Best Vacuum Sealers
Combining both a handheld and standard vacuum sealer, this 2-in-1 FoodSaver appliance is vacuum sealing versatility at its best. Starter Kit includes: (1) 11"x10' Roll, (3) Qt Heat-Seal Bags, (2) Gal Heat-Seal Bags, (3) Qt Zipper Bags, (2) Gal Zipper Bags.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Below is a picture of the older came show model with a separate vacuum bag roll storage and cutter. One problem with the older unit was that it would not allow you to heat seal the bags closed until it achieved a very thorough removal of all of the air. Again the newer model allows me to seal the bags to achieve a tight shrink wrap but without making a mess. I recycled some plastic take-out Chinese containers, filled them with some delicious bean and bacon soup that my wife made today. I bagged several helpings of soup and with the concavity achieved by the plastic containers they stack perfectly in my freezer."
"I thought having the control panel on top would be a good thing (in use it doesn't really make a difference), and I found the brushed stainless steel chassis wrap attractive... neither affects the function of the sealer, and a buyer can get the same functionality and save $30 by purchasing the 4440. Automated sealing works well, and the amount of vacuum can be controlled from the panel for fragile items or partial vacuum sealing. The attached hose unit is used for sealing vacuum zipper bags or vacuum sealing jars or drawing a vacuum in a marinating dish. I found that 2 1/2 inches from the edge to the contents in the bag results in a reliable seal. After 10 or so days, I have used the first beans, and replenish the containers from the freezer, maintaining FRESH ground coffee for a couple of months."
When sealing zipper bags, containers and canisters, the convenient handheld retractable sealer eliminates the need for additional attachments. 3.All- in- One DesignWith the retractable handheld sealer also comes an added bonus of adding attachments to this machine to augment its already stellar performance and give you the option to seal jars, containers, canisters, and even zipper bags. One 11 x10 inches vacuum seal roll; three 1-quart vacuum seal bags; two 1-gallon vacuum seal bags; three 1-quart vacuum zipper bags and two 1-gallon zipper bags.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Opened forgotten jars of spaghetti sauce find there way to the garbage pail out of fear of a foodborne illness. I reuse the 8" bags by cutting close to the seal, washing the bags out with Dawn dish detergent and re using the bags for smaller Items like spaghetti sauce cubes. However it works fine and can be worked gently back into the cabinet. It didn't stop me from using the wide and regular mouth Ball jar vacuum attachments ( use a second lid over the first for easy release) and the marinator worked fine."
"When you want to seal the bag you just hit the seal button and put the bag in and it automatically senses the bag and seals it the red light will go off when the bag is sealed."
"The removable tray makes it much easier to keep clean and the switch that allows me to change the seal for either dry or wet food is extremely nice to have. It automatically senses the bag in the slot to be sealed and makes a nice wide seal on the bag (approx. I used to place a double seal on the bag to ensure there wouldn't be leakage of air into the bag especially with moist foods like meat."
"However, if any more than half a teaspoons worth of liquid is vacuumed, it doesn't seal the bags properly and air seeps back in (I found this out the hard way -->). Minus learning about the liquid part, and having to either overfeed my dog, or throw out fresh food."
"The newer one does the job and holds the sealant plastic roll, but probably takes twice the time to finish one suck n seal compared to the older model."
The 44-count box of quart-size bags works with any FoodSaver heat-seal vacuum sealing system (not included). Specially designed channels block oxygen and moisture to maximize air removal.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The food comes out even months later as fresh tasting as it went into the FoodSaver bags."
"It may be cheaper to make your own bags, but there is a lot of standing around waiting for the sealer to be ready if you are doing a lot of bags at once."
"I got in a mess trying to use them for the cup-up chicken."
"It is great for wrapping hamburger when I buy great quality."
"love these bags with my new food saver, Super durable and thick you can tell they will keep your food fresh without freezer burn for a while."
"They are more than the roll but I find that I use too much with the roll and making these small bags takes too much time."
"They save me time when I get home from shopping at the box store."
"These are original manufacturer's bags and they do work well."
