You can choose between either a bulkier mains powered machine or this cordless model for ultimate portability, and it’s easy to use; simply push the button and it will seal. It also promises to keep your food fresh for twice as long, not quite as impactful as some other sealers, but it’s impressive for such a small machine that’s easy to stow away in a kitchen cupboard.

I bought the FoodSaver vacuum sealers for regular mouth and widemouth jars." (Brand of vacuum sealer vetted by Mumsnet user Snugglepumpkin) Our verdict A soft and spongy loaf of fresh bread can go in a vacuum bag, but the sealing pressure is likely to smash it beyond recognition. Freezing is also the secret here: Put bread or other baked goods in the freezer for a few hours, then transfer to a vacuum bag for long-term sealing. Reviewers raved about its excellent quality, creating a secure seal every time, meaning this chamber sealer is equipped to handle liquid-rich foods better than most. The big price tag may be off putting for beginners but as it’s the ideal choice if you want to prepare a feast and give sous vide cooking a serious go. No. It's perfectly safe to vacuum-seal raw meat. But fresh sausage, thin slices, and other delicate cuts are apt to be crushed during the vacuum process. Freezing for 20 to 30 minutes will help firm them up and avoid damage, says Robert Miller, Butcher and Owner of The Conscious Carnivore. (The same process works with soft produce and baked goods, too.) Our Lab team has spent collective decades working in professional kitchens, developing recipes, and testing kitchen gear.

We also liked the separated design, which makes post-sealing tidying a cinch; simply remove the sealer lid to reach all areas for a thorough clean. Dimensions: 39.9 x 16 x 7.2 centimetres | Weight: 1.9 Kilograms | Removable drip tray: Yes What we love This is a good beginner model and a solid choice for any kitchen where storage space is at a premium.

With ordinary food storage options, the shelf life of food is relatively limited. Once frozen, raw meat might last for three to six months in the freezer, but with a Foodsaver vacuum sealer, that same meat could stay fresh for up to six years. The very same gadget can seal other types of food, too: vegetables can stay fresh in the freezer for two to three years and even bread for a year or two. It’s no wonder more than 20 million Foodsaver vacuum sealers have been sold worldwide over the past three decades! Foodsaver bags, rolls and containers

FoodSaver's V4840 is a machine for a serious food...saver. It offers basically all the bells and whistles one could want in a vacuum sealer, including onboard bag storage, a removable and dishwasher-safe drip tray, a built-in handheld sealer, dry and moist modes, and automatic detection that senses when the bag is in the right position and starts the process all by itself. Fresh fruit lasts about twice as long in the fridge when it's sealed as it would otherwise, while vacuum-sealing cheese can extend its life from a few weeks to several months. Flour, sugar, rice, pasta, and other dry goods are good for a year or two at room temperature when sealed, while baked goods can last a few weeks. If you're sealing for long-term storage, make sure to keep lots of room between the food and all the edges of the bag. The more air the vacuum is able to remove, the longer the food will keep. We took into consideration price, functionality and reliability; leaving us with a comprehensive list of products that customers love and we hope you will too. Why you should trust us Sealing food also helps prevent freezer burn and can keep food moist for longer. The more comprehensive models can seal moisture rich foods, dried foods and have attachments for liquids, but different models have different primary functions. This vacuum sealer from Mueller Austria is a great value: It performs exceedingly well considering its low price. Not only does it create strong seals, but it also boasts an easy-to-use control panel with which you can choose from dry or moist and gentle or airtight settings based on exactly what you're sealing.

But that’s not all: food vacuum sealers have an array of benefits, saving you money and space in the kitchen. And they can keep both raw food and home-cooked or restaurant-bought leftovers fresh for the future, even if that’s weeks or months away. What are the benefits of food vacuum sealers? Chamber sealers work by removing all the air from a chamber inside the machine. You can load the chamber with a bag like you would with an external sealer, but you can also use jars, bowls, and other shapes and types of container. A chamber sealer is generally more powerful and more effective than an external model, but its big motor makes it bulkier and much more expensive. You're most likely to find a chamber vacuum sealer in a restaurant kitchen or other professional setting, but there are some smaller models priced for home use. A handheld sealer is basically a vacuum pump with a rechargeable battery that lets you take the sealer to the food instead of the other way around. This type of machine is very small and convenient, but it can only use bags, lidded containers, and other vessels that have a compatible valve. That means you'll most likely have to buy supplies from the same brand that makes the sealer. Handheld sealers also have a lot less power than plug-in models and are apt to take longer to make a seal. If the world of food vacuum storage is new to you, there's a few questions you may want to ask yourself before investing in a new gadget. Storage bags There are three basic ways a vacuum sealer can work, each with its own advantages and disadvantages:All our recommended products can cope with the sealing of basic foodstuffs and leftovers but if you plan on using a sealer for sous vide cooking you may have to spend a bit more as cooking food in a water bath requires a tighter seal and therefore a more powerful machine. Can it handle liquids? If you’re wanting to enhance the taste of your food with a marinade, vacuum sealing is a great way to ensure your food soaks up all the flavours while it rests. The two ‘dry’ and ‘wet’ functions of this Geryon sealer allows you to marinate food effectively in a liquid sauce, and reviewers found the seal was sufficient enough to prevent any leaks from the bag. Designed with a handy alignment feature so you can be sure that there will be no wasted FoodSaver bags, this efficient sealer is easy to use. Just put your ingredients in a FoodSaver bag, position in the machine, shut the lid, then select which mode you’d like. Within minutes, you’ll have food that is all prepped and ready to be stored. With clever auto shut-off technology, the machine will switch off as soon as it’s done its work too. The touch controls and operation of this machine are quite simple, though it takes a bit of force to get the lid to close and seal. It's a minor quibble, but we did find the buttons to be very sensitive: We accidentally turned it on before we meant to a few times when loading up the bag and food. Dimensions: ‎39.2 x 23.2 x 10.1 cm | Weight: 2.38 kg | Removable drip tray: No, but the lid comes off for cleaning What we love