Packaging at home. Lifehack: Vacuum bag for food for pennies

Well, after a certain number of experiments we can say that work on budget system Vacuuming of products is completed.

Buying a ready-made vacuum sealer is a bit expensive. Give 8-10 thousand rubles. For a device that is needed not every day, but only several times a year, a toad dissuaded me. So I decided to make it myself. Let me make a reservation right away - the result is not ideal. The whole process requires some skill. Sometimes a package that is not sealed has to be repacked. But it's still cheaper than buying a ready-made packer.

In fact, you can do without a compressor (see photo 1). I think a manual one will be fine Vacuum pump(see photo 2) or a converted bicycle. Perhaps even a regular vacuum cleaner or electric pump for air mattresses will do...

And to seal the bags I used... a bag sealer (see photo 3)! Many large supermarkets have these things. They seal customers' bags in bags so that they don't put anything they don't need in there. I bought such a device before the crisis, second-hand. Got it for pennies. Now, of course, it will cost more.

All that remains is to put it all together into a single whole. This is where some difficulties arose. Pumping out the air and immediately sealing the bag is not as easy as it might seem.

I connected a hose to the suction pipe of the compressor. I didn’t forget about the filter (I don’t really want grains of rice or other debris inside the compressor). I attached the tip of a ballpoint pen to the hose.

At first I did this: I took a bag with the contents and sealed it. Then he cut off the corner of the bag, inserted the tip there and turned on the compressor. The air was sucked out of the bag, after which I sealed the corner. But this method failed. The package wrinkled, it was sealed crookedly and not airtight. And for all the manipulations one pair of hands was not enough.

Therefore, instead of a pen tip, I made a special nozzle. It is flattened at one end copper tube, into which a piece of tin folded in half and soldered at the edge was soldered. It turned out to be a very flat tube that did not interfere with the closing of the sealer flaps. To prevent the tip from being squeezed, a thin steel wire was inserted inside (see photos 4 and 5).

Now the process looks like this: the bag with the contents and the inserted nozzle is inserted into the soldering iron and sealed. The seam is interrupted only at the point where the flat tip enters the bag (see photo 6).

Without removing the bag, I turn on the compressor and pump out the air. Since the edge of the bag is still clamped in the soldering iron, it doesn't wrinkle. As soon as the air has been pumped out (this can be seen by the way the bag has stopped shrinking and you can hear how the compressor has begun to hum strained), I carefully remove the nozzle and immediately seal the bag again. It turns out airtight and smooth. To be on the safe side, I seal the bag again a little further from the first seam.

For the demonstration, I used ground beef that had been dried overnight. I'm not going to store it for a long time, so I didn't put bags of silica gel and rusty nails inside). The last package had to be repacked later (see photo 7).

A few words about packaging bags. Not just any bags are suitable, but specifically those designed for vacuum sealing (see photo 8). Fortunately, you can buy it now. I buy from a company that sells disposable tableware, garbage bags, shoe covers and other consumables for food establishments. As a last resort, you can buy such packages online.

When choosing bags, take those that are denser. If there is no difference for soft foods, then “prickly” foods (long grain rice, oats, buckwheat) can “pierce” the film. It sounds strange, but I have encountered this. The film of the bag is stretched during vacuuming and the solid contents, if handled carelessly (for example, if dropped on a hard surface), may well damage it. And after a while the package will “inflate”.

If everything is done correctly, the packaging will preserve the food for a very long time. I’ve had two-kilogram packages of rice and buckwheat for three years now. Flat and hard, like a brick. I can’t vouch for the taste, I haven’t opened it yet, but I can’t see any bugs or mold.
I apologize for the paucity and quality of photographs. The process takes all hands, and there is nothing left to hold the camera!

Vacuum-sealed products last longer than usual, and hiking conditions this can be a great help, especially if there are no grocery stores along the way. Naturally, not all products can be vacuum sealed. But knowing their list and having built several similar jars, you can easily store your rations in such a package, while sealing it in a similar way anywhere and at any time. How to make vacuum packaging with your own hands will be discussed further in detailed master class with photo.

