Have and they do ok but like you we MUCH prefer canned ones over frozen ;) so likely won't do many in the FS.

We did asparagus in the FS this year and also did a mix of chopped gus with english peas that turned out really good. It needs some diced carrots for color though.

I'm thinking of digging up some early potatoes (our favorite with green beans and bacon) today and putting peas and new potatoes in the bag and then just adding cream sauce when ready to eat.

We did a broccoli experiment with the FS yesterday. Blanched, cooled, bagged and added shredded asiago cheese and then froze them. Going to try just cooking in the bag when ready to eat. It looks real "squished". ;)

Wife suggested we try doing some Dilly Beans in the FS when the time comes. Maybe the vacuum will suck the dill vinegar into them even more. We'll just keep them in the fridge.

Dave

Check out the other FS threads. Beans are blanched prior to freezing. I use a salad spinner on the blanched ones to remove excess water. After that, they are placed on a big clean bath towl to soak up any further water. I use regular zipper freezer bags. You can use the FS ones, but set the vacuum to low. If they are still wet, the whole frozen mass can be hard to seperate. Placing them as one layer on big cooky sheets and freezing prior to baggng can help too. My green beans don't seem to have the best taste once thawed and cooked. Instead, I like the better tasting yellow waxed beans. Still got 4 gallon bags (zipper freezer types) of them in my freezer. The FS works best on freezing meats. Careful using a FS to pull a vacuum on a jar that has liquid in it. The vacuum can cause the items to swell and many bubbles will be released. MY vacuum pump has a big moisture trap that keeps liquids out of the delicate vacuum pump. If planning tyo freeze a combination of items like peas, potatoes, and a sauce, be sure that all will get heated equally and they all cook at the same time.

Our big Kroger has the Food Saver, don't know what model, for $79.00. I doubt that it includes bags etc. but I left the flyer in the buggy when I was there today so I don't have a reference. My question is whether or not I even need one. I don't put up anywhere near what most of you do and so far I've either canned or frozen what I've put up. The only things I have frozen was strawberry preserves, soup and soup stock.

Opinion?

jude

I wouldn't put any of the things you mentioned in a FS bag to freeze - too much liquid in all of them.

But whether or not you could use one would depend IMO on if you buy bulk things ever? if you freeze lots of meats and/or vegetables? and if you store things in the freezer for any length of time rather than use most of it within say a month.

Yes to any of those and the FS can be a great thing.

Dave

I dont use the FS for freezing veggies, just meats and meat pies. I don't like canned beans, and prefer the yellow wax beans that are blanched and frozen. When I cooke them up. I use a small Corning ware casserole dish with glass cover. Nuke for about 4 minutes, with NO water added. They cook in their own water and taste as good as fresh picked and also have a nice firm texture, unlike canned beans, which I find too mushy.

I just did 30+ quart bags of beans (both green & wax) in my foodsaver. We'll see how they do. Other things I have been happy with , berries nad such. Just bought a box of quart sized bags(not foodsaver brand) for mine and they were $11.00 for 25. I thought that was kind of expensive, but couldn't get to a store right then that sold the foodsaver brand. Has anyone ever tried to use a regular zip bag? Like cut off the zip part and then vacumn & seal?

" Has anyone ever tried to use a regular zip bag? Like cut off the zip part and then vacumn & seal?"

Take a close look at the inside of a Foodsaver bag. There are small grooves that channel the vacuum and don't get pinched off when you press the lid down. A smooth bag like a ziplock doesn't have the grooves and would seal without drawing a vacuum inside the bag.

Regular bags don't have the embossed quilting inside, and they will not pump down as well as FS types. Using another kind of bag may also cause poor over heated seals. The zipper bags don't seal air tight compared to a heat sealer. There are also meat curing companies that sell the bag material in rolls. Its better to use rolls so you can cut them to the size you need, without any waste.