Ava, IL is home to an amazing store. The storekeepers remind me of a well-run Buchheit where people learn your name and are genuinely interested in meeting your needs and ensuring you have a quality experience while you shop.
Jim and I shop this Amish store for bulk items and great deli meats and cheeses, but how do you buy in bulk and not lose some of it to spoilage?
The answer was simple: buy a Food Saver. I looked at them for years but just couldn’t justify the cost of the expensive bags so I delayed. (Keep reading for the happy ending!)
I am privileged to participate in the annual butchering at a neighbor’s farm and I watched as they vacuumed packed all the precious homemade sausages into those expensive bags while I still used zip locks. The clincher for me was when I pulled out a package of bacon and while it was not freezer burned, it didn’t have a great smoked flavor like earlier packages. I asked my friends, and they were quick to tell me it was because I hadn’t use a food saver. The vacuum process helps hold the smoke flavor in for a much longer time when freezing the bacon.
Why am I writing about this now? Because it’s the best time to start using one to save your precious harvest. I use it to store items I dehydrate as well as fresh fruits for the freezer. Herbs and onions are dried and vacuum sealed for storage in a cool dark place until needed this winter. It is great to cut across that seal and smell summertime!
I finally bit the bullet and brought one last winter in time for butchering. I always try to sit down and read over the instruction manuals and to my delight they talked about re-using the bags! I called the company to confirm and yes you can reuse the bags making the cost of the system even more affordable. The customer service man and I did agree to clarify that it is not recommended to reuse bags that have contained bloody raw meats.
Now that I have one, I would place it in the top ten essential homesteading tools lists. It’s not your Granny’s bag but we can fill it with her great recipes now with a much greater shelf-life. Happy Harvesting! Annie
