Shoestring Meals Budget friendly ideas for healthy eating

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Old 01-21-2013, 11:54 AM   #1  
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Default Aldis Shoppers

I buy most of my groceries at Aldi. Its a great store if you're on a budget and their quality is great. They have a line called Fit & Active that has plenty of healthy choices for low prices. Here are some of my favorites.

Organic Soy Milk - $2.49
Neufchâtel Cheese - $1.19
Double Chocolate Protein Meal Bars - $3.99
Chicken Broth - $1.49
Brown Rice - $1.29
L'Oven Fresh Sandwich Skinnys - $1.99
Eggs - $1.69
All Fish - $3.99 to $6.99
All Produce - Varies
Baking Supplies - Varies

Here are more Fit & Active choices.

What do you buy at Aldis?
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Old 01-21-2013, 01:07 PM   #2  
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Hi,
I have had mixed experiences with Aldi's. In my area there prices have gone up a lot recently and the produce is variable. It is out of the way for me to get there so I have not been there as much as I used to be.

What are the little oven sandwiches?

I do love the Artisian lettuce but you have to eat it right away or it goes bad.

I did get some nice foam pillows there and the bakeware was great.

I am going to try some of the things you listed.

Sheridan
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Old 01-21-2013, 01:59 PM   #3  
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@Sheridan
The Sandwich Skinnys are like name-brand Sandwich Thins, but better tasting. Nutrition Here

I buy them all the time. They're multigrain and a great value. Only 100 calories per bun and they cost less than 34 cents a piece.


I like the artisan lettuce as well. Ask the employees when they receive produce. My store receives it on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I believe. I've gotten some great produce at Aldis, but sometimes find better sales elsewhere. Seasonal fruits and veggies are always really cheap though.

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Old 01-21-2013, 04:31 PM   #4  
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Aldis has gotten a lot better over the years esp with their produce section! It being a bit out of the way, I don't get to shop there as much as I like but I do price match a lot of their produce at WM (WalMart) using their ads since WM is closer. I love price matching, lol. From Aldis, I usually get their produce, beans/legumes, dairy and sometimes meat if it seems to be a good deal.
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Old 01-21-2013, 04:36 PM   #5  
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I'm lucky. There is an Aldis less than a mile down the road from my apartment and one in the same area as both of my jobs. I love that store. The only things I don't buy there are peanut butter (gotta have JIF), canned soups (they don't have much variety), and mustard (gotta be Frenchs).

Other than that, I've never really found anything I wasn't happy with. Their breakfast sausage and margarine are so-so in my opinion, but still edible. Can't beat their prices on baking products and dairy though.
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Old 02-22-2013, 08:04 PM   #6  
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We moved back to the St. Louis area from Texas, where they didn't have Aldi's in late 2006 and it my favorite grocery for staples, especially! I am not very brand specific, so I have never really noticed a difference in that aspect. You can't beat their prices on milk, eggs and such and I love the Fit & Active line. I always stock up on my frozen fish fillets, chicken tenders etc. and love their "seasonal" offerings. You never know what bargain you might find!

The only downside is the selection....if you want pasta, you get 3 or 4 choices etc. so I do a Shop & Save run every couple of weeks to get what I can't find at Aldi's and the few name brand products I like. As for WM, I find that their groceries are not competitively priced at all any more. S & S and Aldi's are MUCH cheaper.
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Old 02-28-2013, 07:23 PM   #7  
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Lately they have been selling a lot of specialty cheeses that are half the price of one of the Midwest grocery chains, exact same product. It's awesome. I think their produce is usually pretty good, and also a lot cheaper than other places. 39 cent avocados? Yes, please! I guess anything under a dollar is great, because some stores around here charge almost 2 dollars for them. I don't buy much there are far as packaged food, as I am trying to avoid it, but a lot of that stuff is really good too.
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Old 03-01-2013, 04:03 AM   #8  
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I love Aldi's! Everything costs about half what it does at other stores. The artisan lettuce is cheap and delicious (and unlike Sheridan's experience, I find that it keeps for up to two weeks). All the produce is incredibly cheap (baby carrots for 49 cents, bella mushrooms for 99 cents, broccoli for $1.19) as is the dairy (like milk for around $2 instead of $4 at WalMart). The Greek yogurt is wonderful, the cheese selection is phenomenal, and the meats are always high quality. Oh, and cocoa almonds for only $3.99 and Green & Black's dark chocolate bars for only $1.49!