Materials

To work you will need:

glass jar with a tight-fitting lid;
transparent plastic tube;
small T-shaped air valve- 1 PC.;
check valve- 2 pcs.;
large syringe;
drill;
scissors.

You can purchase the tube and valves at a pet store. It is important that they match each other in diameter.

Step 1. Cut the plastic tube into four 5 cm long pieces.

Step 2. Cut the end of one of the tubes at an angle.

Step 3. Place the remaining three pieces of straw onto the T-valve.

Step 4. Take the check valve and examine it carefully. You will see that for correct use it is marked. With the side labeled “in” or “in,” attach it to one of the T-valve tubes.

Step 5. To the second valve tube you need to attach a large plastic syringe without a needle. The design, in the end, should look like in the photo.

Step 6. Drill a hole in the lid of the jar exactly in the center. Its diameter should be half that of your existing plastic tube. This is necessary for a tight fit of the parts.

Step 7. Use the sharp cut end to insert the tube into the hole in the lid.

Step 8. Connect the second check valve with the inlet end to the tube in the lid, and the second end to the third tube on the valve.

Vacuum-packed products last longer than usual, and in camping conditions this can be a great help, especially if there are no stores with products along the way. Naturally, not all products can be vacuum sealed. But knowing their list and having built several similar jars, you can easily store your rations in such a package, while sealing it in a similar way anywhere and at any time. How to make vacuum packaging with your own hands will be discussed further in a detailed master class with photos.

Materials

To work you will need:

glass jar with a tight-fitting lid;
transparent plastic tube;
small T-shaped air valve – 1 pc.;
check valve – 2 pcs.;
large syringe;
drill;
scissors.

You can purchase the tube and valves at a pet store. It is important that they match each other in diameter.

Step 1. Cut the plastic tube into four 5 cm long pieces.

Step 2. Cut the end of one of the tubes at an angle.

Step 3. Place the remaining three pieces of straw onto the T-valve.

Step 4. Take the check valve and examine it carefully. You will see that it is marked for proper use. With the side labeled “in” or “in,” attach it to one of the T-valve tubes.

Step 5. To the second valve tube you need to attach a large plastic syringe without a needle. The design, in the end, should look like in the photo.

Step 6. Drill a hole in the lid of the jar exactly in the center. Its diameter should be half that of your existing plastic tube. This is necessary for a tight fit of the parts.

Step 7. Use the sharp cut end to insert the tube into the hole in the lid.

Step 8. Connect the second check valve with the inlet end to the tube in the lid, and the second end to the third tube on the valve.

The design for vacuum packaging is ready. To vacuum seal a product, you need to place it in a jar and use a syringe to suck the air out of it.

What is the device for? First, vacuum packaging extends the shelf life by 2 or more times.

The most impressive thing about this table is the shelf life of vegetables and fruits in the freezer - as much as 2 years! Well, in general, by by and large, are such deadlines necessary? We don’t buy sausage to sit in the refrigerator for 40 days.
Therefore, we move on to the second property of vacuum packaging.
This is the preservation of the original taste of the product, because the oxidation processes under the film, deprived of air, are slowed down, and an apple, for example, freshly picked and sealed under the film, smells as divine as when it was picked. The same goes for a freshly fried cutlet, chicken wings, barbecue and more.
And third, in vacuum packaging you can prepare products using sous-vide technology, which has become popular in the 21st century. In short, this is cooking in a vacuum at low temperatures, from 52 degrees.

First, I will introduce you to the functionality.
The product comes in a cardboard box with color printing. You don’t need to invent anything for a gift.

The set contains as many as 15 packages. But the packages are far from cheap. These are special bags that have several layers - a layer of polyethylene alternates with a layer of polyamide or lavsan, and to suck out air, a third layer with corrugation is applied on one side. It’s very helpful that they put the bags, so you can sit down and pack right away.

On the top cover you can see a control button combined with an LED; in the middle there is an orange rubber valve, which must be pulled to release the vacuum.

