Vacuume Sealer for Flour

[Penny_Plinker]

Mother in law got herself a bag of the 3.97 for 25# flour. We put it up in quart jars using my new vacuume sealer. A 25 lb bag of flour makes 20 quarts.

The Foodsaver works great for jars and i mainly wanted it for to put up dry food in jars. The bags are too expensive to use liberally. I read you can wash and re-use them although they keep getting shorter as you cut off the seal. I'll be re-using as long as possible. Realistically, the unit probably not worth the money in the long run, $139.00, but it's fun to use.

Penny

[Shamrock1121]

Mother in law got herself a bag of the 3.97 for 25# flour. *We put it up in quart jars using my new vacuume sealer. *A 25 lb bag of flour makes 20 quarts.

The Foodsaver works great for jars and i mainly wanted it for to put up dry food in jars. *The bags are too expensive to use liberally. *I read you can wash and re-use them although they keep getting shorter as you cut off the seal. *I'll be re-using as long as possible. *Realistically, the unit probably not worth the money in the long run, *$139.00, but it's fun to use.

Penny

Penny -

What a bargain your mom got. I just saw a 25# of flour at the store for $11.98, and it's a local mill, not a National Brand.

Sorry if I'm repeating information you have already read, or I already posted to you....

You're not supposed to vacuum seal flour in the storage bags. When the flour is compacted in the bags, there's still enough moisture in flour to mold. The mold can actually make you sick (aflatoxin).

I've used a FoodSaver since the mid-1980's and I can't tell you all the food savings I've enjoyed. NO MORE freezer burned meat, fruit, vegetables - and meat keeps for longer periods of time in the freezer. I can keep lettuce "fresh" for weeks, not days, in a FoodSaver canister - even guacamole will stay fresh longer when vacuum-sealed. Infrequently-used hard cheese, like parmesan, will keep a long time if vacuum-sealed. I can buy larger quantities and divide them into user-friendly amounts and not have to worry about how soon they need used because shelf-life is extended.

I even make Jifts-In-A-Jar mixes, vacuum seal them in quart jars and count them as my homemade convenience foods. Vacuum-sealing really extends the shelf-life.

-Karen

[theresehirko]

We do vacuum seal our flour, but we go through it so quickly, I don't think mold has much time to grow. A word on aflatoxin. Cooking will not kill this toxin. It can make people very sick and kill an immunocompromised person. i learned about this in microbiology.

[Penny_Plinker]

We put the flour in quart jars, i hope that is safe. The foodsaver came with an attachment for wide mouth, but i want to get one for regular lids, too. I'll have to get one of those lettuce cannisters, too, my lettuce always goes bad.

That's sort of scarey about the flour mold, though. Wonder if it was mishandled in the store and got damp if might already be moldy and you wouldn't know it.

Penny

[Shamrock1121]

We put the flour in quart jars, i hope that is safe. *The foodsaver came with an attachment for wide mouth, but i want to get one for regular lids, too. *I'll have to get one of those lettuce cannisters, too, my lettuce always goes bad.

That's sort of scarey about the flour mold, though. *Wonder if it was mishandled in the store and got damp if might already be moldy and you wouldn't know it.

Penny

Storing flour in the jars is the best way, so ya' DUN GOOD! It remains loose in the jar, rather than packed like it gets in the vacuum-sealed bags.

Flour, even though it feels dry, actually has a good amount of moisture in it 8-10%. If it's been stored in the paper bag in high humidity, it will absorb more moisture. Unlike in the winter when the air is really dry, it has less moisture - so it varies season to season. This is one reason we mix bread dough to "feel", not according to a certain amount of flour. That amount of moisture, or lack of it, all affect the dough and the hydration.

My first FoodSaver came with one attachment that would fit both wide-mouth and regular. After that, they only came with wide-mouth, which is fine since I can use the regular jars for other things.

-Karen