By Mike Thayer
I do a lot of cooking, not only do I love to do it, but I value the ability to control the ingredients with the goal of eating healthier - but still deliciously - in mind. I appreciate the art and skill of cooking so much I've got a category dedicated to it here on BachelorontheCheap.com and I've written a grilling cook book.
Spices and seasonings (a mixture of several flavoring components) are crucial to preparing not just good, but great food. Two of my go-to basic spices are garlic powder and onion powder. Cooking with fresh is usually best, but garlic and onion in granulated, minced and powder forms are great alternatives when fresh isn't available or practical. They can also be a nice add in complimenting fresh ingredients and since I do a lot of grilling and smoking, they're essential in creating dry rubs and marinades.
Tip: If you don't do a whole lot of cooking but like having a decent collection of spices and dried herbs on hand for when you do cook, buy small. Buying large containers and/or in bulk may save you some money (a lower cost per ounce), but if you don't use that spice or herb often enough, it's going to lose its potency as the jar/jug collects dust. Yes, even spices have expiration dates, but its not that they all go bad as in spoil, they simply lose flavor and may not react like they should in recipes.
For the basics like garlic and onion powders, a brand I trust to have in my spice cabinet is Stone Mill. It's an Aldi brand. In performance it's every bit as good as the name brands such as McCormick or Spice Islands, it's just as potent, just as robust, blooms with flavor just as well as the "top shelf" stuff. For those of you who live in Valley Center, that means you don't have to shake/spoon more of it in a recipe to get the same result. And when you hear somebody claim McCormick or Spice Islands is "better" than a discount brand.... It's not because they actually know from comparison, it's because McCormick, Spice Islands or something other is what they learned to cook with, OR, they buy name brands for the sake of name brands, it's a Gucci bag thing for them.
Costing me just $0.97 each at Aldi, I'm giving both the Stone Mill Garlic Powder and the Stone Mill Onion Powder 5 out of 5 Bachelor on the Cheap stars. They're flavorful and perform every bit as well as the name brands do. Stone Mill powders are straight forward too, they don't include any fillers or clump up when stored properly like some discount brands do. In a cost comparison vs. the mainstream grocery store, compare the Stone Mill price to McCormick and Spice Islands. I saved $6.12 buying Stone Mill rather than McCormick, kept a whopping $7.72 in my pocket vs. buying Spice Islands and you appreciate discount/store brands, saved $2.02 over Kroger.
With all the grilling and cooking I do, especially in creating my own dry rubs and seasoning blends, I used to buy spices such as garlic and onion powders in bulk. I no longer do. I simply buy up the Stone Mill in volume. I can buy 8 little jars of Stone Mill Garlic Powder for a total of $7.76, giving me almost 25 ounces of powder for example. I pay less and get more spice vs. buying an 18 - 21 ounce jug of garlic powder at a Wholesale Club for around $10.
There's no need to overspend on basic spices!
$pend Wisely My Friends...