Author Topic: Baby carrots and other convienences  (Read 17505 times)

Anje

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #50 on: January 21, 2016, 07:47:28 AM »
I'm not sure if this article will be interesting to others, but it was to me.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/01/13/no-one-understands-baby-carrots/?tid=hybrid_experimentrandom_1_na

I didn't realize baby carrots were 70% of the carrots sold; nor that there are people who really believe they are "baby" carrots, and not just precut ones.

I've never bought baby carrots. They cost so much more than regular carrots, which are not that difficult to peel and slice for a snack or for a party.  I knew it was a semi-frugal habit, but I never thought it was that unusual. At 70% market share, maybe I'm mostly alone in this.

There exists a thing called baby carrots that are carrot-sticks?
In my area baby carrots are exactly that: carrots harvested at about 1/5 the sice (when I would harvest my own) instead of waiting until they get huge, old and woody. Of course, because of this they cost more.

MayDay

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #51 on: January 21, 2016, 08:20:05 AM »
Around here, in the regular grocery store, they are near the same price, with a BIG bag of whole carrots being cheaper, but plenty of people don't/can't do the big bag.  Carrots don't really ever spoil, but whatever, not everyone wants a fridge full of root veggies.

At costco, the big bag of whole carrots is cheaper than the big bag of baby carrots, but sometimes the whole carrots are out for a month or two.  In that case, the costco baby carrots are still a better deal than the regular grocery.

I like the big ones, because the baby ones taste slimy and too wet to me.  The kids and H don't care.  IMO even baby carrots are too big of chunks for soups/stews, but harder to slice, so I also dislike them for that reason. 

In the summer we grow our own and get them at the farmers market.  Much more flavor (sometimes admittedly its a bitter flavor, but still, they taste carrot-y). 

Chris22

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #52 on: January 21, 2016, 09:35:03 AM »
Looking at Peapod, baby carrots and pre-shredded cheese come at about a 50% premium over the equivalent non shredded/non cut up version.  However, 50% is $.50.  YMMV on how you value $.50.
« Last Edit: January 21, 2016, 09:38:58 AM by Chris22 »

golden1

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #53 on: January 21, 2016, 09:48:59 AM »
OK, looking at my Wegmans app:

Regular Baby cut carrots 16 oz: $1.29
Baby cut organic 16oz : $1.59
Organic non-peeled carrots 16oz:  $1.29

So not much difference all around.

But:
Organic baby cut 32oz:  $2.49
Organic non peeled: $2.29

So much better to get the larger bags, especially since they are resealable.

I eat a lot of carrots with hummus - it's like my go to snack so not having to peel those carrots is worth the $0.20 cost.

The convenience items that gets me are those little snack size bags of chips, cookies and crackers that parents get for their kids lunches.  It is so much cheaper to get a big box and just throw them in a resealable plastic bag.  It's like double the price to have someone bag them up for you....

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #54 on: January 21, 2016, 09:54:29 AM »
Around here, in the regular grocery store, they are near the same price, with a BIG bag of whole carrots being cheaper, but plenty of people don't/can't do the big bag.  Carrots don't really ever spoil, but whatever, not everyone wants a fridge full of root veggies.

At costco, the big bag of whole carrots is cheaper than the big bag of baby carrots, but sometimes the whole carrots are out for a month or two.  In that case, the costco baby carrots are still a better deal than the regular grocery.

I like the big ones, because the baby ones taste slimy and too wet to me.  The kids and H don't care.  IMO even baby carrots are too big of chunks for soups/stews, but harder to slice, so I also dislike them for that reason. 

In the summer we grow our own and get them at the farmers market.  Much more flavor (sometimes admittedly its a bitter flavor, but still, they taste carrot-y).

My grandmother taught me that carrots taste sweeter if you leave them in the ground for one frost. I try to plant them in the fall for that reason.

Mermaid3011

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #55 on: January 21, 2016, 11:38:11 AM »
Slightly on topic. is cheese still orange in america?


Clearly you are not cheese people if you think natural cheese does not come in many colors including "orange".

Oh absolutely - there is some really good "orange" cheese out there. But we were talking about the one that is vac, sealed from KRAFT and that for the longest time the local supermarket didn't offer any other choices.

