Saving Money At The 'Dollar Tree'

Ok, maybe the subtitle “Bargins abound, but buyer beware.” is a little harsh, but I wanted to get your attention. As you know shopping on a budget requires a little work if you want to successfully stretch your food dollars. This is especially true if you are just starting out and trying to stock your pantry with the bare essentials, what we call here 'the minimalist pantry'.

One of the great resources for stocking your minimalist pantry is your local 'Dollar Tree' store. Now I realize not everyone reading this article has a local Dollar Tree, but if you have a '$0.99' or dollar store in your neighboorhood, the same princples apply. With more than 13,500 stores here in the lower 48 states and in Canada many of you have most likely seen a Dollar Tree at one time or another. Like their name implies eveything in the store is $1.00 (sometimes a few items can be found for less, but rarely). This can lead to some great buys, but care must be taken because sometime items are cheaper at your local Walmart, our other grocery store chain.

Minimalist Pantry 'Best Buys'

So let's look at some of the items in which you can save a substantial amount of money on by buying them at the Dollar Tree versus your local grocer or Walmart. I use Walmart for comparison as theyare the largest grocery type retailer in the United States, usually have the most competitive prices, and it is the primary grocery store chain in our area. This listing of products is not all-inclusive, there are many things that you might find at the Dollar Tree that I do not use or vice versa, but this will give you a good indication of the savings you can find.

Dried Black Beans 1lb bag ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, $1.72 at Walmart), a 42% savings.

Dried Pinto Beans 2lb bag ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, $1.64 at Walmart), a 61% savings.

Dried Red beans 12oz bag ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, 1lb bag $1.22 at Walmart), a 5% loss.

Kosher Salt 16oz ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, $1.64 at Walmart), a 61% savings.

Lemon Juice 32oz ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, $2.48 at Walmart), a 60% savings.

Long Grain Rice 2lbs ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, $1.18 at Walmart), a 15% savings.

Molasses 8oz ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, 12oz $2.88 at Walmart), a 48% savings.

These items cost us a total of $7.00, had we purchased similar items at Walmart we would have spent $12.76. On this quick shopping trip we saved $5.76 or 45% by shopping at the Dollar Tree as opposed to going into our local Walmart. Now that is a way to stretch you food dollars! One tip we use to stretch our food budget is that we keep an updated list of the things we purchase at Dollar Tree and compare them with Walmart. Knowing which items we use on a regular basis and which store is the cheapest helps to stretch our food dollars and it only takes a minute to check out or list when we get ready to go shopping. 

Some items we did not purchase on this trip but keep in the pantry include: Butterfield canned chunk chicken 6oz can ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, 12.5oz $2.38 at Walmart), a 16% savings, Corina tomato sauce 29oz can ($1.00 at Dollar Tree, 12.5oz $1.29 at Walmart), a 22% savings. These are just a few of the canned goods we buy at Dollar Tree. We have found however, canned goods are usually cheaper at your local grocer or Walmart, so keep your eyes open, as there are always exceptions.

Buyer Beware (Comparing Apples to Apples)

Something to think about when shopping at the Dollar Tree is that each location is a little different. I have seen 'La Rosa' black beans in 1lb bags at one location and 'Iberia' black beans in 12oz bags at a different location both for $1.00. The black beans at my local Dollar Tree when I made these purchases were sold in a 1lb bag, but the same 'La Rosa' brand of red beans were in 12oz bags. Now here is what I mean about buyer beware. While the red beans at the Dollar Tree were $1.00 each, the bag was actually only 12oz making them $0.08 per ounce, while the 1lb bag at Walmart are $1.22 making them $0.06 per ounce. The red beans are actually cheaper at Walmart than the Dollar Tree. Because the black beans were sitting on the same shelf next to the red beans, I just grabbed a couple of bags of red beans without looking at the size of the bag assuming they were 1lb bags. While my mistake only cost me a few pennies, it is a simple reminder that you have to look at the size of or the weight of each container when comparing prices.

Conclusion

Not everything is cheaper at your local $0.99 or Dollar Tree store, but stop in and take a quick look around next time you are near one. This will give you an idea of which items the store carries that you use everyday making nurticious meals for your family. Knowing which items are available for $1.00 or less will help you to stretch your food budget and stock your minimalist pantry without breaking the bank. Just remember to check the labels and compare prices ounce per ounce when making buying decisions to maximize your food purchasing power. 

