Are Costco chicken breasts a good deal?

[Bir48die]

Can't comment on chicken breasts as we haven't bought them from Costco, but did get some Tenderloin from Costco and it was not great..and we paid $15.99/lb when I could have bought a whole tenderloin from my fancy specialty butcher for $12.99/lb - ultimately it would have been close in cost / lb even after trimming and butchering..

I haven't yet found any proteins at Costco that are "worth it" (well, maybe their Pork Shoulder or MAYBE baby back ribs) compared to other sources, FWIW..obviously pays to shop around and compare not only price but quality..the net differences in cost in my experience are pretty minimal, but the quality differences are very noticeable. And when DW and I were eating the Costco tenderloin last night and commenting on how "meh" it was, I quickly forgot about the few pennies per lb I MIGHT have saved over other sources..I'd gladly have paid another $1 or $2 per lb for better filet..

I couldn't disagree with this more. Costco had by far the highest quality of meat as compared to any conventional grocery stores. I dealt with them fow many years and I know of their standards. Now in most parts of the U.S. people don't have access to a local butcher so this is the best alternative.

We buy the breasts and tenderloins all the time and put in the freezer for later use. Due to the thickness of the breasts I have begun pounding them down for uniform thickness and don't overcook.

 

[Badger]

Not really. It tastes like poor quality chicken that has been oversalted to make it "taste" better. I prefer quality chicken that tastes like chicken did 40 years ago. Try Sprouts boneless skinless chicken parts. Good flavor, no wood.

Actually the pre-salting before packaging is not so much for flavor than it is for making the potentially dry chicken breast more moist.


Cheers!

 

[Another Reader]

Actually the pre-salting before packaging is not so much for flavor than it is for making the potentially dry chicken breast more moist.


Cheers!

Haven't had that problem with Sprouts...

 

[zinger1457]

I've only been a Costco member for a few months but one observation is that healthy foods do not seem to be a high priority. Walking through my local Costco yesterday and doubt if 20% of the shoppers would pass the obesity guidelines, most leaving with a cart full of junk. Some good healthy food is available but certainly a lot more of the unhealthy stuff, and always in bulk.

 

[Another Reader]

I've only been a Costco member for a few months but one observation is that healthy foods do not seem to be a high priority. Walking through my local Costco yesterday and doubt if 20% of the shoppers would pass the obesity guidelines, most leaving with a cart full of junk. Some good healthy food is available but certainly a lot more of the unhealthy stuff, and always in bulk.

Yes. Processed, oversalted, overpriced junk food. And the nuts and candy tend to be stale.

The only processed food I buy is the occasional chemical-laden rotisserie chicken. Their bakery products are full of garbage ingredients. The cakes have a strong chemical flavor. The Safeway bakery has better (but not really good) quality at lower prices.

There are a few really good things at Costco. The Kirkland dry cat food is not bad and is reasonably priced. I buy some low sodium frozen mini wontons when they are on sale. They make a good soup base. For awhile they carried Pacific low sodium chicken bone broth. Toilet paper and paper towels on sale are decently priced. I bought a lot of FEIT LED light bulbs at the Tempe store when SRP offered great up front rebates. But overall, Costco is full of overpriced junk.

 

[Badger]

I've only been a Costco member for a few months but one observation is that healthy foods do not seem to be a high priority. Walking through my local Costco yesterday and doubt if 20% of the shoppers would pass the obesity guidelines, most leaving with a cart full of junk. Some good healthy food is available but certainly a lot more of the unhealthy stuff, and always in bulk.

I bet you can find the exact same number or more of obese shoppers in every grocery store in the country. The Costco in my area has a very large selection of fresh fruits and veggies as well as a variety of choices in their meat and fish section in addition to a number of frozen fruits and veggies with many of them being organic. Even the packaged, non-perishable food selection shelves have more healthy products than your typical grocery store. I agree that there are many products in the snack and cracker area (like every grocery store and convenience store) that are not healthy selections. But that is the shoppers choice to buy or not. That is none of my business.
I'm just pleased that they have a large selection of healthy food choices for my purchases.
A number of years ago when they came to my area I was unfamiliar with the company but after browsing the store I was impressed enough to become a member. Enough so that my $63/share of stocks that I bought are now almost $300. That tells me that a large number of people are thinking the same way.


Cheers!

 

[joeea]

Everytime we go to Costco we always buy the 6 pack of the chicken breasts (2 breasts in each pack). To be honest I haven't done any comparison research at our local grocery stores to know if this is the best deal. Does anyone else buy Costco chicken breasts? Is a good deal? Are there better options?

How much do you pay? Whenever you want ask about the term "good deal" you have to state the cost.

It's a good deal if you paid less for the same item than you could have elsewhere. Otherwise, not so much.

 

[joeea]

Yes, I've heard of this and we have noticed the Costco chicken breasts are more 'rubbery' or 'harder' than they used to be.

Do you prefer rubbery, hard chicken?

 

[Another Reader]

Sprouts routinely has boneless, skinless chicken breasts on sale for $1.99 a pound. That's a "good deal." Thighs are the same, and occasionally they will drop to $1.69 or even $1.49 a pound. The only use for thighs is grilled on the BBQ with lots of sauce or for cat food, because no one here is overly fond of dark meat.

