SpiceVac - Airtight Spice Shaker with Vacuum Seal
Flip the SpiceVac lid to season into the pan, press it shut and hear the airlock catch, and your rack stops trading its flavour to the air every time you cook.
Airtight Spice Shaker
The SpiceVac is a spice shaker and a vacuum-sealed jar in one. Flip the lid and sprinkle straight into the pan. Close it and you hear a soft catch as the patented seal pushes the air back out. No unsealing a container, spooning out what you need and resealing it halfway through a recipe, and no loosely lidded rack jar letting the aroma out between meals. The flavour in ground spice sits in volatile oils that evaporate the moment they meet air, and a shaker that actually seals is what keeps them in.
The one thing that decides which to buy
With the SpiceVac the shaker question is already answered, since every size has the built-in lid, so the only real choice is capacity. That follows from how much of each spice you keep on the rack, not from the spice itself. Buy for the amount you get through, and round up when you are between two.
Which size for which spice
| If you're seasoning… | Capacity | Best for | Our pick |
|---|---|---|---|
| A pinch at a time: saffron, chilli flakes | 0.06 L (~20 g) | Spices you use sparingly | SpiceVac 0.06L |
| Your everyday ground spices | 0.12 L (~40 g) | The rack staple, start here | SpiceVac 0.12L |
| Whole spices and coarse blends | 0.29 L (~75 g) | Dried chillies, cinnamon bark, garlic | SpiceVac 0.29L |
| Spices you buy by the bag | 0.57 L (~150 g) | Blends and bulk quantities | SpiceVac 0.57L |
Short version: the 0.12 L is the everyday size that fits a standard rack, and the one to start with. Ground spice is light and fluffy, so it fills the jar before it reaches the gram figure, so go up a size if you are between two.
What we carry
- Shaker lid, two hole sizes. Fine powder through one side, coarse flakes and seeds through the other, so one jar handles both cumin powder and chilli flakes.
- Four sizes, 0.06–0.57 L. From a pinch-at-a-time jar up to bag-bought blends, all with the same seal and all sized for a standard spice rack.
- Clear body, BPA-free, food-grade. Check the level without breaking the seal, refill it endlessly, wash it in hot water.
- Prefer a plain lid? The airtight spice containers collection has the same seal without the shaker, in MiniVac and VitaVac.
How to choose
The SpiceVac versus a plain-lidded jar is the only real decision, and it is a trade-off. The shaker is faster at the stove (flip, sprinkle, press shut), and one lid does fine and coarse. What it asks in return is a moment's care around steam, because open holes are open holes. If you would rather have nothing to clog and a flush seal, and you are happy to spoon or pour, the plain-lidded MiniVac is the jar to look at instead. Same seal, different lid.
Getting it right
Do not shake straight over a steaming pan, because the rising moisture gets in through the holes and clumps the powder, so sprinkle to the side of the heat instead. Keep the rack off the shelf above the hob, where heat and steam do as much damage as air. Buy whole spices and grind to order where you can, a sealed jar of whole cumin outlasts any ground spice. And press the lid firmly shut between uses. A SpiceVac left standing open on the counter is just a shaker, and the seal is the point.
Common questions
Does a sealing spice shaker actually keep spices fresher?
Yes, and it is the sealing that does it rather than the shaking. Ground spice fades because the volatile oils that carry its flavour evaporate when they meet air, and an ordinary rack shaker with a loose lid meets air constantly. A SpiceVac presses most of the air out when you close it, you hear it catch, and it keeps it out between uses, so herbs and spices stay aromatic for months rather than weeks. Keep it out of the heat and grind whole spices to order and it lasts longer still.
How is this different from a normal spice shaker?
A normal shaker keeps the lid loose so you can sprinkle, which means it is never really sealed and the spice sits exposed to air between every meal. The SpiceVac gives you the sprinkle and the seal: the shaker lid closes onto a patented airlock, so it is a shaker while you cook and an airtight jar the rest of the time. It also has two hole sizes rather than one, for fine powder and coarse flakes.
Which SpiceVac size should I choose?
The 0.12 L is the everyday size and fits a standard rack, so start there for daily ground spices. Drop to the 0.06 L for spices you use a pinch at a time, and step up to the 0.29 L or 0.57 L for whole spices, coarse blends and anything you buy by the bag. Ground spice is fluffy, so it fills the jar before it reaches the gram figure, so if you are between two sizes, take the larger.
Can I use it for coarse spices and seeds?
Yes, that is what the second hole size is for. One side of the shaker lid is fine, for ground powder, and the other is coarse, for chilli flakes, sesame, dried herbs and small seeds. Whole spices such as cinnamon bark or dried chillies store fine in the larger 0.29 L and 0.57 L SpiceVac sizes even if they are too big to shake. You keep them sealed and open the lid fully when you need them.
Is the SpiceVac dishwasher safe?
Hand-wash it. Warm water, a mild detergent, and a full dry before you refill. The shaker lid and the seal both last far longer washed by hand than run through dishwasher heat, which is what hardens the seal over time. Let the holes dry completely too, so no moisture is trapped when you refill. Treated that way a SpiceVac stays airtight for years.
Is it a true vacuum seal?
No, and it is fair to say so. It is a strong partial vacuum from pressing the lid, not a laboratory vacuum drawn by a pump. That takes out most of the air around the spice, which is all it takes to slow the flavour loss dramatically. A full vacuum would make no practical difference to a jar of paprika. It seals hard, but it seals by airlock, not by motor.
Related collections
Prefer a plain lid, or want the smaller jars? The airtight spice containers collection has the same seal without the shaker. Storing more than spices? The airtight coffee container range covers beans and ground coffee, and the airtight food storage containers handle flour, rice and everything larger.
Find your size above.
