At Costco, lower price on King of Cheeses, news of Teterboro store

Often called the King of Cheeses, wedges of Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano from Italy are now available at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack for $8.49 a pound, compared to $11.79 a pound in February 2014.

Editor's note: Today, I discuss three of my favorites, all available at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack -- Parmigiano Reggiano, Basil Pesto and Fresh Wild Sockeye Salmon. On a recent vacation in Montreal and Vermont, sad to say, I never saw wild salmon on a menu.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

I'm not sure what's behind Costco Wholesale's dramatic price cut on imported Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese.

I'm pretty certain this crumbly, slightly salty aged cheese, which is wonderful with fruit and in salads, has always sold for more than $10 a pound.

But on Thursday, at my Hackensack Costco, the price was $8.49 a pound for a cheese that's aged more than 24 months. 

I grabbed a 1.45-pound wedge, even though I haven't finished the Parmigiano Reggiano I bought for $9.77 a pound at Maywood's Marketplace in June.

Once you take the cheese out of the wrapper, it's best to cut the wedge into smaller pieces, trim off the rind and store it in the refrigerator in an air-tight container, such as Snapwear.

You can dice the rind and use it to flavor pasta sauce; it doesn't completely dissolve, so if you want to remove it before serving the dish, use bigger pieces and fish them out.

Parmigiano Reggiano is made with part-skimmed cow's milk, rennet, cheese cultures and salt, so it doesn't have as much fat as many other cheeses.

The wedge I bought has a best-by date of March 2016.

Shredded Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano, which is more expensive than the same cheese in wedges, and Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto accent organic eggs poached in marinara sauce. You could just as well shave cheese from a larger piece over your eggs as they cook. You can also find recipes for stuffing zucchini flowers with the cheese or adding it to lasagna and other dishes.

Fresh Wild Sockeye Salmon with Pesto and Lime. The salmon, which was $9.99 a pound at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack, was grilled on the stove top over medium-high heat for 8 minutes with a little sea salt and fresh lime juice. Chopped herbs from our garden, Aleppo pepper and Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto were added to the serving pieces after they were taken off the heat.

Costco's pesto topping an egg-white omelet stuffed with smoked wild salmon, fresh organic spinach, reduced-fat cheese and salsa. A 22-ounce jar of Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto, which must be kept refrigerated, was $7.99.

Teterboro Costco

Even though the Hackensack Costco is so popular that parking and shopping there can be an ordeal, I haven't spoken to anyone who is looking forward to the opening of a bigger Costco near Teterboro Airport.

The new Costco is under construction in a shopping center off of Route 46, and still is scheduled to open in the fall. Hiring for the bigger store begins in September.

In the absence of official information, I've been questioning employees in Hackensack about the new store, which is 3 miles away from the old one.

On Thursday, I was told that, yes, the new store will have a liquor license and carry alcohol, including Kirkland Signature Wines, such as a wonderful California Cabernet Sauvignon and Prosecco from Italy at low Costco prices.

When I asked a couple of months ago, I was told no liquor license, no Kirkland Signature Wines.

But it doesn't look like the Teterboro Costco will offer wheel alignment to members who buy new tires.

A few months ago, we bought new Michelin tires for one of our cars at the Hackensack Costco, then had to make an appointment at another tire dealer to have the wheels aligned.

Boycott Walmart

The new Costco will be in a shopping center with a Walmart, which has already opened.

I am boycotting Walmart to protest its mistreatment of workers.

And I'll have no use for a Costco gas station in my all-electric car.

I'm not looking forward to driving 10 miles round-trip to Costco, compared to my 4-mile round-trip now.

Let's hope the new parking lot will be designed better.

Now, lazy shoppers stop their cars dead so they can wait for a space close to the doors, blocking the main entrance to the lot in Hackensack.