How to avoid wasteful, overspending at Costco

Usually, I’m good at limiting my spending at Costco to what I need and what I can eat before it spoils.

Costco has the best berries in town. And, they’re the best price, too. I buy the big containers and freeze any I can’t eat quickly.

I also buy plant-based milk, hydrogen peroxide, Killer Dave’s bread, disposable gloves, and fruits and vegetables for my vegan food plan.

However, Saturday I got in trouble. I bought too many vegetables. I’m going to have to hustle to get a big package of asparagus and Brussels sprouts eaten before they spoil. In addition, I bought four pounds of baby carrots. Carrots last longer, but they’ll go bad if you don’t pay attention to them.

An additional problem with all those vegetables is that last week when I went to Costco to buy bread, I also bought a large package of organic green beans.

I went out on Saturday to buy hydrogen peroxide. I bought eight quarts. It’s about half the price of hydrogen peroxide in grocery and drug stores.

Here are tips to avoid overspending at Costco:

• Make a list and stick to it. That’s where I lost my way.
• Don’t browse at Costco. It can lead to impulse spending.
• Make a budget for expensive items. If you see a great set of outdoor furniture or a similar big-ticket item, don’t buy it unless it’s in your budget plan.
• Make sure you can use larger quantities of fresh food. It’s not a bargain if it grows mold in the refrigerator.
• Return items you think might spoil or that were disastrous overspending. Cost has a generous return policy. It will probably be embarrassing to go to the return counter and say “Here’s my four pounds of carrots that I’m not going to be able to use,” or “This isn’t in my budget” but wasting money or accumulating debt you can avoid is worth addressing.

I’ll let you know how I did with my impulse item produce. I made navy bean-zucchini soup last night and put in a pound of carrots. One down, three to go. I’ll start eating humus and carrots instead of humus and crackers.

Comments

[azire]

According to Rodale's "Stocking Up", you can freeze both asparagus & brussel sprouts. Both need to be blanched or steamed before freezing: asparagus blanch for 4 minutes or steam for 3.minutes. Brussel sprouts:rinse & trim, maybe remove a few outer leaves, blanch for in boiling water for 4 minutes or steam for 6. In general, to preserve flavor, cool the blanched veg by putting them into a tray or tin full of ice, put a bag of ice on top.
I haven't frozen either of the above veg, but I froze fressh corn every year for 5 or 6 years, it's easy to do, a bit time-consuming but then you got some frozen veg in your freezer.

[Rita]

Good suggestion. I also thought of freezing the big pot of soup I made so I can begin eating the asparagus and Brussels sprouts. In addition, I bought some Brussels sprouts about a month ago, and like cabbage, they lasted quite a while. They can last in the refrigerator one to three weeks, according to several sources.