TGIF, friends! I’ve been meaning to share with you one of the new kitchen gadgets my husband got for Christmas! It’s a vacuum sealer! Come check it out!
One of our New Year’s resolutions is to eat healthier and save money on groceries. (Well, I suppose that’s two resolutions.) We often shop at Costco and buy in bulk. Their fish and meat are so good but packaged in a way you can’t possibly eat it all at once. Dividing the meat is the best option. In the past, once we got the meat home, we divided it and put it in packages of two, wrapped it in seran wrap, then foil, and labeled each package. This method takes up a lot of room in the freezer, is time consuming and makes a lot of waste. Plus, sometimes the food still ends up with freezer burn. So, we invested in a vacuum sealer by Anova!
We ordered our vacuum sealer from Williams-Sonoma but they are available on Amazon for about $79 plus free Prime delivery. It’s also available at Target, and Bed, Bath and Beyond.
Our plan to save on groceries is to buy meat and fish in bulk from Costco and then vacuum seal it into individual serving sizes and store them in the freezer. For instance, this 3 pound package of salmon is about $30 from Costco. It’s much cheaper buying it this way than from our local grocery store. At the store, each piece of salmon is about $6.99. This way, it’s less than $5 per piece.
We cut up the fish and seal two pieces of fish at a time. That way, it’s dinner for two, four, or six, depending on if our kids are home. The vacuum sealer comes with plenty of bags but you can order extras online. This is how the salmon looks vacuum sealed. This not only eliminates using seran wrap and foil, but you can easily see what is in each package so you don’t need to label each item. And, it takes up less space in the freezer!
Here’s how we divided a package of scallops, also from Costco.
The other night my husband made some delicious homemade meatballs, so we vacuum sealed them into 7 meatballs, perfect for a spaghetti dinner for two! They are already cooked, so we can simply pop them in some marinara sauce, heat, and serve over pasta! Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner!
A few weeks ago, my husband, son, brother and nephew wend duck hunting. They shot their limit and brought home them home. My husband cleaned and brined them for a few days. Then he vacuum sealed them and put them in the freezer. Soon, we plan to have a duck étouffée dinner night with the hunters.
In the winter months I love to make homemade soup. But after eating on the soup for a few days, we get tired of it or forget it’s in the refrigerator. So, now we can vacuum pack the leftovers and pop them in the freezer! Once frozen, it’s handy to save for another day, or give away to a sick friend or loved one! Now that we know how easy it is to vacuum seal food, the sky is the limit! I’m thinking we can seal lettuce or salad and store it in the fridge to help keep it fresh longer.
Well, it’s time for the weekend, friends! I’ve pulled out some lamb chops that we vacuum sealed and figure they will go great with a salad and grilled veggies! Have a great weekend and let’s chat again next week? Much love, Dell
