Costco Best Buys

A friend of mine recently joined Costco, and she was curious which items The Budget Diet Girl thought were the best buys.

My general rule of thumb is to stay away from the packaged, prepared foods like the frozen hamburgers or the macaroni and cheese in the deli. $10 for the macaroni and cheese…crazy! Instead, make The Budget Diet Girl’s Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese for about half the cost using ingredients from Costco. Effortless meals are tempting, but it’s always cheaper to cook from scratch, and your Costco best buys are on basic ingredients.

The Budget Diet Girl’s Top 10 Costco Favs

It’s hard to beat Costco’s prices on these items even if the item is on sale at your grocery, AND you have a coupon.

• Kirkland Frozen Chicken Breasts – 6.5 lbs. for $17.99. These are individually wrapped, so it’s easy to thaw a few at a time plus you don’t have to watch the expiration date like you do with fresh chicken.
• Greek Yogurt – 2, 32 oz. tubs for $6.99. These are large tubs of plain, fat-free Greek yogurt that we add fresh fruit and a wee bit of sweetener to.
• Sugar – 10 lbs. for $4.39. If you’re a baker, this is a steal! Brown sugar and powdered sugar are also quite a deal.
• Chocolate Chips – Nestle 72 oz. for $9.55. That’s the equivalent of 6 regular size bags of chocolate chips! If you bake like I bake, these should be a pantry staple.
• Mixed Nuts – 40 oz. for $15.99. That’s a lot of nuts! They also have almonds, peanuts and cashews comparably priced.
• Eggs – 3 dozen for $4.29. Need I say more?
• Butter – 4, 1 lb. boxes (that’s 16 sticks) for $10.99. Another baker’s delight!
• Cheese – 5 lb. shredded mozzarella for $13.87. Remember, cheese freezes well. When I buy their cheese, I come home and portion it into quart size freezer zip loc bags which is just the right amount for most recipes. You’ll also find huge packages of cheddar, mexi-cheese, feta and more at Costco.
• Frozen Fruit – 6 lb. bag of strawberries for $9.99. Frozen fruit is ideal for smoothies, and this giant bag makes about 20 smoothies. Other varieties of frozen fruit are available.
• Batteries – 40 pack of AA for $14.89. They also have AAA and 9 volt available and comparably priced. Another great Costco deal.

You may be surprised that produce isn’t on my list, but I’m able to find cheaper produce in smaller quantities at Aldi and my local farmer’s market. Costco’s produce is packaged in such huge quantities that unless you have a big family or share with a neighbor, it’s difficult to eat all of it before it rots.

Please leave a comment to share your Costco best buys and favorites.