tandempower

Has anyone used one of these machines that sucks the air out of a bag of food and seals it so it stays fresh longer? I usually make a loaf of PB&Js whenever I go hiking, but by the second or third day they are reaching their freshness limit and I wouldn't want to carry a second loaf for days 4, 5, & 6. I was thinking if I got one of those vacuum sealing machines the sandwiches might stay fresh until I open them, even in summer heat, but I'd like to hear from someone with experience whether this will actually work or if the sandwiches will just spoil inside the vacuum bag.

Also feel free to post about which foods are more and less successful in such bags, the duration and temperature you've carried them before opening them, etc.

cyccommute 

I don't use one but I can see some problems with vacuum sealing sandwiches. A slice of bread is about 4.5" by 4.5" or about 20 sq. inches. At sea level, that would have 14 lb of pressure on each square inch or about 280 lbs of pressure total. It won't be bread anymore but something resembling a pancake.

fietsbob

Used all the time here, Packing smoked Salmon.. we are a Fishing town..
with a tourist business model .. beholden to corporations clear cutting the forests.






...

FBOATSB

Yes. Great for freezing meat or properly prepared veggies. For hiking, camping, etc; good for keeping things dry and fresh like jerky, pemmican, dried fruit, matches, first aid, what have you. Sandwiches, as posted, smashed flat with peanut butter and jelly squished out
Suggest investing in a food dehydrator instead.

Tourist in MSN

Never used one of those sealer things.

Last summer on a two week kayak trip, I brought cheese, salami, and some flat breads for lunches. The flat breads lasted the entire two wek trip. But I made each sandwich the day I ate it, not ahead of time. The salami I used was hard salami that stayed good without refrigeration until you opened it.

Brownberry, Oroweat and Arnold are essentially the same brands of bread but those different brand names are regional. All three make the "sandwich thins" bread that I use for such trips. It is hard to accidentally crush because it is pre-crushed.
https://www.brownberry.com/products?category=31
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Brownberr...8-CT/196149681
https://www.target.com/p/brownberry-...z/-/A-13376772

I have no idea how it would hold up in hot weather, but my two week kayak trip was in the 40s to 50s at night, 60s to 70s during the day. So we never got up to the kinds of temperature where things start to go bad really fast. I also had those little mayonnaise packets that fast food places hand out, used one packet per day so that I did not need to worry about my condiments going bad.

If you are curious, the four dry bags that my food was in added up to 15 kg, but my kayak is almost as fast when it is loaded down as it is unladen. So, that much food was not too big a problem.

FBOATSB

+1 for the flat breads. Also bagels for centuries have been designed to be carried around unrefrigerated. If you like peanut butter all that much carry that in a plastic jar and honey in a well sealed squeeze bottle and make your sandwiches as needed.

Bandera

Yep, the reliable common sense no tech needed solution used for many decades.
Why complicate that which just simply works?

My vacuum sealer & Sous Vide device are the appropriate solutions for cooking certain proteins & veg to a reliable temp.
Smooshing PBJ into a vac-sealed glob? Not so much...

-Bandera

tandempower

Thanks. I've thought of that but it is actually a plus-point since the sandwiches will take up less space that way, which means I can pack more food if they last long enough without spoiling.

dh024

Tortilla wraps last and last in a backpack or pannier. I carry PB and honey or jam packets and make roll-ups. Hard salami or dry-cure sausage and a stick of cheese are awesome inside, also. I also like canned/pouches of tuna or chicken with mayo, sometimes supplemented by fresh greens picked along the trail. Just some suggestions instead of 3-day old PBJ sandwiches.

If you have a dehydrator, beef, bean and cheese burritos or breakfast burritos are another favourite of mine.

Tortilla wraps are a staple for me when bikepacking or backpacking.

tandempower

Thanks all for your replies.

I would guess PB&J would get very dry and crumbly, but maybe leathery if the jelly and oil soaks through the bread enough as the water is leaving. Have you tried it?

Thanks, I'll have to check those out. I thought they were diet/low-cal breads and not just denser.

That doesn't surprise me. I've also found that more weight on a bike keeps me cutting through the wind-drag easier than when I'm loaded lighter (though maybe it's more subjective than real, idk). The reason I don't like carrying excessive weight, though, is that it stresses everything holding it up, whether it's spokes and hubs or my back or the pressure points in my socks. Idk where the stress points in a kayak are, though; the seams maybe?
[/quote]
I've tried making sandwiches en route like that, but it is nice to be able to just pull them out and eat without stopping. How much longer do you think the bread will last without the P&J stuck to it?

It doesn't matter to me what the status of the solution is. I just want to know how long various food items last in various conditions and how much more time you can get out of them if they are vacuum sealed.

So how long do those cooked foods last in the vacuum-sealed bags? Do you cook them before or after you put them in the bags? I want to avoid carrying a stove. I've done it and the weight slows me down and causes me to sweat too much.

Bandera

Look up "Sous Vide" food preparation on the web, it's a well documented and useful process for certain food types and cuisines, campsite cookery not being one of them.

PS: If your stove is causing you to "sweat too much" be sure to turn it Off before packing up the campsite and loading it onto the bike.

-Bandera

Tourist in MSN

I would sweat way too much stressing out about where I was going to get my next cup of hot coffee if I did not carry a stove.

saddlesores

google

Long Term Survival Bread(Damper)

https://www.foodsaver.com/blog/archi...ing-bread.html

revcp 

I use both together. I dehydrate meals and then vacuum seal them. One, it means I can store meals in the freezer for 18 months or so, and two, it's an easy way to pack for trips. I do this very successfully on canoe and backpack trips, but for cycle touring I prefer buying food enroute. And as others have pointed out, vacuum sealing PBJ sandwiches would be a mess.

CreakingCrank

I use tortillas instead of bread. They keep longer, don't squish quite as badly and the conform to the space you have.
FWIW, I also use powdered peanut butter as it its lighter and healthier (less fat). You could vacuum seal the tortillas and mix the PB when needed.