On this quick stop at our local Dollar Tree we saved we saved $5.76 or 45% compared to comparable items found at our local Walmart, and buying more with less is always a good thing! As always, if you have enjoyed this article, please share it with your friends and don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook and Google+ so that you will not miss out on any of our new articles.

Other Money Saving Articles On Our Blog:

Buying More With Less: Strategies To Stretch Your Food Dollar.

Spices: Save Up To 80% By Shopping At Your Local Ethnic Supermarket.

Cheap Ground Beef Can Be Just as Healthy as Lean.

The Minimalist Pantry Series On Our Blog:

The Minimalist Pantry (Phase 1): Dry Good Essentials.

The Minimalist Pantry (Phase 2): Canned Goodness.

 
The Minimalist Pantry (Phase3): Finishing Up.

Red Beans And Rice

If you read my article on the 'common bean', then you known that the combination of red beans and rice provides a complete protein source that is both healthy and nutritious. The other thing that I love about this dish is that it is minimalist pantry friendly and is extremely affordable to make. Beans and rice dishes are popular in a wide variety of countries and cultures because they are not only filling, but it is very affordable to make. Most recipes for red beans and rice call for some form of meat to be added to the dish, whether it be smoked sausage, ham, chicken, rabbit or whatever you can shoot and bring home doesn't really matter. In fact, if you want to leave the meat out and go vegetarian this dish will still provide a complete protein source for your family.

This particular dish is very popular in the southern United States especially in Louisiana and East Texas where we live. A Cajon and Creole tradition, there are many variations on this recipe. Last week I was making my cornbread dressing to put in the freezer in anticipation of thanksgiving and I had an extra eight ounces of breakfast sausage so I decided in true 'Culinary yoU' fashion to use the leftover sausage to make my version of a quick, easy and cheap version of red beans and rice. I have included directions for cooking your red beans in both a pressure cooker or a dutch oven, allowing you to choose the method that best works for you.

Red Beans and Rice

Now in traditional Cajon and Creole cooking celery, onions, and bell peppers (known as the trinity or trifecta) are sauteed in butter or oil and are a major component of gumbos, jambalaya, dirty rice, red beans and rice as well as a wide variety of other dishes. I do not have any bell peppers in the garden right now, but I have a ton of banana peppers so I used them in place of the bell peppers. So don't fret if you have to do a couple of substitutions, cooking on a budget means using what you got in the pantry and the fridge especially leftovers. My original recipe calls for using 1lb smoked ham cubed, and 1lb of smoked sausage cut into ½-inch slices, so if you want to make a more traditional red beans and rice then use both of these as opposed to the breakfast sausage.

1lb or dried kidney beans

8 ounces breakfast sausage

2 quarts of water

2 stalks of celery, diced

1 onion, diced

1 large green or red bell pepper, diced

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon black pepper

2 teaspoons of dried parsley or 2 tablespoons freshly chopped

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

Carefully pick though your dried beans and remove any small rocks or other debris. Then cover the beans with cold water about 4 to 5 inches above the top of the beans and soak them overnight. The beans will absorb a lot of water and expand so make sure you cover them well. In the morning rinse them throughly and place them in your pressure cooker or large dutch oven and add the 2 quarts of fresh water.

Diced the onions, celery and bell peppers and set aside. Then in a large sauté pan, brown your ham and sausage (in this case I used 8 ounces of uncooked breakfast sausage) and remove from the sauté pan leave the oil or grease to sauté your celery, onions and peppers in. Sauté your vegetables just until the onions are translucent, then add the contents of the sauté pan and the remaining herbs and seasonings to the pressure cooker or dutch oven that contain the beans and the water. Do not add the meat at this time, we will add it just before serving.

Chef's Note: You can add the ham pieces to the beans when cooking, but some pre-cooked smoked sausages will develop a 'mealy' texture when cooked for long periods of time or when pressure cooked as the fats in the sausage are cooked out. That is why I add my cooked meats at the end of the cooking process.

Pressure Cooker Instructions

Place your 10lb weight on your pressure cooker, or of you have a Fagor set the dial '2' (12lbs) and bring the cooker up to temperature. Then cook the beans for 30 to 40 minutes and remove from the heat. Once the pressure has been released, take a potato masher and slightly mash some of the beans or us a spoon and mash some of the beans on the side of the cooker. The beans should be smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust the seasonings the way you like them, then add you meat and cook on low for 10 minutes or until the sausage, ham, or other meat is hot. Serve over hot rice.