Papa Mustache

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #56 on: January 21, 2016, 12:16:23 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Mermaid3011

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #57 on: January 21, 2016, 02:08:50 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Right? A dream! I hope you sampled every single one! :)

bb11

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #58 on: January 21, 2016, 02:22:41 PM »
I also always buy full carrots and have never understood why people peel them.

MgoSam

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #59 on: January 21, 2016, 02:24:36 PM »
This thread inspired me. When going grocery shopping I picked up whole carrots to toss into my smoothies.

Chris22

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #60 on: January 21, 2016, 02:42:31 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Is this what happens when people used to shopping at Aldi go to a real grocery??  :)

My local grocery chain has a very extensive cheese selection, probably 50 total feet of cheese coolers and shelves.

Papa Mustache

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #61 on: January 21, 2016, 03:59:26 PM »
My limited education on cheeses in the 80s when I grew up was because most groceries near me had the mainstream American brands like Kraft, a few store brands that were like Kraft but cheaper and maybe a couple of "straight from the farm" varieties.

Much more to choose from now thankfully.

Moving to Italy was eye-opening on so many levels and why I think travel is so important to experiencing life.

Real honest to goodness buffalo mozzarella! Real "parmesano"! Scamorza! In most cases very different from their American imposters.

Wish we as a family could afford to travel more often. ;)

Magilla

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #62 on: January 21, 2016, 04:02:41 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Is this what happens when people used to shopping at Aldi go to a real grocery??  :)

My local grocery chain has a very extensive cheese selection, probably 50 total feet of cheese coolers and shelves.

This.  I'm sure there is some variability based on where you live, but in my area both the Wegman's and WholeFoods have massive cheese sections and the other supermarkets have very nice ones as well.  There is even a cheese specialty shop.

Merrie

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #63 on: January 21, 2016, 05:26:23 PM »
Carrots don't really ever spoil, but whatever, not everyone wants a fridge full of root veggies.


We had a bag from Costco go rotten in the space of like 2 weeks. My husband won't buy Costco carrots since the time our toddler handed him a carrot from this bag that was disintegrating.

The Guru

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #64 on: January 21, 2016, 05:55:17 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Is this what happens when people used to shopping at Aldi go to a real grocery??  :)

My local grocery chain has a very extensive cheese selection, probably 50 total feet of cheese coolers and shelves.

This.  I'm sure there is some variability based on where you live, but in my area both the Wegman's and WholeFoods have massive cheese sections and the other supermarkets have very nice ones as well.  There is even a cheese specialty shop.


Is it this one? http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=monty+python+cheese+shop+sketch&view=detail&mid=ED6331DD3A3C281977E2ED6331DD3A3C281977E2&FORM=VIRE1

GuitarStv

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #65 on: January 21, 2016, 06:19:17 PM »
Carrots don't really ever spoil, but whatever, not everyone wants a fridge full of root veggies.


We had a bag from Costco go rotten in the space of like 2 weeks. My husband won't buy Costco carrots since the time our toddler handed him a carrot from this bag that was disintegrating.


If they're kept in the fridge or cold storage (and removed from the plastic bag) you should be able to get close to two months from a bag of carrots.

Magilla

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #66 on: January 21, 2016, 11:58:07 PM »
I walked through a supermarket in Italy once. WOW. Had no idea there were so many varieties of cheeses to be had. And I don't think Kraft was involved with any of them. ;)

Is this what happens when people used to shopping at Aldi go to a real grocery??  :)

My local grocery chain has a very extensive cheese selection, probably 50 total feet of cheese coolers and shelves.

This.  I'm sure there is some variability based on where you live, but in my area both the Wegman's and WholeFoods have massive cheese sections and the other supermarkets have very nice ones as well.  There is even a cheese specialty shop.


Is it this one? http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=monty+python+cheese+shop+sketch&view=detail&mid=ED6331DD3A3C281977E2ED6331DD3A3C281977E2&FORM=VIRE1

LOL, thanks, gotta love a good Monty Python sketch :)

Jakejake

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #67 on: January 22, 2016, 06:41:45 PM »
Why even bother freezing cheese?
Because if I can get a good coupon deal or markdown, I'm going to town with it - attaching a photo here of some blocks of cheese I got for a grand total of two dollars. And when superkmart by me dropped their grocery line and the cheeses were 20 cents a piece and I had store credit to burn, I filled an entire freezer (the small kind with a fridge attached, not a chest freezer) with cheese, which lasted a couple years. I'm a big believer in stockpiling when prices drop to near free.

