Vacuum sealer

I bought one the other week. I did a fair amount of research into the various ones, both from the ultra cheap up to FoodSaver etc. In the end I settled for the greatly named Aicok because it has a good warrenty, works with liquids and has a pulse button unlike a lot of them to control the amount of air taken out. I bought some cheap rolls to use in it and the combo seems to work fine.

Both come in under your budget by 2p too at £49.98 :p
 
Pho said:
I bought one the other week. I did a fair amount of research into the various ones, both from the ultra cheap up to FoodSaver etc. In the end I settled for the greatly named Aicok because it has a good warrenty, works with liquids and has a pulse button unlike a lot of them to control the amount of air taken out. I bought some cheap rolls to use in it and the combo seems to work fine.

Both come in under your budget by 2p too at £49.98 :p
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That's a good deal thanks.
 
I got this one . It's only let down because it needs two hands to maintain pressure whilst it vacuum seals meaning you can't unruffle the bag to get a better seal. That doesn't mean the seal is bad. I got it for sous vide too. It'll do me until I need to get another one.
 
Pho said:
I bought one the other week. I did a fair amount of research into the various ones, both from the ultra cheap up to FoodSaver etc. In the end I settled for the greatly named Aicok because it has a good warrenty, works with liquids and has a pulse button unlike a lot of them to control the amount of air taken out. I bought some cheap rolls to use in it and the combo seems to work fine.

Both come in under your budget by 2p too at £49.98 :p
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That is pretty awesome, that is both things I did look at this morning before posting this topic lol. Both the Aicok and those rolls. Will probably order them on Friday when I get paid :) Need to order a few other things from the rain forrest as well.
 
:D Be interesting to know how you find it. I've 16kg of chicken and turkey breasts from MuscleFood due on Friday that's going to put it to the test somewhat!

Pro tip that I read for vacuum sealers in general: sometimes it's easier to put liquidy things in the freezer for a little while before you try and vacuum seal them. If they're slightly frozen it makes them a bit more malleable.
 
The Aicok is a great bit of kit, been using mine since the summer and don't know how I managed without it.

Personally I prefer to use bags rather than rolls as it takes out a bit of the time sealing etc and to be honest they're not that much more expensive than the rolls. That said, if I see the rolls for cheaps (occasionally Lidl have them in stock etc) I will pick them up too.

Re the pro tip for freezing liquids, yep, definitely a good idea, ideally best if you can get it completely frozen before vacuum packing as, without spending a lot of money on better kit, you don't really want to pack liquids as it can end up getting into the suction area.
 
I have always wanted a vacuum sealer but I can't bring myself to buying another kitchen gadget, especially when i consider how much plastic packaging i chuck in the bin/recycling due to how food is sold off the shelf.
 
You could always justify it to yourself by the extended shelf life of vacuum packed food meaning you're likely to have less food waste... ;)

For me it's a very useful bit of kit, I do a lot of smoking of pulled pork etc for various birthdays and gatherings etc, with the vacuum sealer I can do it in advance and freezer then simply reheat on the day its required which makes it's a lot less work on the day. Also means I can cook a lot n one hit and portion things up for later eating! :)
 
Pho said:
Pro tip that I read for vacuum sealers in general: sometimes it's easier to put liquidy things in the freezer for a little while before you try and vacuum seal them. If they're slightly frozen it makes them a bit more malleable.
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That is a bit of a deal breaker, if you bulk prepare currys, lasagne meat mix, stock, etc., and then cannot, in one shot, evacuate the bag and put into the freezer,
I had hoped these would replace need for comparatively expensive freezer bag + twists
(would need a slighly narrower bag roll than the 28cm originally linked too.)
 
Just can vacuum pack moist things with the Aicok you just have to be a bit aware of what you're doing and hit the seal button before the liquid goes flowing into the suction area, you'll still be getting a decent amount of air removed so it's not a huge issue. There are various different widths available if you look about.
 
What about the resealable ziplock bags with the plastic manual syringe thing, are those any good?

It saves me from having to find space for another gadget and i dont have to throw away anymore plastic!
 
valve90210 said:
Just can vacuum pack moist... hit the seal button before the liquid goes flowing into the suction area
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Ok - it is true the liquid is generally thickened too, and can, I imagine, support the sealer a few inches above bag lip.

Moses said:
I much prefer to have a range of ready made (sealed on three sides) bags
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where do you get your bags ? (less resiliant freezer grade ones, usually <£2 for 80@20x30cm)
 
jpaul said:
Ok - it is true the liquid is generally thickened too, and can, I imagine, support the sealer a few inches above bag lip.
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Yep, exactly that, give yourself a bit of space at the top of the bag and when it's vacuuming, the air will go first, then you'll see the liquid start to draw out towards the top of the bag so you can hit seal before it reaches the top of the bag. In the pic below (of some lovely pulled pork jelly) you can see how the liquid has started to spread as the vacuum has drawn the air out and the liquid has started to move. Obvious with more liquid items it'll be more obvious and quicker but you'll have time to hit seal.

ffn4BLB.jpg
 
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