Riding the price roller coaster at my Costco Wholesale warehouse

The price of Kirkland Signature Wild Alaskan Smoked Sockeye Salmon rose by more than $3 -- to $18.89 for a 1-pound package -- but it wasn't the only recent increase at Costco Wholesale.

Editor's note: Today, I discuss the up-and-down prices at Costco Wholesale, a new frozen vegetable blend and an old Fort Lee diner that has gone upscale.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Another one of my favorite foods -- the 3-pound bag of raw almonds sold at Costco Wholesale -- is more expensive.

We stopped buying roasted almonds and other nuts with salt; roast raw, salt-free almonds at home and dust them with Saigon Ground Cinnamon from Costco.

They are a favorite snack.

But the 3-pound bag of U.S. No. 1 raw almonds was $14.49 on Jan. 23 at my Costco in Hackensack, compared to $12.99 on Dec. 3, 2013.

A little Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto goes a long way to boost the flavor of tofu in a takeout dinner salad, above, or two organic brown eggs from Costco Wholesale,  served with organic brown rice, below.

Up and down

Prices seem to go up and down at Costco, but at the far smaller Trader Joe's, prices stay flat.

For example, Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix at Costco is $4.49, $4.79 or $4.99 for a 1-pound tub, and the price fluctuates.

The price for other produce, such as Sunset-brand tomatoes, also varies, but 3 pounds of bananas at $1.39 is a constant and the lowest price I've found in North Jersey.

Three products with lower prices than before are Jarlsberg Lite Deli Thin Sliced Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese (2 pounds for $8.59), salted cod from Canada (2 pounds for $11.99) and fresh mahi-mahi fillets ($5.99 a pound).

On Tuesday, my wife bought 10 pounds of organic carrots at Costco for the usual price of $7.99, and 10 pounds of sweet potatoes for the same price.

Asian-style veggies

A new frozen product, Kirkland Signature Stir-Fry Vegetable Blend, is $7.59 for a 5.5-pound bag that is labeled product of "USA, Canada, China, Mexico and Thailand."

Costco charges only $6.79 for a 5-pound bag of organic mixed vegetables.

The stir-fry blend turns mushy if you cook it in a covered pan, and when I followed the instructions and stir-fried the broccoli, snap peas and other vegetables in a wok for 5 minutes, they were still cold and had to be heated up in the microwave.

A cup of organic coffee at Chillers Grill in Fort Lee is $1.99, plus tax, with at least one free refill. It doesn't measure up to a good cup of non-organic coffee. The upscale diner at 2191 Fletcher Ave. replaced the Red Oak Diner.

Food shopping? Take calculator, magnifying glass

Here are some of the 1,000 shopping carts available at the Costco Wholesale in Hackensack.

Editor's note: Today, I disuss shopping at ShopRite and Costco Wholesale, and the need to check package sizes and price signs, even during a sale.

By Victor E. Sasson
Editor

Package sizes are shrinking before our eyes, and with global sourcing of produce, you can't expect all of those clementines to have been grown in Spain.

And on a couple of trips to the ShopRite in Paramus this week, I also could have used a magnifying glass to read small package type and a calculator to figure out whether I was getting the best deal with 50-count, 100-count or 200-count plastic sandwich bags.

On Thursday, 5-pound boxes of Roxy Clementines were on sale for $4.99 each, a discount of $2. I squinted at the label on the wooden box and saw they were from Morocco.

On Friday, when I went for a refund on two packages of snack bags, I saw a full pallet of Roxy Clementines in the produce section, but these were from Spain.

The Moroccan clementines taste good, but are hard to peel. The Spanish clementines are easier to peel.

At ShopRite in Paramus, Roxy Clementines were from Morocco one day, above, and from Spain the next day.

I picked up the snack bags from a display at the front of the store designed to take advantage of impulse shoppers.

I needed sandwich bags, but focused on the sale price -- 50 bags for $1 -- not on the size.

After I got a refund on Friday, I went looking for sandwich bags in the aisle, and discovered the 50-count box was on sale for $1, like the snack bags, but a 100-count box was a better deal at the discounted price of $1.88.

A 200-count box also was on sale, but it cost more per bag than the 100-count box I bought.

Also at the Paramus ShopRite, I saw whole wheat and whole grain pastas in 12-ounce, 13.25-ounce and standard 16-ounce packages.

