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This week has been a real doozer! After much anticipation I received my aging kit from DryBag. Prior to it arriving I pretty much digested everything there was on the website and YouTube in preparation. I was sadly mistaken.
I ventured to COSTCO and threw down $70 for choice subprimal sirloin. Got it home- prepped the area- took a few breaths and commenced to ruin every bag I had. I had also successfully created a few new cuss words during the process.
Being a retired Blackhawk pilot and what I deem a sensible and methodical person who knows how to follow directions- I was left babbling in the kitchen looking at 14 newly cut sirloin steaks!
After Thea allowed me to cry on her shoulder via my cell phone I realized that the first time I had sealed the bag was actually quite sufficient. I was in fact overthinking the process. You see… I was thinking that if there was a quarter or dime sized pocket of air in the sealed Dry Bag that I would- over the course of two weeks, unleash a plague of biblical proportions upon my family if allowed to dine on the processed steaks.
Thea carefully explained that if that is the case in the future then use a meat bag or fold under the corner to keep the surrounding area tight against the meat. I now have a pair of my wife’s panty hose at the ready for the next try (when my second supply of Dry Bags arrive)
In the interim, and out of necessity, I invented a little device made from an aluminum block that works perfectly on odd sized objects during the vacuum process. As a matter of fact it works so well that you can actually see the channels where the air was being vacuumed out of the bag. I used two heads of garlic and a spoon in an attempt to foul up the process. After three different positions, and three different sized practice bags- I couldn’t get it to clog. The holes are beveled and highly polished. The channels go all the way through the sides BUT the top and bottom holes are only drilled to the channels that run from edge to edge.
The good thing about this device is that it can be sterilized prior to use without affecting its integrity.
I will post pictures of my next sealing adventure and let you know how it turned out- regardless!
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Here’s another photo of the UVO (Ugly Vacuum Orb or Unidentifiable Vacuum Object) whatever!
Enjoy!
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I hope this helps. I just snug the UVO up to the snorkel right before I turn on the unit for vacuuming. Since there are holes all the way around the unit I really don’t have to worry about losing vacuum. Take Care,
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Thanks – I got it now. The proximity to the snorkel was the part I wasn’t clear on. Same placement as my raft made from rigid plastic tubing.
Thank you for letting me know that I have a doppelgänger who also happens to be associated with aviation. I hope the coincidence isn’t indicative of our other aviary brothers and sisters! We may see a significant decline in a certain area of mass transportation if they think that we can’t even manage to throw meat in a bag. Thanks for the moral and culinary support, I’ve got your back should you ever revisit the nightmare that was the first try.
Even during my first trip to A-Stan in 2003 I managed to scrounge up, trade, barter, beg…the food contractors for luxury items. I was responsible for making sure one of our down days brought a taste of home. Over the course of the following year the crowds grew, as did the supply channel. My second trip in ’05 I found the grill in its exact place only a little more road weary. I don’t know if the moderators will remove the picture but it does have steak pictured!
Respectfully, Hawk
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