Mermaid3011

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #68 on: January 23, 2016, 11:58:02 AM »
Why even bother freezing cheese?
Because if I can get a good coupon deal or markdown, I'm going to town with it - attaching a photo here of some blocks of cheese I got for a grand total of two dollars. And when superkmart by me dropped their grocery line and the cheeses were 20 cents a piece and I had store credit to burn, I filled an entire freezer (the small kind with a fridge attached, not a chest freezer) with cheese, which lasted a couple years. I'm a big believer in stockpiling when prices drop to near free.


LOVE IT!!
I freeze mine too when I stockpile. But how in the world did you manage to just pay 2 bucks for this amount of cheese??
In Canada they dont allow coupon stacking... so even in the best case it'll be 2-3$ a piece.

Jakejake

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #69 on: January 23, 2016, 02:32:21 PM »
But how in the world did you manage to just pay 2 bucks for this amount of cheese??
I don't remember the exact numbers, but the basic deal was related to one store in town having fliers with a manufacturer coupon for that brand of cheese that stupidly didn't specify you had to use it at their store. Another store had a sale on it and their register was kicking out the catalina coupons (get $ off a future purchase of anything if you buy 5 of these cheeses now), and the register coupon rolled, so you could use it on the next batch of cheeses along with the manufacturer coupon to generate more coupons.

Mermaid3011

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #70 on: January 23, 2016, 03:31:07 PM »
But how in the world did you manage to just pay 2 bucks for this amount of cheese??
I don't remember the exact numbers, but the basic deal was related to one store in town having fliers with a manufacturer coupon for that brand of cheese that stupidly didn't specify you had to use it at their store. Another store had a sale on it and their register was kicking out the catalina coupons (get $ off a future purchase of anything if you buy 5 of these cheeses now), and the register coupon rolled, so you could use it on the next batch of cheeses along with the manufacturer coupon to generate more coupons.

WOW amazing! Well done!!

With a little bit of planning this couponing can really make a difference! I only started in December but have easily saved 200 bucks so far.

I am always surprised that people tell me "couponing is not worth my time" ... it doesnt really take me longer than an hour once a week and can save a ton.

sol

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #71 on: January 23, 2016, 04:21:07 PM »
I am always surprised that people tell me "couponing is not worth my time" ... it doesnt really take me longer than an hour once a week and can save a ton.

Couponing is not my worth my time.  Even if it were to cut my grocery bill in half for one hour per week, it wouldn't be worth it.  Not while we're both working full time. 

Maybe in retirement, when my income drops and my available free time increases.

frugalnacho

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #72 on: January 26, 2016, 09:08:57 PM »
Why even bother freezing cheese?
Because if I can get a good coupon deal or markdown, I'm going to town with it - attaching a photo here of some blocks of cheese I got for a grand total of two dollars. And when superkmart by me dropped their grocery line and the cheeses were 20 cents a piece and I had store credit to burn, I filled an entire freezer (the small kind with a fridge attached, not a chest freezer) with cheese, which lasted a couple years. I'm a big believer in stockpiling when prices drop to near free.

I would eat that whole stack before the "best by" dates.

LeRainDrop

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #73 on: January 26, 2016, 09:21:16 PM »
Slightly on topic. is cheese still orange in america?

OMG yes.... I was shocked when I arrived here 8 yrs ago. White, yellow or orange cheese.... now they even have marbled cheese (white and orange)

........  waaaaaaahhhhhhhh ......

P.S. they do sell actual cheese too though. For an arm and a leg. Quebecois cheese turns out to be pretty decent and there are quite a few organic small farms in Ontario now that make pretty good cheese. But again... $10 for 5-6oz of goat camembert.

Clearly you are not cheese people if you think natural cheese does not come in many colors including "orange".

Yeah, seriously!  Though I think gooki was probably talking about the "American cheese" processed cheese slices that come in white or orange/yellow.

Magilla

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #74 on: January 26, 2016, 10:15:33 PM »
Slightly on topic. is cheese still orange in america?

