Freezer Bag Alternative

One thing I grow weary of buying is Ziploc bags for the freezer. I regularly wash these out to reuse, both gallon and quart size. However, if a bag has contained any meat I throw it out. I don't want to risk contamination.

Anyway, the cost of those freezer bags add up so I was delighted to find a tip in the February All You magazine. I can't find my copy so I'm completely paraphrasing a reader tip. Apparently she uses the thick plastic cereal bags in the freezer as a ziploc alternative. These are the plastic liners inside the boxes. I decided to give it a try since it does appear the plastic is thick and dense.

I found the cereal bags to be comparable to most other freezer bags with the obvious exception of no zip closure. I just used a wire twist and it did the job. The cereal bags, however, aren't as good as the double guard ziploc bags that actually have a liner inside the bag - those are awesome.

I think I'll go ahead and keep using the cereal bags in addition to my regular supply of freezer bags because I can easily collect them and so far, they work well enough.