No more big discounts on grass-fed Australian beef

Free-range, grass-fed Australian beef, left, and grain-fed American beef at ShopRite in Paramus. The American beef was probably raised on heavy doses of animal antibiotics and growth hormones, and confined to feeding pens.

The label of the vacuum-packed Australian Whole Beef Tenderloin for Filet Mignon that I purchased on Monday.

Editor's note: Today, I discuss Nature's Reserve beef from Australia, and wild-caught sockeye salmon fillets from Costco Wholesale.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

I've been checking the price of free-range, grass-fed Australian beef at ShopRite in Paramus in recent weeks, hoping the price would drop to the lows of the past.

But on Monday, I decided there was no chance ShopRite would be selling Nature's Reserve whole beef tenderloins for $4.99 a pound, as the supermarket chain did in 2010.

I bought a 6.35-pound tenderloin on sale for $7.99 a pound with a store card, a discount of $2 a pound.

My wife will trim and thinly slice the beef in three portions of about 2 pounds each, add Korean marinade, freeze it and, when the time comes, grill the beef on the stove top for lettuce-wrapped barbecue meals.

I once enjoyed those meals, because the quality of beef at Korean restaurants is questionable, but I no longer eat meat.

ShopRite in Paramus put Barilla pasta sauces on sale this week, but they contain added sugar, a turn-off, and I passed. Barilla is supposed to be the No 1 brand in Italy.

Instead, I bought 25-ounce jars of two so-called premium pasta sauces on sale, one labeled ShopRite Special Edition ($2.49), left, and the other from Silver Palate ($2.99). Neither has added sugar.

Just off the grill and still steaming, fresh, wild Canadian sockeye salmon with an organic diced tomato sauce and organic quinoa. Most of the ingredients are from Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

Last weeks for wild salmon 

If past years are any guide, fresh wild salmon fillets won't be available for much longer at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

On Monday, I picked up a 1.92-pound fillet of sockeye salmon that yielded six portions. The price was $8.99 a pound.

I grilled them on the stove top, and served them with organic quinoa I prepared with chicken stock and small garlic cloves in an electric cooker.

I ended the meal with a salad of Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix from Costco (1 pound for $4.79), dressed simply with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

The serving pieces -- veined with heart-healthy fat -- are seasoned with Himalayan Pink Salt and fresh lime juice, grilled on the stove top for 10 minutes and turned once for medium rare. When the grill pan is taken off the heat, the fish will continue to cook.

A can of Kirkland Signature Organic Diced Tomatoes, chopped garlic cloves, red wine and fresh oregano are cooked separately from the fish. Cook the garlic in extra-virgin olive oil, add the other ingredients and bring the sauce to a boil to reduce and thicken it.

Jarlsberg Lite price hike

I was shocked to see the 2-pound package of Jarlsberg Lite Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese is now back up to $9.49 at my Hackensack Costco.

That's the second 50-cent price hike in recent months.

Also, Jarlsberg has been cutting the slices thicker than before, meaning I run out of the cheese faster and have to buy more at the higher price.

I use it for frittatas and omelets, and roll up a slice with smoked wild salmon for a snack.

A much-better buy is the 2-pound package of Adams Reserve New York State Extra Sharp Cheddar slices for only $6.99, but I bought it for family members who eat full-fat cheese.