChef Automatic Vacuum Sealer
NutriChef is a renowned name when it comes to vacuum sealers, and the product I’ll be discussing comes with everything that you need to begin with the sealing process right away. The design of the vacuum sealer is excellent, plus it is accompanied by the best set of accessories such as wine stopper cork, 1 extra-long bag roll, 5 medium bags and separate hose for separate types of food. All the bags that are given along with the product are waterproof and reusable, so nothing is getting inside the bag and nothing’s coming out of it. Overall, it is a product with a simplistic design and all the features, which you required in a vacuum sealer.
2. Weston Pro-2300 Vacuum Sealer
If you were scouting for a versatile vacuum sealer, which can carry out a variety of jobs, then Weston Pro-2300 vacuum sealer would be an ideal choice for you. Besides preserving your mouth-watering delicacies, it is also apt in preserving unique items such as coins and other collectibles, which are easily damaged by air and moisture.
The unit has the ability to seal multiple bags at a time, courtesy of an extra-long Teflon bar. If you are sealing delicate food items, then you can opt for manual seal mode, which gives you more control over the vacuum pressure.
This is a sleek yet powerful unit, which comes with a double piston to deliver rapid seal time better than other vacuum sealers. The rapid sealing action generates a lot of heat, which is why you’ll see a fan cooling system equipped into the unit.
3. Mueller Automatic Vacuum Sealer with Starter Kit
Get this vacuum sealer if you want to save your time and money while preserving your favorite foods. The beautiful plugin electric design along with easy-to-use central control panel makes vacuum sealing of food a breeze. You can conveniently choose from two different sealing modes, courtesy of the soft touch digital buttons and smart LED light indicators. This is a perfect unit to seal dry as well as wet foods such as Casserole or Stew.
You can stop the vacuuming operation any time by just pressing the ‘Stop’ button and get on with the process again. When not in use, you can keep the unit in your kitchen, as it will add to the décor of your kitchen. Along with the product, you receive a starter kit that includes a wine stopper cork as well, which can come handy if you have a half bottle of wine to store in the wine fridge. You can easily clean the unit after using to seal your food. When it comes to drawbacks, then you’d find one in this, i.e., the absence of a removable drip tray.
4. FoodSaver V4440 Automatic Vacuum Sealer
This vacuum sealer comes as a solution to all your food preservation problems. Boasting an upscale design, the unit allows you to preserve your ingredients in containers and zipper bags. The vacuum sealer doesn’t require extra adapters, thus making it really easy for users to seal all types of food within seconds.
Being a smart unit, you don’t have to do anything manually. You just need to press specific buttons in order to seal different types of food. The vacuum sealer comes with a marinate mode as well, which allows you to marinate food in minutes.
The sleek design and retractable accessory adapter make it easy for you to store refrigerated foods with zipper bags. The unit also comes with extensions for vacuum sealing containers and jars. The machine incorporates a handheld retractable sealer as well, which puts off the need for extra attachments.
5. GERYON Vacuum Sealer Machine
This vacuum sealer by GERYON may seem like a normal vacuum sealer, but when you begin to use it, you’ll find the difference between it and the rest vacuum sealers. The machine removes all the air from specially designed bags to prevent foods from spoiling. Sporting a sleek design, you don’t have to create a lot of space on the counter for this unit. Along with the vacuum sealer, you will get a number of other items such as 5 heat seal bags, 1 air suction hose, 1 wine stopper and 1 roll of heat seat material.
Cleaning the unit is also easy, thanks to the removable upper lid. The company offers a lifetime warranty and tech support for the product, so you can get in touch with the company in case anything goes wrong. Talking about the drawbacks of the unit, then the unit doesn’t vacuum seals moist foods as properly as dry foods. Moreover, you will have to hold the lid down to vacuum seal moist foods.
6. NESCO VS-02 Food Vacuum Sealing System
Getting this vacuum sealer will help you prevent wastage of food because it will effectively seal the food in bags, which you can stack up in your refrigerator. The main highlight of this vacuum sealer is that it is packed with many amazing features, but you will not have to pay an extra price for them. With the one-touch sealing operation, the vacuum sealing becomes quick and easy. Along with the unit, you will get 2 rolls and 5 flat bags.