There is also a secret button that you press when you just need to seal the package. There is no physical button, but you need to press it in the inscription area
vacuum packing system, there is a switch underneath it. Why they made it so complicated is unclear.
If you open the device you can see from the front a heating element. And further away is located vacuum chamber limited by sealing cuffs. It is in this chamber that the edge of the bag should fit.

At the bottom there is a sign with information. There are also two built-in magnets, with which the packer can be stored on the wall of the refrigerator.

I'm starting to use it. To begin with, I sealed a dry-cured smoked sausage.

Now I’ll cook the pork using sous vide technology.
The meat was chopped and sprinkled with prepared spices.

Placed it in a bag, and the bag in a packer. This is how the process happens

Result.

Professionally, products are prepared using sous vide technology in thermostatic baths. Of course, I don’t have such equipment and never will. Therefore, I place the meat in a suitable pan. Here you need to choose larger dishes so that the temperature is more or less constant.

I set it to the desired temperature. I took the cooking time and temperature from this table

Cooked for three hours. I take out the bag and cool it. It can be seen that liquid was released during cooking.

The next day I decided to print the package, and it could be stored in the refrigerator for at least 10 days. I take out a piece of meat and finally smell the food. The fact is that when cooking in a vacuum, no odors are released, this is unusual, there is nothing to focus on. So this smell reminded me of marinated barbecue meat. In principle, I sprinkled the barbecue spices on the meat. Next time - no spices or salt. All only during final roasting.

Before frying, I dried the meat using improvised means.

I apply a little softened butter to the meat and place the pork in a frying pan, well heated and fry for a minute on each side.

I don’t know what should happen, I have nothing to compare it with. But it’s more like shish kebab, but suspiciously juicy and at the same time fried. It’s a pity that the piece is large and cools quickly while you eat it. Here the thought struck me that it would be very nice to fry the meat as needed in small pieces on an alcohol burner like a hazelnut.

Now the beef. No seasoning or salt here

After 4 hours of cooking at 57 degrees. The smell of the product is like fresh cow's milk.

And here is a steak made from this meat, fried for 2 minutes on each side. Seasonings and salt are added during frying.

Cooking a beef steak is more impressive than cooking a pork steak. Namely, to make a beef steak you need to have very good, young meat. And here you are guaranteed to get a juicy, marketable steak, and the beef can be quite mediocre.
You can experiment with the temperature and cooking time as much as you like, but it is quite obvious that the product cannot be spoiled by this method of heat treatment.
It is attractive to be able to prepare barbecue meat, beef steaks, chicken breasts and so on, put in the refrigerator or even freeze (which is more acceptable for the prevention of botulism). And as you go out into nature, take this with you... And there, in the lap of nature, prepare delicious delicacies in a couple of minutes.
Thank you for your attention. Planning to buy +142 Add to favorites I liked the review +79 +172

Materials

To work you will need:

glass jar with a tight-fitting lid;
transparent plastic tube;
small T-shaped air valve – 1 pc.;
check valve – 2 pcs.;
large syringe;
drill;
scissors.

You can purchase the tube and valves at a pet store. It is important that they match each other in diameter.

Step 1. Cut the plastic tube into four 5 cm long pieces.

Step 2. Cut the end of one of the tubes at an angle.

Step 3. Place the remaining three pieces of straw onto the T-valve.

Step 4. Take the check valve and examine it carefully. You will see that it is marked for proper use. With the side labeled “in” or “in,” attach it to one of the T-valve tubes.

Step 5. To the second valve tube you need to attach a large plastic syringe without a needle. The design, in the end, should look like in the photo.

Step 6. Drill a hole in the lid of the jar exactly in the center. Its diameter should be half that of your existing plastic tube. This is necessary for a tight fit of the parts.

Step 7. Use the sharp cut end to insert the tube into the hole in the lid.

Step 8. Connect the second check valve with the inlet end to the tube in the lid, and the second end to the third tube on the valve.

The design for vacuum packaging is ready. To vacuum seal a product, you need to place it in a jar and use a syringe to suck the air out of it.

Packaging at home. Lifehack: Vacuum bag for food for pennies

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