OMG yes.... I was shocked when I arrived here 8 yrs ago. White, yellow or orange cheese.... now they even have marbled cheese (white and orange)

........  waaaaaaahhhhhhhh ......

P.S. they do sell actual cheese too though. For an arm and a leg. Quebecois cheese turns out to be pretty decent and there are quite a few organic small farms in Ontario now that make pretty good cheese. But again... $10 for 5-6oz of goat camembert.

Clearly you are not cheese people if you think natural cheese does not come in many colors including "orange".

Yeah, seriously!  Though I think gooki was probably talking about the "American cheese" processed cheese slices that come in white or orange/yellow.

Interestingly enough, one day I found out that true American Cheese is really only yellow/orange and the white variety is actually bleached to get it to be white because some people didn't like yellow/orange cheese.  I think my brain nearly imploded when I heard that there are enough ridiculously picky eaters in this country for that to be a thing.

LeRainDrop

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #75 on: January 26, 2016, 10:55:41 PM »
Slightly on topic. is cheese still orange in america?

OMG yes.... I was shocked when I arrived here 8 yrs ago. White, yellow or orange cheese.... now they even have marbled cheese (white and orange)

........  waaaaaaahhhhhhhh ......

P.S. they do sell actual cheese too though. For an arm and a leg. Quebecois cheese turns out to be pretty decent and there are quite a few organic small farms in Ontario now that make pretty good cheese. But again... $10 for 5-6oz of goat camembert.

Clearly you are not cheese people if you think natural cheese does not come in many colors including "orange".

Yeah, seriously!  Though I think gooki was probably talking about the "American cheese" processed cheese slices that come in white or orange/yellow.

Interestingly enough, one day I found out that true American Cheese is really only yellow/orange and the white variety is actually bleached to get it to be white because some people didn't like yellow/orange cheese.  I think my brain nearly imploded when I heard that there are enough ridiculously picky eaters in this country for that to be a thing.

From wikipedia, it's the reverse, but still funny:

Quote from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cheese
Very early in its history, American cheese was only white in color—as it was made from a blend of cheeses (most often including cheddar cheese) which were originally only white. However, the later versions are often a yellow hue due to the addition of annatto, a sweet and nutty seasoning added to cheddar and to colby so that by the late 1800s American cheese was often simply called "yellow cheese."

I remember my mom always bought the white variety, but then I went to a friend's house for dinner, and they had yellow.  After that, I told my mom I wanted the yellow cheese.  On a related note, I also told her I liked the green food called something sounding like "eewy" that I tried at my friend's house, so could we grow it in our garden?  "Zucchini?"  Sure!  Turns out that it was "kiwi" that I liked.

Magilla

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Re: Baby carrots and other convienences
« Reply #76 on: January 27, 2016, 02:18:49 PM »
Quote
Quote

Clearly you are not cheese people if you think natural cheese does not come in many colors including "orange".

Yeah, seriously!  Though I think gooki was probably talking about the "American cheese" processed cheese slices that come in white or orange/yellow.

Interestingly enough, one day I found out that true American Cheese is really only yellow/orange and the white variety is actually bleached to get it to be white because some people didn't like yellow/orange cheese.  I think my brain nearly imploded when I heard that there are enough ridiculously picky eaters in this country for that to be a thing.

From wikipedia, it's the reverse, but still funny:

Quote from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cheese
Very early in its history, American cheese was only white in color—as it was made from a blend of cheeses (most often including cheddar cheese) which were originally only white. However, the later versions are often a yellow hue due to the addition of annatto, a sweet and nutty seasoning added to cheddar and to colby so that by the late 1800s American cheese was often simply called "yellow cheese."

I remember my mom always bought the white variety, but then I went to a friend's house for dinner, and they had yellow.  After that, I told my mom I wanted the yellow cheese.  On a related note, I also told her I liked the green food called something sounding like "eewy" that I tried at my friend's house, so could we grow it in our garden?  "Zucchini?"  Sure!  Turns out that it was "kiwi" that I liked.

Hmm interesting.  I never researched it myself, how I "found out" was that I was in WholeFoods once and somebody asked for white American cheese and the person behind the counter said they don't carry it because it's bleached.  Guess I should know better than to have taken something like that at face value.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!