Larger Vacuum Containers (preferably in the EU)

[Mjx]

I'm looking for a large (5.75 L, or a bit larger, at least 35 cm long) vacuum container to use as a bread box, but apart from one or two kind of iffy-looking automatic units, nothing I've seen is that big.

Anyone using something of this sort (not necessarily for bread), or have any recommendations? I'd prefer to be able get it from an EU supplier, to keep from being slaughtered by shipping costs.

Thanks!

[pbear]

Can't help with the question, but I'm curious. Why would you want to use a vacuum container as a bread box?

[Kerry Beal]

I've got some big round ones - foodsaver brand - don't see them that big anymore. Don't use them - could send a couple.

[CarrieH]

There are vacuum lids you can use for GN-Containers. They fit on hotel pans. Here's an example -

http://www.la-va.com/vacuum-containers-restaurant-catering.htm

I know there are other companies that have them too.

[Mjx]

Thanks, and sorry about not replying sooner, I was briefly struck down by one of the least fun diseases I've had in ages.

Can't help with the question, but I'm curious. Why would you want to use a vacuum container as a bread box?

I bake bread at least once a week, since my boyfriend loves home baked bread, but he's also the only one eating it, since I handle starches too poorly to indulge on a regular basis; this means the bread stales before it's consumed. Vacuum bagging does keep the bread fresh, but it squishes it flat.

I've got some big round ones - foodsaver brand - don't see them that big anymore. Don't use them - could send a couple.

That's really lovely of you, but I'm all the way in DK, it would cost a fortune to ship; next time I'm back in the US, I'd like to see if I could meet up with you about this!

There are vacuum lids you can use for GN-Containers. They fit on hotel pans. Here's an example -

http://www.la-va.com/vacuum-containers-restaurant-catering.htm

I know there are other companies that have them too.

Those look pretty good. Or did, until I noticed the prices. Definitely worth investigating some other companies for this option, which I never knew of, until you mentioned it.

[pbear]

Gotcha. Have you tried freezing? It's what I do (and several other eGulleteers, I've noticed). Slice and bag, squeezing out air the normal way without a vacuum. (I put a paper towel in the bag, though I'm not sure it's necessary.) Thaw slices as needed on the counter, in the microwave or in a toaster oven. Microwaving is the one I use most often. Place bread on a plate with a paper towel, use 50% power and experiment till you dial in the right time for the type and quantity of bread you're thawing. The trick is to get it just thawed and warmed through, without getting it so hot it dries out when it cools. (Overshooting is the main reason microwaves have a bad reputation as a way to handle bread.) Takes a little practice to get the knack, but once you do it's easy-peasy. Or, as mentioned, you can thaw on the counter or in a toaster oven.

[Mjx]

Gotcha. Have you tried freezing? It's what I do (and several other eGulleteers, I've noticed). Slice and bag, squeezing out air the normal way without a vacuum. (I put a paper towel in the bag, though I'm not sure it's necessary.) Thaw slices as needed on the counter, in the microwave or in a toaster oven. Microwaving is the one I use most often. Place bread on a plate with a paper towel, use 50% power and experiment till you dial in the right time for the type and quantity of bread you're thawing. The trick is to get it just thawed and warmed through, without getting it so hot it dries out when it cools. (Overshooting is the main reason microwaves have a bad reputation as a way to handle bread.) Takes a little practice to get the knack, but once you do it's easy-peasy. Or, as mentioned, you can thaw on the counter or in a toaster oven.

Freezing is great (and I do, when I bake two loaves at a go), but my boyfriend wants to be able to grab the loaf and slice it as he goes! Also, I should mention that he gave me a vacuum sealer as a gift, and I'm exploring the various ways of using it (since cooking sous vide not an option at this time).

[pbear]

True enough. Freezing won't work if BF wants to slice to order.

By the way, it occurs to me storing bread in a vacuum canister might dry it out. Do you know anyone who does this?

[Mjx]

I ended up getting this (thanks, Jens Axel!):

In terms of keeping bread fresh, there has been no detectable staling or drying since the loaf was baked last Sunday, so using a vacum box to store bread works well.

This wasn't designed specifically as a bread box, so it has a few drawbacks, as such: The minimum internal dimensions are 29×17 cm (6 5/8"×11 3/8"), a bit short for the loaf pan I use, and if you get a lot of rise, as I a did with this loaf, the loaf needs to be stored on its side to fit.

If I was redesigning this as a bread box, I'd increase at least the length, and I'd make the entire thing of the same white plastic (polycarbonate?) as the lid, so it could be kept on the counter without allowing much light/heat in.

[pazzaglia]

I think you just invented something new - even better if it had a small handle on it (think centrifugal salad spinners) to pump out the air. It would be a self-contained unit so you don't need a separate "vacum" to use it. The "lid" could be the base with a plastic cutting board liner to cut the bread, and the "top" would be the box. Snap on and pump to store. Snap off and cut to use.

Go for it. I would buy one!

Ciao,

L

[Syzygies]

The MIniPack Cyclone series (my favorite clamp machines) have a digital display for the vacuum they achieve. It's about 7% in practice, plenty to wrap a pouch very tightly around food, nothing like the 99% the best chamber machines achieve. And visibly at least twice the vacuum any consumer (FoodSaver etc.) clamp machine achieves.

So what's the point here? Holding the lid on tightly? I don't see how a 3% reduction in air pressure inside a chamber is going to affect the keeping properties of bread, making a controlled experiment comparing to a tightly sealed container at atmospheric pressure.

Cambro sells two grades of lids. The tighter lid is quite tight, but still easier to get on and off than having to start up a clamp vacuum sealer.

[Mjx]

. . . .

So what's the point here? Holding the lid on tightly? I don't see how a 3% reduction in air pressure inside a chamber is going to affect the keeping properties of bread, making a controlled experiment comparing to a tightly sealed container at atmospheric pressure.

. . .

I was curious about whether keeping the bread under vacuum would delay staling (upthread).

I know that staling has to do with starch retrogradation (I need to check McGee for the details), and I had this idea that vacuum-packing the bread might slow that; vacuum-packing the bread in a bag squished it, so a box seemed like it might be interesting to play about with.

I don't know what the reduction in air pressure is, but you can see the bread visibly expand when the pump starts running; any idea whether a 3% reduction would do that?

At any rate, whether it was keeping the bread under vacuum, or magic pixies humouring my tinkering, the bread did not stale over the course of 6 days (under ordinary conditions, there is noticeable staling after 3 days).

Having to reseal is not a huge deal, it takes about a minute, and it's done.