DOCUMENT

11 You must ensure that the bag you are filling is large enough to take the contents, especially if you are vacuum sealing liquids. The area where you are going to seal the bag should be kept dry and free from grease in order to guarantee a clean seal. To ensure this, keep your hands clean when folding back the edges of the bag. You are, of course, free to season and marinate the food as you would normally. However, it is important to remember that vacuum sealing a bag stops any flavours from escaping and means they will be stronger than they would otherwise be. Additionally, the vacuum created in the process pushes flavours and seasonings into the food. This particularly aects dried herbs and garlic, so you should use less of these than you normally would. Mix seasonings with a little liquid or add some aromatic oils if you are seasoning meat or fish. This will distribute the seasonings more eectively, creating more even and subtle results. If you are using alcohol for seasoning – when preparing a ragout or a sauce, for instance – we recommend bringing the liquid briefly to the boil beforehand in order to minimise its alcohol content. Alcohol that has not been boiled can result in the food cooking unevenly in the bag, as parts of the alcohol will change into a gaseous state. Once you have boiled the liquid, however, do not forget that the food still needs to be cooled.