CG-15 Commercial Grade Vacuum Sealer

I purchased a commercial grade vacuum sealer from Cabela's 6 years ago. It's been one of the best investments I've ever made.

My wife and I were looking for a solution for storing leftover bbq and identified the solution--a vacuum sealer. Leftover bbq will store for a few days in standard plastic bowls with lids, but more than a few days of storage requires something more substantial. Enter the vacuum sealer solution.

The vacuum sealer extends the storage life of food by withdrawing oxygen. Too much oxygen accelerates the deterioriation that causes the spoilage process in food. After cooking, we just place the remaining meat into a bag of the appropriate size, press a button and less than a minute later we have a professional quality vacuum seal that will store in the freezer or refrigerator with ease.

When we have a craving for bbq, we just pop the bag into a pan of hot water and--presto--we have a bbq meal at our fingertips.

I'll be the first to warn prospective vacuum sealer shoppers that the CG-15 Commercial Grade Vacuum Sealer is not inexpensive. Ours cost $399.99 and the 15 x 18 size bags were another $45.00, but when you bbq as much as we do...and can't eat all that you cook in one setting (we often cook 10-15 lbs. of meat at a time), the vacuum sealer is a wise investment.

Here are some alternatives to the Cabela's model that are a little more economical.

Foodsaver Vacuum Sealer
Foodsaver 1-Gallon Bags

We've used the vacuum sealer to store vegetables too. We blanch them first, drop them in an ice bath, seal in a bag, and pop them into the freezer. The veggies stay very fresh this way for us. This method works very well for squash, zucchini, green beans, and peas.