Best Outdoor Smokers
Other highlights include a water pan, built-in thermometer, individual vents on the bowl and lid, a heat-resistant nylon handle, and a storage cover. At Weber, they continue that tradition of excellence in everything they do from the development of new grills and accessories to the services they provide to customer and dealers. Performance Weber grills have been and will continue to be the true definition of performance in backyard grilling. 2012 Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker Smokers 18.5" Silver. 22.5" Silver Cooking System Color / Item Black / 721001. Black / 731001 Two plated-steel cooking grates •. • Cooking Area Diameter 18-1/2 inches. 22-1/2 inches Total cooking area 481 square inches. 726 square inches Construction Porcelain-enameled bowl, lid, and water pan •. • Four rust-resistant aluminum vents •. • Rust-resistant aluminum fuel door •. • Glass-reinforced nylon handle(s) •. • Features Lid thermometer •. • Premium cover included •. • Owner's guide •. • Limited warranty •. • Dimensions LxWxH (inches) 21 x 19 x 41. 24 x 23 x 48.5. Size: 18-Inch |. Style: Smoker. Cooking System 2 heavy-duty, plated-steel, cooking grates Two 18.5 inch diameter cooking areas Cooking area = 481 square inches Premium grade cover included Weber cookbook Limited warranty Available lid and bowl color: black Construction Porcelain-enameled bowl, lid, and waterpan No-rust aluminum vents No-rust aluminum fuel door 1 Glass-reinforced nylon handle Built-in lid thermometer Dimensions (With the lid open) Height: 41 inches Width R-L: 19 inches Depth: 19 inches Additional Information A durable built-in thermometer allows you to easily monitor your grills temperature. Water pan; built-in thermometer; individual vents on bowl and lid; storage cover.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"After much research and measuring, I realized the 18 inch version was too big as well (& must be equally heavy) - the 18 inch seems like the right size for someone who entertains for 40+ people regularly - overkill for someone wanting to invite his family over or cook for his own family. To put it in perspective, you can fit two pork butts on the 14 and 4 butts on the 18 - I recently did one butt and had enough pulled pork for 6 adults and 6 kids, and there were left overs that could have fed at least one more family (2 adults and 2 kids) - this means I can feed 12-16 with one butt and 24-32 with 2 on the 14 - more than enough. Also, the 14 uses less fuel and will cost less per use in the long run (for example if you smoke 2 butts in the 18 (versus its capacity of 4) u need to use more fuel because of the bigger space to heat up. Remember the unit is engineered/designed for use of Both racks (which makes the 18 more efficient for 4 pork butts versus the 22 for example)."
"November 2017 Update: All it takes is one WSM-18 to win a Rib Championship, even caveman pitmaster style when no foil or electricity is allowed. New WSMs will tend to overheat until you are able to get grease and gunk on the inside and around the rim where the lid sits to ensure an air tight seal. The fastest way to season is to do the following: Phase One - cover the water pan completely with aluminum foil and run a full load of lit Kingsford briquettes and let it run as hot as it can with no water in the pan (over 350 degrees) to burn off any manufacturing residue. Put bacon strips, chicken parts, pork fat, or any other scrap meat you don't plan to eat. Dry heat allows the crust to form faster on the meat (called the bark). To test for properly formed bark, use your finger nail and scrape the meat surface. Remember to always empty the ash from the bottom and grease on the foiled water pan to avoid fires and any rancid old oil smell before you cook. --------------------------------------------------------------. Updated March 18, 2014 - in response to questions on fire and temp management on the WSM-18, I added a link with more tips [...]. OK. A reader notified me that Amazon deleted my link to my bbq team website where I feature easy recipes of the backyard cook. Regardless of the pit you're using, they all have three major components that you'll need to learn to control to maintain proper cooking temperatures: 1) the air intake, 2) fuel you're using, and 3) the exhaust vent/chimney. Besides, I buy them on sale in the summer months for half price and stockpile them for my classes and contest year where I use over a hundred 20-lb bags annually. Yes, I do use other types of fuel like lump charcoal and pellets but I like to compete using KF Blue (no, they are not my sponsor) because I can fly into any city in America and drive my rental car to Walmart to pick up one bag of KF Blue and win a Grand Championship. In the WSM, there are three circular intake damper vents at the bottom that can be opened or closed as needed to allow more or less air to enter the pit. If you're cooking brisket and pork butt (> 12 hours), you want to fill it all the way going past the top of the charcoal ring until it is overflowing. When you're ready to start cooking, carefully dump a half charcoal chimney of lit briquettes into the crater. If you have access to a WSM circa 2008 and earlier, those older WSMs come with a shallow water pan that does not bump into the briquettes. Alternatively, you can go to Home Depot and get yourself a terra cotta planter base that's the same diameter as the WSM water pan. I don't like the terra cotta approach as it's added weight I have to carry when I transport my WSMs which have already accumulated over 100,000 miles of travel all over the US. All seasoned pitmasters know how to intuitively draft their pit using "clean" smoke to color and flavor their barbecue meats. With both of these quick fix approaches, do not leave your WSM unattended as the temps could rise fast and you'll burn your meats."
"I will keep this short, because I know youve already read all about this thing."
"My husband LOVES this smoker."
"He really likes the Weber brand and doesn't think you can go wrong with any of their products!"