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Old 03-01-2013, 10:04 AM   #9  
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I buy some produce there, seasonal stuff and I also love the Artisan lettuce. It keeps well for me. I still have to shop at my local grocery as their produce selection is variable and there is always something else I need, but it is a great supplement, especially the baby bella mushrooms, the lettuce, and the BERRIES. Blackberries for .99 to 1.49 /package. I never bought blackberries before because they were 3 or 4 for a wee package. Now though: YUM.
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Old 03-12-2013, 08:01 AM   #10  
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Like others are saying, I love the specialty cheeses. I've picked up Jarlsberg and Dubliner there for very low prices. I'm a fan of the brick cheeses as well.
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Old 05-11-2013, 02:36 PM   #11  
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I love Aldi! I wish there was a closer one to me. I raid their hummus ($1.79!) and guacamole (1.99) all the time. Their produce is always fresh at my location, too.
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Old 05-29-2013, 04:04 PM   #12  
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I'm not a fan of the regular aldi cheese like cheddar or montery jack. However, they had pretty good mozzarella and gouda cheese. I don't like getting eggs there because i only like eggland's best, which is the same problem I have with most other stuff I buy there. I am very picky about the quality and much of aldi's stuff is like store brand quality. However, it's easy to save a lot of money there on things like the produce and frozen fish. The fish is a really good buy there. Their spices and produce are very limited, though.
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Old 05-29-2013, 11:18 PM   #13  
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Hi All,

Can anyone tell me what Dubliner cheese tastes like? I like the name for reasons unknown to me.

My experiences at Aldi's are that it is hit or miss but the hits are really good buys.

I have two in reasonable driving but not actually close and I find great variations between them which I was not expecting.

I think it is worthwwhile to go and try it out-there is always something.

Now those of you that have tried the fish-is it really tasty and not "fishy"? I have not had the courage to try it because I really like a good ,fresh frozen taste.See now it is not really fresh but a fresh taste for frozen fish-I hope that makes sense.(I have had a really rough day.

Good luck to all in the weight battle.

Sheridan
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Old 05-30-2013, 12:49 AM   #14  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sheridan View Post
Hi All,

Can anyone tell me what Dubliner cheese tastes like? I like the name for reasons unknown to me.

Sheridan
I have not tried dubliner cheese yet but after looking online- "...It has elements of a mature cheddar, sweet nutty tones of a Swiss and the piquant bite of aged Parmesan." Dang, sounds good!!! I'm definitely getting some to try ASAP!
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Old 05-30-2013, 01:27 AM   #15  
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Except for produce, I've never had any quality issues. In most cases, I've found the Aldi brands to be equal or superior to the top-selling brands.

Aldi also has a double money-back guarantee, so iff you're disappointed in a product, they will give you back twice what you paid. We returned a bottle because the seal was missing. They offered us the choice of double cash refund, two replacement bottles, or cash and replacement. We took two mustard.

They're sweet potato chips are awesome. So is their fish and shrimp.

For the most part, I only like mild fish, and what we've bought from Aldi has been every bit as good or better than the same type of fish bought anywhere else.

Our local store has dramatically improved the produce quality, selection, and price. We don't buy much produce there because (in the summer at least) the farmers market is cheaper and better, but there are exceptions. We bought some astonishingly high quality asparagus last trip for about 1/3 the price of the grocery store nearest our home (and their prices are lower than most).
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