Preserving Leftovers

[LMichaels]

So now that I have gotten a taste of home cooked brisket I think I may be a little "hooked". I find myself thinking for ways to cook more. But, IIRC I have seen some folks here mentioning portioning off excess into freezer bags and freezing for later meals.
So questions for those who do this. 1st my experience with this first cook was the brisket was very juicy. How do you keep the vacuum sealer from pulling juices past the seal area and spoiling the seal and leaking. 2nd, do you slice it all or leave the leftovers in unsliced state?

 

[Rich Dahl]

Unsliced. We make the freezer bag and put the meat in the bag but don't seal it. Put the bag in the freezer and let the meat get partially frozen then vacuum seal it. Just make sure you don't let the bag get twisted so it won't lay flat when you seal it.

 

[LMichaels]

Unsliced. We make the freezer bag and put the meat in the bag but don't seal it. Put the bag in the freezer and let the meat get partially frozen then vacuum seal it. Just make sure you don't let the bag get twisted so it won't lay flat when you seal it.

Cool. So then gotta just portion pieces and freeze

 

[Rich Dahl]

Been doing it that way for years, keeps the juices from getting into the seal. We lost a lot of chicken to freezer burn due to the bag not sealing properly. After we started pre freezing no problems at all.

 

[Bill T]

Definitely unsliced. You can decide later if you brisket sliced for sandwiches, chopped for stuffed potatoes, chunky for soup or salad.

We don't use a vacuum sealer, wife pushes all the air out of the bag, inserts a metal straw, inhales, and voila, a pretty good imitation of a vacuum sealed bag.

 

[Ed P]

You can also wrap the item in clear food wrap (Glad Wrap, etc), or if the item is small enough, stick it into an unsealed baggie (with the top folded over) prior to sealing, to prevent the juices from contaminating the seal.