There is a compartment for storing rolls, so you don’t have to worry about where to keep the rolls. To help users with the cutting of the bags, the company has provided a bag cutter with the machine. A seal time selection switch is given, which makes sealing of wet foods a breeze. It certainly lacks a few accessories, which you can easily find in many other vacuum sealers, but then, the price of this unit is less as well.
Working Of A Vacuum Sealer
It may interest you to know the working of a vacuum sealer because that thing is preserving the quality of your food. The vacuum sealer works on the principle of oxygen being evacuated from the bag/container in which the food is kept to ensure its quality. The food that is sealed with a vacuum sealer remains fresh up to five times longer than a Ziploc bag due to the absence of bacteria in the oxygen-free environment.
Moreover, the problem of ‘freezer burn’ will also go out of the picture with the food getting stored in a vacuum-sealed bag. It isn’t just the food, which can be vacuum sealed, but many other things such as coins, silver jewelry, important documents and other precious items that you think would deteriorate if kept in a normal environment.
Types Of Vacuum Sealers
There are two types of vacuum sealers available on the market, i.e., external sealers and chamber style sealers. Both types operate in a similar way, i.e., by pumping out all the air present in the bag/container followed by sealing the bag/container securely to prevent outside air and/or moisture from getting inside.
External Vacuum Sealers: These sealers are easier to use, less expensive and work with all types of bags/containers. These sealers are excellent if you want to preserve the food on an occasional basis.
Chambered Sealers: These are more powerful than external vacuum sealers, as they incorporate high-powered pumps to evacuate the air and seal the bags/containers. It doesn’t matter if you want to seal a bag full of dry food or wet food, these sealers will do both in an efficient manner. Many chambered sealers come with an option to adjust the suction levels.
Features To Consider When Buying A Vacuum Sealer
There are a few features, which you need to take into consideration when buying a vacuum sealer such as,
Internal Rollers and Cutters
In some vacuum sealers, you will have to do a bit of work, i.e., cut the bag to a proper size, which is sufficient for storing the desired food. One end of that bag will go into the machine in order to be sealed. Many manufacturers provide users with their own set of bags to ensure that those are sealed properly.
If you are an experienced campaigner, then you can use any bag and cut it to the size of your choice. In many vacuum sealers, a dedicated button has been provided to perform all those functions, but even then, it could be a tedious job. This is why rollers and cutters are provided in external vacuum sealers to make cutting and sealing of bags easier.
Marinade Mode and/or Wet Sealing Mode
If you cook the food using the sous vide method or freeze stews and other food items with liquids, then you would probably need a machine that has a wet sealing mode. That machine will allow you to pour gravies and sauces into bags before vacuuming and sealing them.
Then there is a marinade mode as well, which lets you marinate vegetables and meats in a comprehensive way but without consuming much time. However, you will have to check one thing in these machines, i.e., the presence of a drip guard in order to catch the extra liquid. The drip guard should also be removable and easy to clean.
Pulse Mode
Many models are equipped with a ‘pulse mode’, which evacuates the air from the bag/container in short bursts, thus making it ideal for sealing foods that could break easily such as leafy vegetables, tofu or biscuits. You can easily stop the process in between if you find that the food is being broken or crushed.
Vacuum Sealing Jars & Canisters
If you are planning on vacuum sealing jars or canisters, then your vacuum sealer is going to need an outboard port along with a hose, which fits into the containers designed specifically for the purpose. The hose will work with a dedicated sealing canister, which you can buy from anywhere.
Ease of Cleaning and Maintenance
A vacuum sealer should be easy to clean and maintain as it is being used at the end when everybody has eaten the food and you are storing the leftover in the refrigerator. So, you don’t want to indulge in an hour-long cleaning process, do you? So, invest in a vacuum sealer that cleans up easily and is easier to maintain.
Conclusion
With so many different varieties of vacuum sealing machines available on the market, you really have to outline your requirements in order to identify the product that suits you the best. You can go through the reviews of the six best vacuum sealer consumer reports in order to narrow down your selection. Also, look at the features that you would like to see in your vacuum sealer because those features will help you decide as to which product will fit your requirements in the best way.
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