Prices keep climbing, so I’m trying to pick my battles in the supermarket. Which items do you refuse to cheap out on, and why? Taste, health, longevity, peace of mind… I’d love to hear what’s worth the few extra dollars for you.

For me, it’s honey from local beekeepers—supermarket brands locally are known to sell fake or adulterated sugar syrup as honey.

  • Tudsamfa@lemmy.world
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    4 hours ago

    For purely economic reasons, the less often I need to buy it, the more I allow myself to splurge.

    So vegetables and my go to drink I consume everyday are bought the absolute cheapest, but that spice blend for those veggies lasts me months so I really don’t care if there’s a cheaper alternative.

    Of course, expensiveness is measured per kg/litre, paying a bit more up front is always worth it if it means a lower price per kg (if you can consume it before it goes bad).

    • LadyButterflyshe/her@lazysoci.al
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      2 hours ago

      Spices are a great investment! Small independent Asian stores often have amazing ones which last way longer that supermarket ones. I don’t have any shops like that near me so I buy on amazon and have found great ones there

    • RamenJunkie@midwest.social
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      3 hours ago

      Yeah, if we end up with cheap trash bags by mistake I find the rim always rips apart when I go to take out the trash and I end up using a second trash bag anyway.

  • metallic_substance@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    Coffee. It’s something that I refuse to compromise on. It may be especially important to me because I like to drink it black. If it doesn’t taste great without adding anything to it, it’s not with drinking at all in my opinion.

    • tiramichu@sh.itjust.works
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      5 hours ago

      I’m two ways about this.

      In recent years I’ve become quite a coffee lover. I’ve experimented with a lot of brewing methods, and got into small batch beans from independent roasters, with interesting qualities like being aged in whisky barrels (that one tastes and smells sooo good)

      At the same time though I grew up in a family where the only coffee my parents ever drank was instant - a teaspoon of granules with some hot water and milk and maybe sugar. When I go over there to visit that’s what I’ll get, and I’m not going to turn my nose up at it. In some ways it’s got that taste of nostalgia lol.

      • anon6789@lemmy.world
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        2 hours ago

        I didn’t drink coffee for half my life because I was usually always around burnt, bottom tier coffee.

        After moving largely away from whiskies and runs due to medicine I was on, I wanted a complex beverage to fill that void and gave some decent coffee a shot. It was of course worlds beyond most of what I’ve had anywhere else, and now I try different single origins every month.

        But the real wild thing, is now I apply that tasting ability I’ve developed to diner coffee, and now the particular funk of a Waffle House cup gives me the memories of old road trips. The coffee from the local diner reminds me I’m home. Now that I can pick out one cup of low grade from another, it lets me appreciate the times I do go low on coffee.

        Your comment made me think of the semi-famous Tom Petty coffee story from Rolling Stone. In searching for the article, I saw something claiming his daughters refuted the claims of his brand of choice, though still others claimed Mr Petty had personally verified it with them, so who’s to say for sure at this point. But anyone who likes coffee, Tom Petty, or some food storytelling should like this tale of a man and his quest for the perfect cup. For anyone that hasn’t read the story, I really enjoy it and think it’s a fun read and a reminder of simple joys in life.

        • tiramichu@sh.itjust.works
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          1 hour ago

          The coffee story is quite a long way in, but it was an interesting read, thanks.

          I guess the message is, things aren’t always good because they are objectively good. Sometimes things are good because of when we had them, and who we enjoyed them with. And that’s definitely true.

          • anon6789@lemmy.world
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            31 minutes ago

            It does meander a bit, as it’s more a reflection of the author’s history with Petty on the one year anniversary of his passing that just happens to eventually settle on a tale about coffee perfection.

            I like it overall as a tale about simple pleasures and what will people remember most about us after we’re gone rather than a guide on how to achieve the perfect cup. I have reservations about if I’d agree that was the best cup ever if I had been there with them, but that was what reminded me of the story while I was reading about you having a mug of instant coffee with your family. 😊

  • smiletolerantly@awful.systems
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    9 hours ago

    Mozzarella (talking about the balls of fresh mozzarella you get sealed in with their brine).

