Top pick
These multipurpose, durable bags seal securely and can hold everything from snacks to prepped ingredients to leftovers, and they can go from fridge to freezer.
Although you can wash and reuse disposable zip-top plastic bags, it’s not ideal to keep using them for food storage if you want to avoid eating microplastics. Instead, we recommend the Stasher Reusable Silicone Bag Multi-Pack.
They’re sturdy and dishwasher safe. These bags are durable and easy to clean, and can be put in the dishwasher. Our dishwasher successfully got rid of stains left by tomato sauce we’d stored in the bags over a weekend, which was not the case for all bags we tested. Stains remained on the re(zip) bags we tried, even after a trip through the dishwasher followed by a baking soda scrub.
The thick Stasher bags are also comfortable to hold and hand-wash because they aren’t as floppy as some thinner bags, and their wide seals were less likely to gum up with food. One of our staff members has been using their set of Stashers regularly for five years and they’re still going strong.
They’re versatile. We love that Stashers come in a wide range of sizes—pocket-size, 56-ounce capacity, and half-gallon. They come in flat versions that are useful for packing things like sandwiches, as well as bags that stand up, which are convenient for storing liquidy foods. And you have a choice of fun colors—’80s-inspired pastels, tie dye, and sea-glass green. According to a staff member who has used both the clear and colored Stashers for storing leftovers, the clear bags have the best visibility and make it easiest to take inventory of what’s in the fridge.
They’re compact. The Stasher bags stack neatly in a drawer or bin for quick access, and we’ve found it especially convenient that you don’t have to search for a matching lid as you would with a container. They’re thick enough that the bags won’t collapse if you stand them up, but they still have a slim profile.
They’re easier to stack in the fridge or freezer than plastic bags, and they take up less space than larger, rigid containers. “They are such space savers compared to Tupperware and the like,” said a staffer who likes them for food storage.
They tolerate extreme temperatures. Made from silicone, Stashers are freezer-safe, heatproof up to 400° F, and microwave- and oven-safe, so you can use them to store leftovers, reheat foods, or steam vegetables in the microwave. You can even cook sous vide in them: We made sous vide carrots with a Stasher bag and with a vacuum-sealed bag as a control. Though it was difficult to get most of the air out of the Stasher, the carrots tasted fine and were cooked through, just slightly firmer than the carrots cooked in the plastic bag.
They stay shut. The Stasher bags remained sealed as we shook them around. We wouldn’t put a bag filled with liquid in a backpack, but we would transport snacks or leftovers that way. And if you’re laying the bags flat or lining them up vertically in the fridge, you don’t have to worry about leaks; the seals popped open only when we applied pressure to the bags.
They’re great for all kinds of storage. The Stasher bags have many uses beyond food: You could use them for everything from packing toiletries in a carry-on to storing craft supplies.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
They’re not cheap. At the time of writing, the Stasher bags cost about $55 for a bundle of five, and we know that’s expensive. But since we first published this guide, several staff members have been using their Stashers regularly for years, which makes us confident in recommending them as a worthy investment.
They can get schmutzy. The Stasher bags are made from silicone, which can attract dust and lint, and can retain smells and stains, especially from oily or acidic foods. Some Amazon reviewers complain that the bags also have a silicone smell, which we didn’t notice. But we did detect a slight silicone-like aftertaste to the broccoli that we steamed in a Stasher bag. When we cooked carrots sous vide at 183° F for an hour, however, they tasted fine. We recommend washing the bags before use to zap any lingering flavors.
We couldn’t remove all of the air. Despite trying to both roll out the air and to use the water-displacement method (the company’s recommendation) to get the air out of the Stashers in our sous vide tests, we still had to weigh the bag down with a metal utensil to prevent it from floating. A staff member who uses Stashers says that they also don’t work well for freezing liquids (like stock) because of how difficult it is to get the air out and seal.
Washing them can be tricky. If you have a dishwasher, the Stashers are easier to clean than traditional plastic bags. But if you’re hand-washing the bags, it’s more difficult to get into every cranny, compared with a more-flexible plastic bag. Stasher advises against turning the bags inside out to clean them since this can put stress on their seams. It can also be challenging to reach into smaller Stasher bags and may require a bottle brush.
Some of our staff members who use Stashers regularly complain that you have to prop them open in the dishwasher for the insides to get fully cleaned, and must also prop them open to dry.
Tears can happen. Although these bags have received numerous positive ratings and reviews on Amazon, there are a fair number of complaints about their developing holes or tearing at the seams, mostly after foods have been cooked sous vide in them (and one after a buyer tried to turn the bag inside out to wash it). So far, none of the long term testers on our staff have experienced this with their Stashers. We also appreciate that the company has a repurposing program to reuse the silicone from damaged bags.
