Man, I really miss the Meat Tray. It was only a little over a year ago that I could still plunk down a $20 bill and get a variety pack of meat that, used wisely, would last most of a week.
But, those days are gone. WinCo does ‘remainder’ the meats to the tune of about 30% off, which is a good deal considering they are already a pretty good value. I still haven’t exactly figured out the right time of day to catch them when they’re putting out the markdowns so I can be first before theyre all scooped up.
Most of the supermarkets in town here offer some sort of markdowns on meat that’s on its last day. The trick is catching them before they’ve been picked over by the other shoppers. But with 85/15 running over $5 a pound(!) it’s just foolish not to make the effort.
I am not one of those people who is willing to ‘get by’ on TVP or any other non-meat meat. If it isn’t dead animal flesh, I’m not interested. At the moment, WinCo is offering the cheapest animal protein…boneless pork at around $1.88/#. And thats good for stews, shredding for enchilladas,, or just roasting and slicing up with a pan gravy.
With no indication of food prices, and especially meat prices, going anywhere but up it makes sense to buy now and freeze for later. Or can it when you can find canning jar lids.
I have no intention of going through…well…whatever it is we’re going through….as a inveg (involuntary vegan). So, to that end I have canned meat, frozen meat, and freeze dried meat.
This is the unsexy part of survivalism, guys. But having to eat spaghetti-n-tunafish is even less sexy. I’m a naturally cheap person, so even in the best of times I’d still be hunting for a bargain at the meat counter. Nowadays, its almost a requirement. It’ll be interesting to see when all of this blows over and things start looking up. My guess is: no time soon.
One of my easy and fast work lunches to make is elbow macaroni, a small can of tuna and two Mayo packets mixed up and placed in zip lock baggie. Eaten cold at desk, toss and done. If I want to increase flavor, bacon bits and another packet of favored salad dressing, even betterer.
Yeah, store bought meat is damn expensive now. I wish this past season, I would have seen and killed a feral hog, just for extra amount.
I add a very small amount of olive oil to it pasta – what ever is on sale that week – before adding the rest as I find it stops the pastor from sticking
Good tip SAM – thank you for adding that.
I try to do good once a year so that’s 1993 taking care of.
Correct. Being a tightwad shopper, I have skipped any meat cuts that are now too pricey to be worth their weight. I also have that Col. Steve Austin bionic eye when it comes to sale prices and mark down clearance opportunities. A strategic large buying acquisition may have to be done, just as a hedge against the inflation curves and all of the what if probability scenarios. If freezer space is available one may have “to go all whole hog” and do a bulk farmer rancher meat buy of a half a cow or pig, etc. It is a pricey expenditure for sure all at once, but much more piece of mind value than all of those other prepper survivalist things we spend money on. Stay well fed with meat so as to be able to stay frosty.
Thief Steals $15K in Beef from Georgia Steakhouse | Food & Wine
https://www.foodandwine.com/news/beef-stolen-uncle-jacks-steakhouse-roswell-georgia
Google “meat theft”
Just a thought Commander, I’ve started doing a navy beanpot every weekend.
Navy beans are so mild tasting they go with everything, once you get past the “It’s Beans” thing. Pureed into a smooth sauce and mixed into a spaghetti sauce they make a few meatballs filling enough and protein enough to keep me full.
Same idea with chowder style soups, stews and casseroles. Or maybe you just get into the idea of eating them as a side dish.
I’ve gotten my carnivore self and my wife to enjoy them and have reduced meat to a side dish instead of the main source of calories on our plate.
The Roman army marched on whole wheat bread, a little olive oil, beans and whatever critters they found along the way.
Meat is going up here too, but I can usually find 80/15 for about $3.30/lb still.
Pork chops range from about $2 and up.
The odd thing is that some weeks the cheapest steak will be $4 a lb and other weeks it’ll be $8 and up.
If you want a hog or beef, you better start planning early – I’ve contacted farmers and butchers in 3 states here; butchering slots are 6+ months out and in some cases the butchering costs as much as the meat!
My quotes from last fall averaged $5.50/lb for a cow and $3.75/lb for a pig.
Here in the UK Navy Beans are known as Haricot Beans. They usually end up in tins with a tomato-based sauce known as Baked Beans. They are not baked and are nothing like the Baked Beans the USA has.
Over 2.5 million cans of Heinz Beans are sold every day in the UK and that’s just the best selling brand, making it one of the most, if not the most popular foods in the UK. They are a staple of the UK diet, with the UK consuming hundreds of millions of cans of baked beans every year. Beans on Toast and the Full English Breakfast are staples of British life
last trip to Costco they still had chicken thighs and drumsticks for .99/lb. Cheapest protein going it seems. Dry dog food costs that much!
Well, kinda…you have to factor in the how the weight of unusable bone affects the actual amount of ‘useful meat’ and then recalculate to see what youre actually paying for the meat rather than the bones. When I pay $2.18 for boneless chicken breast, 100% of it is usable. So, it’s genuinely $2.18/#. But if the bones in drumsticks are, say, 25% of the weight, then you’re really paying about $1.32/# for the actual meat.
Commander Zero when I cook a whole chicken for my wife and myself, I get several meals (just add starches and maybe a veggie) AND the bones and bits of meat become the basis of a wonderful slow boiled-simmered stock.
That stock adds much flavor to many dishes even plain rice and beans. REAL Chicken soup and so on.
Then the dried stripped bones are crushed like my egg shells for the garden and chickens.
I value bones, sir.
Pork loin is one of the most affordable meats in my area as well, and its really versatile. I frequent a website called Smoking Meat Forums and a few years ago stumbled on some references to Canadian Bacon. What I didn’t realize was that rather than being like regular pork belly bacon, Canadian Bacon is more like really good ham. It can be pan fried a little for breakfast, but it also makes a killer ham sandwich and is great added to a salad. If you cold smoke the loin for 6-8 hours as part of the process, you can add it to beans and other things as a killer flavor booster.
To get started, just google the forum mentioned above and also check out the Morton Tender Quick website to learn about the cure you’ll use. It only takes a tiny amount of cure, so follow the instructions on the bag and don’t assume that more is better, because it isn’t.
Also, don’t forget that pork loin is the cut that boneless pork chops are made from. I’ve seen meat cases offering boneless pork chops for $4-$5 a pound, right alongside pork loins on sale for $2 a pound. At the stores I frequent, the butcher will gladly cut a pork loin however you want it. So, instead of paying the high price for pork chops, buy the loin and have the butcher cut it for you. This is all assuming you have freezer space available. Prep on!
I’m sure it misses you as well.
Sorry!