Best Dehydrators
The Excalibur 9-Tray Large Dehydrator provides 15 square feet of drying space making this the biggest and best there is! 9-Tray dehydrator, 15 square feet of drying space, Built in on/off switch and adjustable thermostat with 26 hour timer.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I has a much smaller one that couldn't hold much and it was frustrating to go to the effort to prep food to dry only to be able to do so little of it at a time, so I took the plunge and bought this Excalibur model and am so happy I made the change. I'm still fairly new to food dehydration so I refer to a book I bought for the proper way to prepare food items and for drying time and temperature, then I follow those directions and I'm having nothing but success so far."
"You already know about the 9 trays, you know about air moving, you know that it's a bit bulky and may not fit under a smaller kitchen cabinet. - Fairly easy to clean, seems to be a decent quality items, I've had zero issues with it after owning and using for a bit over three months."
"They may only have a guarantee of 10 years in the USA, but since I have had the first one for 35 years, I had no worries about buying a second one for a spare because the 35 year old one might go belly up some day--or maybe not. I didn't get this exact model but went whole hog and got the stainless one with the stainless shelves and the timer. However, it's plastic shelves had started to droop, making for uneven drying of leathers--but that's no big deal because people start to droop after 35 years, too! So, I bought new stainless shelves for the old one. They have not changed the demensions of these things for at least 35 years so brand new stainless mesh shelves fit my ancient dehydrator perfectly. The old one just has a knob that sets the temp and starts it running. I made some amazing smoked salmon and chinese beef jerky and about a dozen different types of fruit leather over about a 3 week period.The dehydrator is great to raise bread, dry nylons or lingerie, or put that "glaze" on the brined salmon for perfect smoking in your smoker! However, the one suggestion I can make is to not bother to replace your drooping plastic shelves with another set of plastic ones if you've lost your "mesh" that came with them. When you add up the cost of buying new plastic shelves and new mesh,you may as well just spring for an entire new set of stainless shelves because you won't need the mesh with them."
"We have owned several dehydrators over the years, Started with a Ronco and the last one was an American Harvest. I only wish I had bought the 5 tray instead of the 9. Who knew that by going with the square design you would gain so much space."
Best Electric Meat Grinders
This Meat Grinder is intended to Grind Meat - This Grinder Will NOT Grind Bones.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The first conclusion: the most important feature of a meat grinder is the motor power. This STX has a powerful 1,800 watts motor, more than enough to do all of the duties of a home kitchen (and maybe even of a small restaurant). The ground meat texture results very similar to that from a supermarket grinder. We didn't notice that, and what went to the dishwasher was damaged: the shining was gone and those parts became some rough to touch. So, I contacted the seller (The Mercantile Station) and asked them the price of the replacing parts, since I would buy them. What a pleasant surprise: they promptly sent me an email asking for my address, and they kindly offered to send the parts for free (despite, I must stress, the damage was caused by me). IMPORTANT NOTE: a few months after we bought our STX, the motor was improved to 2,000 watts, i.e, an increase of about 11%."
"Put a bit of already ground meat back into hopper to push through the last piece of steak so it doesn't get stuck - push down with pusher."
"First time use was for grinding London Broil at $1.99 a pound rather than buy 80% hamburg at $3.99 a pound. Ground a bunch of chicken and it made delicious burgers, @.99 lb."
"Being a machinist I took a good sharpening stone and dressed the disks and blades, they broke in perfectly. Determining the right amount of tension on the disk retaining ring is not exact science."
"My mom seems to love this thing and grinds everything in it, mainly meats and vegetables."
"While this machine does produce a loud whirring sound while operating, it is a very efficient machine and gets the job done quickly!"
"It saves me money and I can now insure the quality of the meat that I'm eating."
"Easy assembly, good fitting parts except the meat trough is loose when in use and has no way in which to secure it."
Best Hunting Knives, Axes & Saws
Our new key knife just might save the day, unless of course you lock it in the trunk. Black key handle is made of stainless steel that's shaped like a house key.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This little knife is really sharp, has a good locking mechanism, and a hefty metal build."
"I like having mine around and readily available for opening packages, cutting strings off clothing, or gettings those little plastic tags off of merchandise."
"My only complaint is to fold it back you can only grip it from the sides which is awkward to me."
"Awesome emergency knife with limitations of course."
"With the index and middle knuckles wrapped around each side of the head. For $5 SOG mades an alarmingly dangerous and easily-concealed self-defense weapon, especially if used by the right hands."
"Incredible quality, looks awesome, and an extremely high quality blade."
"Great little addition to my clip-on keychain."
"Love this little knife I’ve had it on my keys for about a year now and it’s still very sharp and in good condition."