Chef's Note: Red beans cooked in a pressure cooker do not have to be pre-boiled as the pressure in the cooker will destroy the phytohemagglutinin toxins that are contained in the beans during the cooking process. For more information of the toxins in red beans see my article 'Beans, Beans The Musical Fruit! An Inexpensive and Healthy Protein Source'.

Dutch Oven or Stockpot Instructions

Bring the beans to a boil and boil for 30 minutes (per USDA recommendations), then reduce the heat and simmer until done (30minutes to 2 hours). Once the beans are soft, take a potato masher and slightly mash some of the beans or us a spoon and mash some of the beans on the side of the cooker. The beans should be smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust the seasonings the way you like them, then add you meat and cook on low for 10 minutes or until the sausage, ham, or other meat is hot. Serve over hot rice.

Cost Breakdown

Red beans and rice is an inexpensive meal that is not only filling, but healthy (if you use less fatty meats) in addition to being downright cheap. This recipe cost me approximately $2.63 for six to eight servings, that $0.33 per serving (for eight servings) and $0.44 per serving (for six servings). 1lb dried red beans $1.00 (1lb bag $1.00 Dollar Tree), 8oz dried rice $0.24 (20lb bag $8.92 Walmart), 8oz breakfast sausage $1.29 (16oz package $2.58 Save-A-Lot), plus $.10 for miscellaneous herbs and spices. I do not know about you, but I think that is a whole lot of bang for your buck!

Now adding 1lb or smoked ham and or 1lb of smoked sausage would bring the cost up considerably, however making it vegetarian brings the total cost down to $1.34. Thats $0.22 for six servings and $0.17 for eight servings, and now you understand why beans are such a vital part of the diet of many cultures around the world.

Conclusion

Beans are a cheap source of protein, and when mixed with a carbohydrate such as rice, they are a complete source of healthy protein. Due to the fact that dried beans are easily stored and are readily available in most countries around the world you can find some form of a bean and rice dish in just about every culture. Here in the United States, particularly along the gulf coast states, red beans and rice has been elevated from a necessary staple to more of a comfort food status as we became more prosperous as a nation.

However, if you are struggling to make ends meet and need to stretch your food dollars, then red beans and rice can be a important part of your menu rotation. It's cheap, east to make and a downright delicious dish that I am sure your family will enjoy. As always, if you have enjoyed this article, please share it with your friends and don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook and Google+ so that you will not miss out on any of our new articles.

Related Articles On Our Blog:

Beans, Beans The Musical Fruit! An Inexpensive and Healthy Protein Source'.

Homemade 'Ranch Style Beans': Come Get Ya Some!

Additional Resources On The Internet:

United States Department Of Agriculture: Foodborne Pathogenic Microorganisms and Natural Toxins Handbook:Phytohaemagglutinin. Food and Drug Administration. 2012. Retrieved 20November2015.

Thickening Soups, Stews, and Sauces

Making and canning soups and stews is relatively easy, however they must remain somewhat thin as canning thickened liquids is not recommended. However, for my tastes there is one step left to do after you open the jar of and heat up a good home canned soup, stew or gumbo, and that is to thicken it. For this article I will be taking a minimalist approach, that is to say that the only thickeners I will be discussing are the three found in the 'minimalist' pantry, flour, cornstarch and condensed soups.

As I have been canning a lot of soups and stews lately and posting the recipes for you to try on our blog, I decided I need to add a quick article to the blog on how to thicken soups, stews and sauces. Now, there are several different ways to thicken a hot soup, stew or gumbo and I am going to show you both the traditional ways I learned to thicken soups, stews, gumbos, and sauces as well as a quick easy out.

All-Purpose Flour

All-purpose flour is a great thickener and it is the base of all roux's used to make sauces and soups. However, if you add flour by itself to a hot liquid, you are going to get a crappy, lumpy mess. When using flour as a thickening agent for hot soups and stews, you have two options. The first, is to make a flour and butter paste known in French cooking as a 'buerre manie' (pronounced 'burr men yea'). To make a buerre manie you take equal amounts of flour and butter and knead it into a paste. You can then put the buerre manie straight into your soup and the flour will not clump up. To thicken your soup or stew using a buerre manie use the following guidelines. Remember we are using a ratio of 1 tablespoon of butter with 1 tablespoon of flour (1:1 ratio).