    Can’t do store brand anymore after having tried Galbani.

      • smiletolerantly@awful.systems
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        8 hours ago

        I mean, yea. But it is also easy to buy them, they’re everywhere and fairly cheap. The Galbani one is also just 1€ or so more expensive.

        To be clear, making your own is fantastic, it’s just not anything I’d want to do 2x/week

  • something_random_tho@lemmy.world
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    11 hours ago

    Farmer’s market tomatoes. I went through my whole life thinking I hated tomatoes. Turns out, I hate grainy tomatoes that taste like nothing, and real tomatoes grown nearby and picked ripe are wonderful.

    • acockworkorange@mander.xyz
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      4 hours ago

      Tomatoes are also quite easy to grow in the summer and are very prolific.

      Also in season are strawberries. The ones I’ve got are small and don’t look good, but the taste is superb.

      Both can be grown potted, and the strawberries are quite hardy.

      • RamenJunkie@midwest.social
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        3 hours ago

        Yeah, even just growing them are better. I thought I hated Cherry Tomatoes, but then I had some off my own plant and they taste so good.

        • acockworkorange@mander.xyz
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          3 hours ago

          Oh, home grown fruits will always taste better because you can let them ripen on the plant, allowing for full flavor development. There are cultivar variations too.

          Seasonings are another crop that you can pot and even have on a windowsill in a tiny apartment. Parsley, basil, and oregano grow well in the same pot. Scallions / chives and Rosemary also pot well together.

    • Evil_Shrubbery@lemm.ee
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      4 hours ago

      Yeah, this, but all the things, especially veggies.

      The same plant can basically feel like an entirely different species.

      Most of the time it just grew up properly (not maximising growth rate to lower the costs).

  • squinky@sh.itjust.works
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    11 hours ago

    Eggs. I bought the expensive ones once just for laughs and they taste great without the weird funk. Now I have my own chickens, and the eggs are better than anything in the store. It’s probably more expensive though!

    Carrots and celery I always buy organic because they seem to take on the flavor of whatever they were watered with. It makes a difference there for me.

    And tortillas, I get the local boutique ones instead of the national mass market ones. Big difference there.

    • IsThisAnAI@lemmy.world
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      4 hours ago

      The difference in eggs is a placebo at best.

      I can tuck homemade tortillas though, definitely worth it.

      • baggachipz@sh.itjust.works
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        6 hours ago

        I used to have chickens. Between the cost of the coop, the feed, medicine, etc. I’d say each egg cost us about $5. 🙂

        A little exaggeration, but not much. The eggs were really good though, and they make for cute stupid pets.

      • Aussiemandeus@aussie.zone
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        10 hours ago

        We just got chickens, im not sure they’re cheaper then buying but certainly more available.

        I do have a constant fight with hawks though trying to eat them

          • squinky@sh.itjust.works
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            2 hours ago

            We live somewhere with a ton of hawks and coyotes. Our coop was our quarantine project so we kind of overdid it. It’s 8-by-16-feet, surrounded on the sides and bottom with heavy gauge hardware cloth and a metal roof. Nothing can get into it.

            The run, on the other hand, is about 30 feet along one side, chicken wire and covered with bird netting. We lost two of our girls when someone made a mistake and locked them outside in the run. A fox dug under and took them. I added a skirt along the ground to stop anything digging in but it’s not as good as the coop itself

            • baggachipz@sh.itjust.works
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              2 hours ago

              That’s exactly what happened to us. The coop was a fortress, but a fox dug into the run and it was a crime scene. Chickens need a big run but damn it’s tough to keep them safe. :(

  • remon@ani.social
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    10 hours ago

    All of them really. Once I find a brand I like, I’ll stick with it. I’m usually not paying attention to prices anyway. I’ll even go to another country just so I can get the proper brand of tomato paste. (It’s not that bad, just around 15km away).

  • CobblerScholar@lemmy.world
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    14 hours ago

    Butter, life is too damn short to cook with and eat shitty butter.

