We eat a lot of vegetables. My husband loves vegetables. I’m not just talking about a meal with vegetables; but a vegetable meal with meat. We are not vegetarians (I love meat) but we don’t always require the ideal meal of salad, meat, vegetable, starch, and bread that comprise most dinners. Sometimes it’s all vegetables and salad.

When trying out the new Glad Simply Cooking bags, I was skeptical but hopeful. I have a steamer pot that I use on my cook top range but since we usually have more than one vegetable that I’m cooking at a time, I hoped that maybe this would mean one less pan to clean at the end of the meal. My hopes were realized with these really terrific microwave steaming sacks.

What I liked:

I liked that each of the bags has directions written on them that I can read and that are accurate (even for a 20 year old microwave like mine).

The bags worked just as advertised. They were easy to seal. I hate some of the bags that you press to seal because they just don’t seal correctly for me. I usually use the zip lock kind of baggies for that reason; but, these bags seal easily and tightly.

These bags deliver what they promise. Steamed food that lose no nutrients in the process along with no pots to clean later.

The texture and color is not lost when using these bags. The vegetables are not mushy but just right.

What I didn’t like:

There wasn’t much. The first time I used the bags (for broccoli) I had trouble putting in enough for three people. I ended up just stuffing the bag after I had cut the broccoli length-wise. That’s the way I usually cut the broccoli anyway. The broccoli had been washed when I bought it, so I didn’t wet it first. I just placed it in the bag. I was amazed at the speed of cooking and the moisture level when I emptied out the cooked broccoli.

At first I didn’t notice the bottom that would open and set up. Once I began stuffing the broccoli into the bag, it began to open and I was able to stuff it full and it stood up (which is the way you are to cook them in the microwave.) When you first get the baggie out, it looks sort of like those coffee filters that are wide on top and narrow on the bottom. But these baggies do open wider once you learn how to use them.

The food doesn’t stay extremely hot for a long period of time. I just make sure it’s the last thing I cook before I place the food on the table. (I find most micro waved food doesn’t stay hot long so this is not unique to this bag system.)

The pictures that they display on the bag (to help you recognize the vegetables in case you don’t have your glasses with you) aren’t the best. There are a couple that I’m not sure of. But the words are clear and so are the directions.

I’m hoping that they will make some of these bags in larger sizes for when I have guests.

I also wish they had information about reusing these bags. I’m not sure that you couldn’t but not brave enough to try. I rinsed out the one I used for broccoli and there’s no remaining smell and nothing that discolored the bag. It would be more economical if they were reusable. I’m just hesitant because I think the seal might not work as well and then it would affect the outcome.

I’ve also used the bags for cooking potatoes. While I usually “bake” them in the microwave for convenience, I found that the bags cooked them more evenly and much quicker. We like the skins left on so I just cut the potatoes in half, put them in the bag, and followed the directions for potatoes. They were wonderful!

I have not yet tried the eggs or hot dogs in them but am confident that they too will turn out great. How nice that would be not to be cleaning frying pans full of egg remains.

The cost of these steaming bags is $2.99 for a 10-count box. I think they are worth it. They can also be used to prepare and store food, reheat leftovers, and in par cooking. I personally don’t know what par cooking is (par-boiled?) but that’s what the company advertises. I think they cost a bit too much for storing food (there are a lot of baggies on the market that does this and are cheaper) but it’s nice to know that you can use them for this if you run out of the others.

I received these Glad SimplyCooking Microwave Steaming Bags from Fleischman-Hillard to try and review. These were sent free in exchange for my honest opinion and review (which I just shared). I have already purchased more of these and plan to keep them as part of my cooking utensils.

Should you try them? Yes, without reservation. I’m sure you will like them as much as I do.



Recommended: Yes