1 tablespoon of burre manie per cup of liquid will make a thin sauce.

1 ½ tablespoons of buree manie per cup of liquid will make a medium thick sauce.

2 tablespoons of buree manie per cup of liquid will make a thick sauce.

The great thing about a burre manie when used to thicken soups is that the butter adds a nice smooth mouth feel to the soup that accentuates the flavor of the soup. It does however add calories, but as the French would say c'est la vie (such is life).

The second option for using flour is somewhat easier, using this technique you are going to make a slurry (combination of a starch and cold water) by combining equal parts of flour and cold water in a small bowl and mixing it well with a fork or whisk. The slurry is then added to your soup or stew which must be brought to a slight boil to activate the flour and get rid of the raw taste of the flour. Like a buree manie, I would start out with 1 tablespoon of flour to 1 tablespoon of water (1:1 ratio) and add to your soup or stew 1 tablespoon at a time.

1 tablespoon of flour slurry per cup of liquid will make a thin sauce.

1 ½ tablespoons of flour slurry per cup of liquid will make a medium thick sauce.

2 tablespoons of flour slurry per cup of liquid will make a thick sauce.

Cornstarch

The one thickener that most home cook's think about using to thicken a soup or stew is cornstarch. Cornstarch is a great thickener with a thickening power about twice that of flour. Like flour, cornstarch is used primarily as a slurry to thicken soups or stews. The one downside to cornstarch is that it tends to leave a shiny sheen to liquids that are thickened with it. It doesn't affect the taste, but that is why all the food that have sauces at the Chinese buffet have that shiny appearance. Cornstarch is best used as a thickening agent for sweet or fruit sauces, pie fillings and of course Chinese food. Depending on the desired appearance of the finished dish, the shiny appearance is something that you may want to avoid, but it does work quite well

Like flour, a cornstarch slurry is made with equal parts cornstarch and cold water (1:1 ratio). Mix it well and then pour it into the liquid you wish to thicken. When using cornstarch, I generally make a slurry of 1 tablespoon cornstarch to one tablespoon water to start out with. I then add it to my soup, stew or sauce one tablespoon at a time until I get the desired effect. No fast an furious rules here with cornstarch, just add it stir, wait and add some more until you get the right consistency.

Condensed Soups (The Quick Easy Out)

Using condensed soup as a thickener is an easy out. If you are cooking a home canned chicken soup and you want it a little thicker, just add a condensed can of 'Cream Of Chicken Soup' or 'Cream Of Mushroom', for gumbos add a can of 'Cream Of Celery' or any flavor of your choice. You can even use the fat-free versions to reduce the calorie count of your soup. Condensed soups can add body to a weak soup and because it is condensed it can also act as a sudo-thickening agent as it has half the water removed when canned, that is why it is called 'condensed'. However, it is not a true thickening agent. Often, I use the fat-free version in my gumbo for a low-fat roux alternative and it works very well.

Conclusion

Keep in mind that after you add any slurry to your soup, stew or sauce, you will need to bring it to a slow boil in order to activate the slurry’s thickening ability. Caution must be taken as overcooking the slurry can cause it to hydrolyse (break down) and lose it's thickening ability. Therefore, once your soup, stew or sauce has reached the desired consistency that you are looking for, carefully remove the saucepan from the heat to prevent hydrolysis. Condensed soups can be used to help thicken a soup but they do so by volume rather than acting as a thickening agent.

Thickening soups, stews and sauces is really easy and can be done quickly, but a little care must be taken when doing so. I would not advise that you add your buree manie or slurry to your soup, stew or sauce and walk away from the stove. You need to keep an eye on it so that once it reaches the consistency you are looking for you can remove it from the heat to prevent it from scorching or becoming overcooked and totally breaking down defeating the whole purpose of trying to thicken your meal.

If you are looking to find additional ways to stretch your food dollars, be sure and check out some of my other articles on the subject on our blog. And as always, if you have enjoyed this article, please share it with your friends and don't forget to send us a friend request on Facebook and Google+ so that you will not miss out on any of our new articles.