You can find a Ziploc Vacuum Starter kit at the store that comes with bags and a pump. Then you only need to buy additional bags. They have quart and gallon size and are perfect for freezing summer produce!
Some weeks we are not able to eat all of our produce while it is fresh, so we make sure to preserve it so that we can continue to enjoy the local harvest long after it is over.
I prefer to freeze most of the produce that I preserve, and one item that I found at the end of last year’s season that has made freezing an absolute no-brainer is the Ziploc brand Vacuum freezer bags. They come with a manual hand pump that gets your produce practically air-tight!
Last year I tried freezing with regular freezer bags, doing my best to remove as much air as possible, but the bags always ended up filled with air in a few short weeks. These vacuum bags made the packages tightly sealed with hardly any air at all, and the items that I froze at the end of last year still look great!
There are other brands of these types of freezer bags, and I have even seen one that comes with a battery operated pump, but I prefer the simplicity of the hand pump with Ziploc. If you have a food saver system, that would be the only thing better in my book!
Enjoy!
~ Charity
For more info on Ziploc products:
(originally posted in the 7-14-09 CSA newsletter)
