Zwilling Vacuum Sealer Review: Will It Keep My Food Fresher, Longer?

By Alex Beggs

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I’m standing in the kitchen, sucking all the oxygen out of a bottle of wine I didn't finish.

I’m vacuum-sealing an apple fritter into a smushed brick for someone special's lucky day dessert.

I’m watching past-their-prime leeks get preserved in plastic, squeezed and compressed like a sorority sister in a bandage dress.

I LOVE MY ZWILLING VACUUM SEALER.

While researching new electric kitchen appliances because it's my job and my passion, I came across Zwilling's Fresh & Save food storage system. I don't do any sous vide cooking, so I’d never had much use for vacuum sealing—but what a world I was missing. A world without oxygen.

The Zwilling Fresh & Save vacuum pump is a mini handheld vacuum sealer about the size of a pepper grinder. By vacuum-sealing your leftovers, from lasagna to parsley to spelt flour, you can extend their shelf life by days to weeks to months. Zwilling says vacuum-sealing will keep food fresh for five times longer than non-vacuum-sealed food on average, and because ~30 percent of the food we bring home from the store ends up being wasted (oof), it's nice to think that we might have slightly less food waste by using this thing. And after owning this vacuum sealer for more than a year, I can confirm it's a godsend for leftover ingredients that might otherwise go bad, like avocado halves. They don't brown! Here's what I have to say about it so far.

ZWILLING J.A. Henckels,LLC

The Zwilling Fresh & Save vacuum starter set, which is available with either plastic or borosilicate glass containers, includes a vacuum pump, a medium vacuum container, a large vacuum container, two small vacuum-sealer bags, and two medium vacuum-sealer bags. You can also purchase all the items à la carte if you’d like—a big plus if you need only small bags or want different-size containers. Zwilling makes vacuum-sealable bento-style lunchboxes too (including one for kids with a dinosaur motif), and you can—and should—get the vacuum wine sealer set so you can save half-empty bottles of Cab Franc for later in the week. (Do not attempt this on sparkling wine, lest you vacuum up all the bubbles.) When you release the wine topper, it lets out the most thrilling psssssssfffffft, like a frosty bottle of Pepsi. It even sounds fresh!

As far as food vacuum sealers go, Zwilling's Fresh & Save Pump is small (7.5" long by 2" wide—about the size of a pepper grinder), lightweight, and completely cordless. It's easy to hold, easy to store, and easy to recharge via mini USB. But don't let its size fool you—this compact device has all the power of a countertop vacuum-sealer machine in handheld form, and I’ve used it on everything from loaf cakes to ham hocks. Because the pump only has one button on it, it is also incredibly intuitive to use. It's automatic, so you don't have to hold the button down for it to work—just press it once and it’ll quietly suck the air out of your bag or container and shut itself off once all of the air has been removed. Depending on the container size, your food will be vacuumed sealed in about 30 seconds.

To use this vacuum-sealer machine, you’ll first need the reusable vacuum bags and/or containers—which come in plastic or glass—that Zwilling makes to go along with the vacuum pump. (That part is annoying because I hate having mismatched containers. But this is a whole system, so Zwilling envisions this being your one and only, I guess.) Both the containers and bags have these round plastic belly buttons that you align with the vacuum pump's circular rubber nozzle. Press the button on the pump, and a little motor whirs while it sucks the oxygen out of the container. When there's no more oxygen left to suck, the vacuum turns off automatically and you press down on the container's red belly button to seal it tight.

You can use the vacuum-sealable bag as sous vide bags if you’re into that, or use them to compactly store cookie dough and whatnot in your freezer, as I did, so you have more room for your quart containers of meal-prep martinis. The process itself is almost more enticing than the reward of surprisingly fresh parsley. Watching anything get vacuum sealed in a plastic bag, becoming a futuristic play food version of itself, is hypnotizing. The sense of satisfaction that washes over me as my frozen blueberries get squeezed into their plastic Spanx is what incentivizes me to vacuum seal more, more, MORE.

With the hard shell containers you’re able to vacuum seal almost anything, from leftover fish that you know would’ve been neglected and ultimately thrown out to an entire cake. (I sealed a lemon pound cake into its oxygen-less coffin and it stayed moist for over a week.)

My biggest gripe about this machine is that it only works with Zwilling's food storage bags and containers—which, honestly, isn't all that bad. The plastic bags are BPA-free, durable, and according to Zwilling, you can reuse them indefinitely if they’re properly washed and dried after each use. They are, however, a pain to dry; for those of you who wash and reuse gallon Ziplocs, the process will be annoyingly familiar. The zip closure is secure and creates a tight seal that successfully prevents leaks and spills. If you plan to use the Fresh & Save bags for liquid marinades (which increases flavor and decreases marinating time), then I recommend also purchasing the liquid barrier accessory, which ensures liquids don't get absorbed by the vacuum pump (more on this later).

Unlike other vacuum-sealer machines, I like that the Zwilling Fresh & Save also works with hard shell food storage containers—how else could I have kept that pound cake moist for a whole week? Zwilling's containers are available in BPA-free plastic and borosilicate glass, but if you’re choosing between the two, go with the glass containers. They won't stain, and you’ll get more use out of them since they’re freezer, microwave, oven, and dishwasher safe (they also come in a variety of sizes, like this large, shallow glass container made specifically for gratin). The glass is hefty and reliable—similar to a Pyrex baking dish—and the lids latch on tightly. While I had no issues, it is worth noting that some reviewers of the Fresh & Save system say the lids of their plastic containers have cracked or failed. Could this be because the plastic is not strong enough to withstand the force of the vacuum? It's possible. Get the glass.

I mostly reserve the bags for things I store in the freezer—like ripe bananas and the spelt flour I bought too much of. They work wonders for preventing freezer burn. For items I keep in the fridge—like fresh fruit, herbs, and prepped meals—I turn to the vacuum storage containers.

As mentioned, use caution with flour, cornmeal, sugar—anything fine and particulate. Don't seal anything with liquid, which will clog up the machine. NO soup. NO marinated meats (unless you have the liquid barrier accessory). Soft foods, like blueberries, may need to be frozen before sealing so they don't turn to jam. When I seal softies like doughnuts (have done this multiple times to rave reviews), I manually stop the sealer before it squishes my apple fritter too much, and hours later my preserved doughnut will be able to bounce back, resurrected and ready for dessert.

And finally, if you hold the vacuum up to the frown line in between your eyebrows—worth a shot, at least once—know that it won't suck the wrinkle there out of its deepening crevice. You can't vacuum seal the inevitable.