    Also anything that goes between me and the ground, my bed, my shoes, and my tires.

    • doc@fedia.io
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      14 hours ago

      What grocery items are always worth the extra

      butter … my bed, my shoes, and my tires

      Hello, fellow Costco shopper.

      • pikmeir@lemmy.world
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        12 hours ago

        Costco has sub par service at their tire center, but good prices. Recommend using their prices to price match at a regular store with better service to get the best of both worlds.

        • Sanguine@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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          51 minutes ago

          Maybe your warehouse has issues but Costco tire center is top tier

          Edit: also forgot to mention their tires come with warranties, free rotations, tps sensors are super cheap compares to the dealership, and they often have other incentives on top of all that.

    • tyrant@lemmy.world
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      13 hours ago

      Not grocery but my opinion is anything that interacts with the world around you. Glasses, shoes, gloves, headphones should all be top quality for comfort and their respective task

    • BertramDitore@lemmy.zip
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      13 hours ago

      I agree with every part of this.

      A while back I was standing in the butter section, waiting for a couple to move so I could grab my pricey-but-worth-it butter, and overheard them talking about how butter is a scam and it all tastes the same no matter what. I had to hold back a chuckle. They of course grabbed the cheapest option and went about their lives in complete ignorance of the glory of high quality butter.

      I still wonder if I should have said something to encourage them to try a better butter, but they talked about it with such blind confidence that I didn’t feel right about it at the time.

      • parody@lemmings.world
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        10 hours ago

        Ever double blinded yourself with Kerrygold (or w/e) vs. regular stuff? Always try to do this and surprise myself with some products

    • ImplyingImplications@lemmy.ca
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      13 hours ago

      While I agree, the price difference between “maple syrup” (maple flavoured corn syrup) and maple syrup is way more than $5. A bottle of genuine maple syrup is $20+.

      • Artyom@lemm.ee
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        12 hours ago

        It’s not called maple syrup if it’s not real maple syrup. They’ll call it maple flavored syrup, pancake syrup, but never maple syrup.

      • You can get real maple syrup in the states for around $15 (and that’s honestly NYC pricing). It’s not corn syrup, but it’s also not Canadian maple syrup.

        But one of my favorite things about Canada absolutely is the abundance of maple syrup here. Maple syrup candies are my favs.

    • Asafum@feddit.nl
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      13 hours ago

      Second this. I even put it in coffee instead of just sugar. It’s so good!

      I always make cold brew so I can’t say how it is with “regular” hot coffee lol

  • pack@sh.itjust.works
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    14 hours ago

    I’m going to sound like a hater, but the food in season and local is what you should be eating, and that will always be the cheapest. If you’re talking processed food brands and shit in boxes in the middle of the store, I’d argue none of it is worth the extra money, its all bad for you, stop. That said, the frozen arby’s curley fries are bomb, and no one does cheesey things like cheetos or smartfood.

    • TheWeirdestCunt@lemmy.today
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      14 hours ago

      I’ve seen a few people saying that it’s cheaper to buy stuff that’s in season over the years but I’ve never seen prices drop on in season stuff before. Idk if it’s just a thing where I am but the supermarkets seem to just pocket the difference and leave the prices the same year round.

      • Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works
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        10 hours ago

        You’ll still probably get better flavors when things are in season locally. Also, you’ll need to check, but often the frozen version of produce is cheaper when the fresh version is in season, and frozen is easy to stock up on.

      • Zwuzelmaus@feddit.org
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        36 minutes ago

        I’ve never seen prices drop on in season stuff

        That means you forgot the ‘local’ part. Cheapest supermarket get their stuff from the cheapest sources worldwide (= lowest quality as well, worldwide)

        You really have to look if you want to buy local, but then it’s worth it.

    • DominusOfMegadeus@sh.itjust.works
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      14 hours ago

      Have to disagree on the last point. I greatly prefer Aldi Cheese Curls and Market Basket Cheese Crunches. Except the jalapeño cheddar flavor. Those slap.