 

[Clone]

Local store had split chicken breasts, bone-in with rib meat on sale for $0.88/lb. We bought about 12 # of them over the week. After trimming, the effective price for boneless/skinless is realistically more like $1.25/lb. They were very good, and the trimmings all went in the insta-pot to make chicken stock. They were quite thick, so I filleted them out to make some tenderloins as well as the chicken breast cuts.


When I was a kid, we would raise chickens, butcher and sell them. About 100 per year. Now, they would throw us in jail for doing that! There is still a butcher shop about 50 miles away that will butcher chickens. It used to be common for local butcher shops to actually process beef. Inspections and regulations (which we, the consumers, demanded) have almost eliminated those operations. Most of those 'butchers' are processing hanging halves that are purchased from the large packers.


The 'local food' movement is bringing back some of the ability for the small producers to legally process animals for resale.

 

[Senator]

I would think that with the current decline in soybean and corn prices, chicken (and beef) should fall too.

When animal feed gets cheaper, more people raise them. When feed gets higher, prices fall initially, as animals go to the "happy place" before then are in the grocery store.

 

[audreyh1]

I've only been a Costco member for a few months but one observation is that healthy foods do not seem to be a high priority. Walking through my local Costco yesterday and doubt if 20% of the shoppers would pass the obesity guidelines, most leaving with a cart full of junk. Some good healthy food is available but certainly a lot more of the unhealthy stuff, and always in bulk.

However, I eat a very healthy diet, and I buy a lot of fresh ingredients at Costco. They have excellent produce and meats/seafood. I can get top quality olive oil, as well as terrific quality coconut oil. They often have a nice selection of cheeses. I rely heavily on the products they sell, even if they sell lots of products that I don’t eat, just like other grocery stores.

 

[mpeirce]

I marvel at the variety of ways people fill up their shopping carts at Costco (and Kroger and Aldi and so on too). With so many options for people, we all get to choose the food we want.

I think that's amazingly wonderful.

 

[footenote]

I've only been a Costco member for a few months but one observation is that healthy foods do not seem to be a high priority. Walking through my local Costco yesterday and doubt if 20% of the shoppers would pass the obesity guidelines, most leaving with a cart full of junk. Some good healthy food is available but certainly a lot more of the unhealthy stuff, and always in bulk.

Did you miss the massive vegetable room?

Like ANY store, Costco carries healthy and unhealthy foods alike. We consistently shop the back wall where we find great proteins and veggies. We skip the processed foods - as any shopper in any store can do.

 

[audreyh1]

I think Costco handles their produce better than many grocery stores, as it seems to be consistently in better shape.

 

[Another Reader]

Costco produce has issues. I used to buy the plastic containers of spinach, but it went bad very quickly. I can get Driscolls strawberries in the supermarkets here that are riper and cheaper most weeks. Watermelons are more expensive and not as ripe as other stores. They never carried Chiquita bananas, just the inferior brands.

If I were feeding five or ten people, I might be able to use the produce, but for one or two, no.

I thought Fuego (Root of Good) did a a good Costco analysis a couple of years ago:
https://rootofgood.com/costco-costs-more-bulk-buying/

I use Costco, but find better quality and pricing for most things elsewhere.

 

[Another Reader]

I think Costco handles their produce better than many grocery stores, as it seems to be consistently in better shape.

I'm probably pickier, because I live in California. Generally, California has better produce than the Southern or Eastern states, or at least it used to. The produce does not travel as far to get to the store.

 

[audreyh1]

It’s great if you get good California produce. The California fruit we get in Texas looks pretty but has no flavor.

 

[REWahoo]

The California fruit we get in Texas looks pretty but has no flavor.

To get back at them we send them oil at jacked-up prices.

 

[joeea]

When I was a kid, we would raise chickens, butcher and sell them. About 100 per year. Now, they would throw us in jail for doing that!

Kids are seldom jailed these days.

 

[Tracer]

About 80% of my food shopping is at Aldi, including meats. A German company building stores in the US like crazy. Best prices ANYWHERE on just about EVERYTHING! Great chicken breasts $1.69/lb. Almost the entire store is their own private label brands, but most are equal to (or better than) national brands with a double-back satisfaction guarantee. I'm amazed how much groceries I get every time the cashier hands me the receipt after looking at the total. The balance of shopping at Publix and Costco for certain things.

 

[zinger1457]

Did you miss the massive vegetable room?

I did find it, nice reprieve from the 107 degree day in Tucson, even though the store was packed I was the only one in the room.

 

[limeyx]

We switched from breasts to boneless, skinless thighs and have never gone back. Usually BBQ them. Freeze the second pack.

Same here. Far better but a bit less "pretty" on the plate

 

[audreyh1]

I prefer my chicken with skin and bones. And yes - darker meat is preferred, but I do whole chickens often so we get both light and dark meat.

I know we’ve been trained to eat the leanest cuts of meat, but IMO you aren’t gaining healthwise by going for the leanest meat. Why not go for the most flavor and satiety?

 

[kcowan]

Sprouts routinely has boneless, skinless chicken breasts on sale for $1.99 a pound. That's a "good deal." Thighs are the same, and occasionally they will drop to $1.69 or even $1.49 a pound. The only use for thighs is grilled on the BBQ with lots of sauce or for cat food, because no one here is overly fond of dark meat.

Based on shelf space, our local Costco sell 2 breasts for every thigh pack.