The Best Sous Vide Vacuum Sealers [2017 Edition] | The Tool Shed

The Best Sous Vide Vacuum Sealers [2017 Edition]

If you’re serious about sous vide, it’s not just a water bath or thermal circulator that you’ll need.

After all, ‘sous vide’ literally translates as ‘under vacuum’, so you’ll also need to be able to vacuum pack your ingredients using a vacuum sealer.

Here’s taken a look at our favourite vacuum sealers for professional and domestic users, and what makes them so great.

The Pro Range

Vac-Star® easyPRO Vacuum Sealer – £479.99

Developed specifically for sous vide cooking, the most notable feature of the Vac-Star easyPro is its truly impressive 96% (-0.96mBar) vacuum suction, making it possible to separate large quantities of food to be prepared sous vide or frozen for later.

The sealer features a robust and hygienic AISI 304 stainless steel construction for durability, with a 20 litre per minute vacuum pump to draw the air out of the vacuum pouches, before the heat seal beam of 360mm safely secures the bag with an extra-wide 3mm industrial seam for a reliable and long-lasting vacuum, even if the bag is damp inside.

The easyPro also features an easy to use digital control system (simply close the lid and press the button), a vacuum sensor which allows either automatic or manual pump and seal operation, and a timer control so you can adjust the intensity of the seal burn.

There’s also a sophisticated pulse vacuum function, with generates a vacuum for as long the pulse button is pressed, enabling a precise and controlled partial vacuum for pressure sensitive products, and allows for external marinating too.

A vacuum cycle can be completed to 0.50 bar within 20 to 30 seconds, and the unit is extremely easy to clean and look after, with a removable sealing bar and drip tray and smooth outside lines which can be wiped down easily.

The Vac-Star is ideal for use in a busy professional kitchen and will ensure safe and reliable results for many years to come.

The Domestic Range

SousVideTools® Vacuum Sealer – £65.99

If you’re just starting out with sous vide cooking at home and don’t want to break the bank for a vacuum sealer, look no further than our own SousVideTools Vacuum Sealer.

The model is a convenient and efficient sealer, which is easy to use, provides powerful suction, and is also great value.

Another important feature of this sealer is that it’s relatively compact and sleek, meaning that it won’t take up too much countertop space, and can easily be stored away when it’s not in use.

There are four different functions available, including the ‘vacuum and seal’, which removes the air from a vacuum pouch ready for sous vide cooking, and the ‘quick seal’, which seals the bag, but without removing the air, which is useful for cooking with marinades and liquids.

There’s also a ‘Moist/Dry’ setting, specifically designed to reinforce the seal when cooking juicy foods.

Easy to use and easy to maintain, the SousVideTools® Vacuum Sealer is the perfect choice if you’re new to sous vide cooking and want to give it a go in your own home.

Post by Chris Holland

Our Chef Director Chris Holland worked as Head Chef at the prestigious Alderley Edge hotel before joining us. He has a passion for using the best produce and never compromises on quality. Author of our best selling book Sous Vide The Art of Precision Cooking, Chris is a expert on the sous vide technique.During the later part of my school days at Wardle High School Rochdale I always wanted to be a chef . I knew from the very start that my path to work was never going to be academic it was always going to be something practical and hands on.

As a young boy growing up I was inspired to cook with my Grandma who was and still is an inspiration to me . I have memories of helping make the cakes that she always had made for visitors and family alike . She made the most amazing cakes and I loved nothing more than eating the sweet raw cake batter straight from the bowl . We used to fight over who got to lick the bowl/spoon after the cakes were made. My grandma’s philosophy for cooking even on a shoe string budget was always to use fresh and seasonal ingredients either home grown or bought from the market.

School was somewhat of a drag for me as I was itching to learn to become a chef.

I started at Hopwood Hall college as a chef and instantly fell in love with it .To me it was the only real time I excelled in something and this inspired me to really get my head down and put in the hard work. College was the first time I really excelled in something and gave me the opportunity to laugh at the teachers who said I would never make something of my life!!!!

During the three years at college I also took on a part time position in a local hotel working the bar and restaurant first and then the kitchen. These were great days and gave me the opportunity to see how the industry ticks. I learnt a lot from those days both good and bad !! But I have to say I was itching to work only in the kitchen but it was a good insight into the catering world .

After completing college I moved away from Rochdale for a full time roll at one of Cheshire’s most talked about Hotel restaurants The Stanneylands Hotel. This was the school of hard knocks for me as I quickly realised that although excelling at college meant nothing in “The Real World”.

I loved every minute of the 18 hour days 6 days a week on minimum wage . Although difficult I feel that without this grounding I wouldn’t have achieved what I have today. After 18 months of hard graft I left Stanneylands and went with the Head chef to open a fine dining restaurant at Mere Golf and Country Club. The opportunity to work alongside Matthew Barrett was too good to turn down. I learnt so much from the ex-Ritz chef and working in a much slower paced role helped me develop a much better understanding of how to organise and run a kitchen. We were a very small team and teamwork was and still is the only way to go for me.

After 2 years at Mere I got the opportunity to go into The Alderley Edge Hotel as Junior Souschef. The Early days at the Edge were all about learning new styles of cuising which is invaluable in any role as a chef. I got the opportunity to grow and learn all aspects of every section which was inspiring . I was offered the opportunity at the age of 29 (2004) to take the role of head chef. For me this was when I really started to develop my own style of food.

After 9 years at the top winning Cheshire restaurant of the year , Chef of the Year and appearing on GBM amongst many highlights including cooking for many celebrities and famous people I decided to move on into development with Sousvidetools.

The main inspiration for this was to train and educate people . I always had a great passion for education but could never really see myself at a college . The job is super rewarding and I am proud to say we have become the leading light in sous-vide education in the UK . This is something I am very proud of . Food is my biggest passion and this is what keeps me interested the most . I love to travel and try out other countries cuisines. I am constantly inspired by ingredients and the pursuit of getting the best out of them without destroying their natural flavour .It is super important to me to continue to try and be at the forefront of the food scene this is what inspire me and the team to keep driving forward .

Technology is now widely used in the industry and I am super proud to say we have been a big part of spreading that message.

I am very lucky to be in the position I am and the drive to constantly improve our training and links to the next generation of young budding hospitality chefs.

TI feel that my experience over the last 25 years really enables me to get close and educate the “next generation” of chefs .

The industry which I love is really struggling to bring through new recruits and if I can help that process I will be immensely proud.

The food seen in the Uk has improved dramatically over the last ten years and I feel this will continue with the correct education. What happens next only fate will tell us...

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