Posted something similar on Food thread but know there are a lot of bbq folks/rednecks in here as well that might have an answer. I'm looking for something that I could get for home (AKA, not tens of thousands of dollars (or more) like pork processors use to seal racks of spare ribs, briskets, etc. I cook a lot of bbq for friends/family and currently use a Weston Pro 2300 which I like a lot but I'd rather have something that doesn't leave all of the excess plastic. I can't even find what kind of machines do this. Thanks.

I have a vacmaster VP320 ($1700) that would probably fit the bill. It can do whole briskets and pork butts, however, you might need to trim a full rack of ribs to fit. They make larger units I think.



https://www.webstaurantstore.com/ary-vacmaster-vp320-chamber-tabletop-vacuum-packaging-machine-with-16-seal-bar/120VMASVP320.html

It's not the same as the cryovac stuff you see in the store but you can buy different sized bags to minimize excess plastic.

Tx-Ag2010 said:

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It's not the same as the cryovac stuff you see in the store but you can buy different sized bags to minimize excess plastic.

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Thanks. Guess I'm looking at "cryovac" options. Not sure if there are any at home options for that though. Thanks for your VM input. I'm definitely looking at those.

To do what you are describing, any chamber sealer will work (I use a Vacmaster 215). Its the type of bag you use that's different. You need bags designed to heat shrink.

The process:

1) Vacuum seal as you normally would
2)Drop sealed bag in pot of hot water for a few seconds to shrink excess.

I tried some of the bags when I first got my machine. They worked as advertised but I quit using them because they take an extra step and cost more than standard bags but I could see no real benefit to using them vs regular bags except the look of the finished product.

Thank you! That's very helpful. I thought it was a completely different machine. How do you like your vacmaster? Can you do a whole rack of ribs?

I used foodsavers for years and years. Finally got a VacMaster VP215 about 6 months ago. Now I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner. The quality is ridiculously good. The only down side is that these things weigh ~80 lbs. I used to store my foodsaver on a shelf in the closet, but definitely can't do that with the VacMaster.

Vacmaster 215 might be a bit small for whole briskets, but the Vacmaster chamber sealers are incredible. Highly recommended.

killbutchereat said:

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Vacmaster 215 might be a bit small for whole briskets, but the Vacmaster chamber sealers are incredible. Highly recommended.

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username makes me think you know what you're talking about here.

I have owned many Foodsavers over the past 30 or so years and really liked them, until I tried a chamber vac. Then I realized how much better life can be. I like my 215 but wish it was bigger. It was given to me by my boss as a Christmas Bonus last year so I didn't get any input on size. If I was buying myself, I would buy one of the larger ones that has dual sealing bars. That gives the added advantage of being able to do larger pieces and being able to do multiple small packages at once. My buddy has one, not sure what model, twice the size of mine with 2 sealing bars. When we were butchering deer last year, he was able to seal 4 1 pound packs of ground meat at once in the time I was doing a single package.

I haven't tried a full rack of ribs in mine but it's probably a little short.

The advantages of shrink bags are that they are more resilient and less likely to get a hole in the bag.

If they do get a hole, only the part right by the hole will freezer burn. With a regular vac bag, when you get a hole in the package, the entire product will freezer burn.