When to foodsaver

[Josh Z.]

Maybe this has been covered, but when is the optimum time to foodsaver your leftovers. I cooked a chuck roast to pull for the purpose of making meals for the upcoming school year. I just pulled it and its sitting in a hot pile. So do I foodsaver hot, or cold or what? Foodsaver info said to possibly semi-freeze the meat so it keeps form?

Thanks,
Josh

 

[Kevin S.]

I put mine in the fridge to chill it and solidify the juices and fat, then I vac it while cold. You can vac it while it's still hot-n-juicy, but the juices tend to get sucked up and the process gets a little messy.

 

[Jimbo M.]

Ted Nugent has a phrase ... "Kill it and grill it" ... I now add "and then chill it". I cook a fair amount and then cool it in my reefer. Once cooled in the reefer, it work to get it vacu-bagged and then dumped into the deep freeze.

 

[Karl]

I guess I'll be the contrarion . . . I don't have any problem vacsealing warm & juicy meat, but perhaps I leave more room in the bag. I think that if you know your plan is to FS and freeze then the sooner you do so the better.

 

[Bryan S]

Just be careful if there's alot of juice or doing something that has alot of liquid. My Foodsaver 1050 went into the trash after it sucked up some kraut juice. They don't like liquid going into their vac pump.

I now have the 1080 model.

 

[K Kruger]

If you're freezing small quantities--one or two servings, say--or using a large enough bag where you can thin the contents out (rather than having it all packed in there thickly), you can vac after pulling and freeze while still warm.

To avoid potential bacterial issues and/or the development of off-flavors for bulk storage, food should be cooled quickly. Pull your meat, arrange your serving platter then, whatever you're freezing, spread on a sheetpan and stick that in the fridge or freezer to cool quickly; package and vac.

If you're unsure of how much you'll need for serving serve it all--pull it while hot, serve it hot, and keep it hot throughout the meal. (And keep cold foods cold.) After the meal chill quickly, as above, then freeze.

 

[Josh Z.]

I ended up on luck taking Kevins advice... I ate some spread the rest out in to smaller portions and stuck it in the freezer to cool, and then sealed it after is cooled. Looked so good, but I'd already had half of one chuck roast for dinner. Thanks for the info now I know that I'm doing it the right way for the future

THanks,
Josh