Produced by
Patti Moreno
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How to Preserve Vegetables Using a Vacuum Sealer
It's finally harvest time, and some of us are producing more food than we could possibly eat all at once! Don't fear, you can keep your veggies fresh for over 6 months by vacuum sealing them! In this video, Iʼm going to walk you through the process of sealing up your produce air-tight to store in the freezer all winter long.
A vacuum sealer is a really handy appliance, and a staple for the home vegetable gardener. You can get them online or in kitchen supply stores, and they come in a wide range of brands and prices, so choose one based on your needs. The fancier ones can get pricey, but just think of all the money you can save on produce over the winter by preserving your own home-grown vegetables! In just a few meals, it will pay for itself.
Each vacuum sealer is slightly different, so be sure to read the instructions that come with it.
To preserve your veggies, you want to first seal one end of the plastic to create a pouch. Fill it with enough vegetables for one recipe. Remember that once you take a bag out of the freezer and open it, you canʼt re-freeze them, so you donʼt want to overfill the bags. Then put the open end of the bag back into the vacuum sealer - following the instructions for your individual machine - and press the ʻvacuumʼ button. All the air will be sucked from the pouch right before your eyes! The bag will then seal itself shut, and will stay sealed until you cut it open later. Label the bags with the contents and the date, and put them away in the freezer where they will last for over six months! Even in the dead of winter, you can still cook with the delicious organic vegetables you grew in your own garden.