Even when the smaller sizes are on sale, they don't represent as good a value as the 16-ounce boxes of whole wheat pasta at Trader Joe's and Whole Food Market that go for $1.39.

Tropicana Orange Juice's 64-ounce carton (half-gallon) disappeared years ago from ShopRite, but can still be found at Costco Wholesale.

You'll need a calculator to figure out whether supermarket sales on 59-ounce containers of OJ are a better deal per ounce than Costco's price for four half-gallons.

A new item at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack is Organic Freekeh, described on the package as an "ancient grain."

'Sale' at Costco

I stopped at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack on Friday for a 5-pound box of Sunset Beefsteak Tomatoes ($6.99), but saw that those incomparably sweet Camapri Tomatoes from the same grower were on sale.

A 2-pound box cost $3.99, with an in-store $1 coupon. 

I bought two and when I got them home, noticed one had tomatoes grown in Canada and the other fruit was from Mexico.

The biggest Campari Tomatoes I have ever seen, top, are from Mexico, and the package below it contain fruit from Canada. Both are hothouse grown and vine ripened.

I picked up a fresh jar of refrigerated Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto, which is great for pasta, frittatas and as a sandwich spread (22 ounces for $7.99).

Four Tropicana Orange Juice half-gallons were $11.59; three half-gallons of Kirkland Signature Organic 1% Milk were $9.99; and 3-pound bags of sodium-free raw almonds were $12.99 each.

I roast them at 275 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes, and dust them with cinnamon. A great snack, and a healthy one, too.

A Costco-sourced frittata includes Kirkland Signature Organic Brown Eggs, 100% Egg Whites, smoked wild salmon from Alaska and Basil Pesto, which I added after browning the dish under the broiler. I also used two reduced-fat cheeses, Jarlsberg Lite Sliced Swiss and shredded Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano.

Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix was $4.99 for a 1-pound package; and a gallon of apple cider was $4.69.

All the way from Iceland, fresh, wild-caught fillets of haddock, a member of the cod family, were $8.99 a pound.

I returned Kirkland Signature Coarse Ground Malabar Black Pepper for a refund of $5.39, even though I had used most of it, because the strainer top kept coming off with the screw-on cap, and I inadvertently dumped too much pepper into food I was cooking.

I also got a refund for half of a 2-pound package of Jarlsberg Lite I bought on Nov. 14, because the sliced Swiss cheese had gotten moldy.

I have been buying this reduced-fat cheese for a couple of years, but this is the first time it grew moldy only a week or so after purchase.

I bought another jar of ground black pepper and a new package of Jarlsberg Lite ($8.59).

Invite the 'King of Cheeses' into your home

Shavings of aged Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano cheese from Italy dress up a simple open-face, egg-white omelet with sun-dried tomato.

By Victor E. Sasson
Editor

My Costco Wholesale offers more than 50 cheeses, but I've narrowed them down to several favorites.

At the top of my list are wedges of Parmigiano Reggiano, an aged cow's milk cheese imported from Italy and sold under the Kirkland Signature house label.

At my Hackensack warehouse store, I paid $10.69 a pound, the lowest price I've found in North Jersey.

The hard cheese crumbles nicely in the mouth when you pair it with wine, nuts, fruit or salad; and melts beautifully when cooked with omelets and frittatas.

Shavings of the cheese get a flavor boost from balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil when you add it to a salad.

I try to avoid full-fat cheese, though make an exception for manchego, a sheep's milk cheese from Spain also available at Costco. 

Parmigiano Reggiano has less fat because it is made from part skimmed cow's milk.

Chef Mario Batali refers to it as the "King of Cheeses," and the taste and versatility certainly bear that out.

Another great reduced-fat selection is Jarlsberg Lite Sliced Swiss Cheese, sold at Costco in a 2-pound package for $8.59, a price cut.

Paired with cinnamon-dusted almonds.

A little heat transforms Parmigiano Reggiano, here with organic brown eggs.

Wedges sold at Costco Wholesale are aged for more than 24 months and have rinds on only two sides, meaning you get more cheese. At home, I trim the rinds and cut the cheese into several small blocks, storing them in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Another bonus: Parmigiano Reggiano is a reduced-fat cheese made with part skimmed cow's milk.

An egg-white omelet with Jarlsberg Lite Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese and Kirkland Signature smoked Alaskan wild sockeye salmon.

A bigger refrigerated unit debuted this week at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack. It adds a second cold room to the store for conventional eggs and other items.