Vacu sealer
Massachusetts
Can someone explain how good a vacuum sealer is,.. ?
How long can you store venison in the freezer wrapped up,.. vs,.. vacuum sealed?
I didn't really expect to get a deer this year,.. for next year my expectations have changed,.. and now I think I want to be better prepared to preserve the meet longer term.
Vacuum sealers are excellent, no freezer burn, and lasts a very long time in freezer
Check out meat eater quick episode about vacuum sealer on YouTube
I have venison that is vacuum sealed from 2012. It's still good. Let's Go
Or you can do what I do. Wrap in wax paper, then saran wrap, then into ziplock. Grab a straw and suck the air out. Don't laugh....... it works.
I had two of those things croak on me. And they are too expensive to keep replacing. That was a long time ago though. I am sure they are much better these days.
Pete
2012 !!!!
No shit!
That's it,.. I will get one.
B.B. I average about 2 years a piece with my sealers. Bags get expensive also. But I do package around 100 pounds of fish a year and up to 100 pounds of meat. Plus miscellaneous other items.
If you are looking at a cheaper route go butchers paper. If minor cost isn’t a problem go vac sealer
my butcher, wraps in plastic wrap, squeezes all the air out, wraps again, then wraps in butcher paper. never had freezer burn.
but I've also done vacuum sealer too...have to be careful with the cheaper ones....they can overheat and burn out (not meant for the volume of packing a whole deer). so we would do a quarter at a time
Here is another option. I rarely cut up deer into steaks or chops right away. I'll freeze everything as the large muscle groups. The surface area to meat ratio is very low and freezer burn is negligible if is there is any at all. When its time to eat, I'll place the large chunk overnight in the fridge. The next morning it won't be thawed but it will be just soft enough to cut up your steaks. You can get very nice even cuts. Only then I'll steak it up and refreeze the individual pieces that I am not eating right away. it is usually enough to last for a few weeks to a month. Benefits are it is a lot less work and faster when cutting up the deer yourself. I know I waste less. Those big chunks last forever in the freezer. I didn't need to invest in a sealer. I also freeze fish as a block of ice in a ziplock storage bag. Laid flat while freezing they don't take up much room and last forever.
It is possible to keep meat for a couple years properly wrapped but I usually favor the vacuum sealer. Mine is starting to go though, sucks out about 50% less air than it used to. It's at least 6 years old though.
Wrap with saran wrap tight against the meat (eliminates most/all the air), wrap in butcher paper, freeze. If the saran wrap is nice and tight it will last at least 2 years and be good as the day you wrapped it. If you're worried about blood leaking out when you thaw it toss it in a zip lock after the butcher paper, but that isn't really necessary to keep the meat good.
I think it might last even longer than 2 years but I can't say for sure since I've never kept any that long. Don't really understand how someone can still have venison left more than a couple years after shooting it.
Also, long term storage is best done in a non-self-defrosting freezer.
I got a vac sealer for Christmas. Thinking of going to NH to shoot some squirrels tomorrow and try it out.
I am going vac pac I lost about 70 lbs of meat last year because it was wrapped in freezer paper instead of vac pack my freezer went out what was in vac seld was good but the paper was mixed in blood from deer and turkey it was cold but could not take the chance the vacuum seeked was fin rinsed off the bag and all was good inside
I use a vacuum sealer stuff stays like the day it was sealed I have had fish and deer meat last 2 to 3 years no freezer burn no change in color
BB, get the vac sealer, you won't look back. X2 on Tekoa's advice on waiting to cut into steaks, works great. I get the 6 pack of bulk rolls from Walmart, cut your own to size.
Except for the saran wrap I double wrap wax paper in opposite directions, squeeze what air I can out of the zip loc then either suck it out with a straw or duct tape a couple of straws to a hand held vacum..had it last 3 yrs like that but by then I bring it to our weekly he man woman haters ftw grill and chill nite..anything tastes good hammered at midnite..lol
It works awesome. We used to have one and I've eaten wild turkey that disapeared in the freezer only to be found 3-4 years later good to go. I think the USDA place that I used to have butcher deer suggested 2-4 years. If I was going to get into butchering my own again, I'd do it for sure.
