'Fresh' food storage questions?

Sojiita · November 14th, 2007, 10:03 PM

I am going to go to the store tomorrow and their are some really good buys on some 'fresh' food.

Potatoes at only 9.9 cents a pound ($.99 for a ten pound bag)
Sweet Potatoes at 39 cents a pound
butter quarters (4 sticks like you normally get) $1.59 a pound.

I was thinking of getting:

- at least 3 of the ten lb bags of potatoes (I love them and they are a cheap staple of my diet)

-at least 5 pounds of the sweet potatoes.

-at least 3 of the butters.

this would be less than $10.00 total. I was wondering how long the potatoes would last stored in the fridge, also the sweet potatoes..how long would they last in the fridge? Also I was going to just freeze 2 of the butters. I have done this before and it has not been a problem. Is it safe?

I also tend to buy bread on sale and freeze it as well-never had any problems. Hell buying bread at a dollar a loaf, and peanut butter at a dollar a jar can feed me for quite a while in lean $$$ times ya know?

*potatoes, sweet potatoes, and peanut butter are all things I love and are actually very nutritious and cheap...they are staples along with bread and rice, pasta, and beans for me.

Algernon · November 14th, 2007, 10:30 PM

The first thing that came to my mind is that you could spend an afternoon preparing the pototoes how you want them and then freeze the results. I have frozen mashed potatoes before with little effect on them. You could also chop them up into fries or cubes and freeze them.

Freezing butter isn't a big deal at all, either. May I ask where these deals are??? (I know I live relatively close to you)

A*O · November 14th, 2007, 10:33 PM

You can freeze butter without any problem.
Potatoes can be tricky to store longterm as they tend to sprout or turn green (poisonous). I know you have to keep them in a cool, dark, dry, well ventilated place. Or like Algernon says, prepare them and then freeze?

Sojiita · November 15th, 2007, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Algernon

The first thing that came to my mind is that you could spend an afternoon preparing the pototoes how you want them and then freeze the results. I have frozen mashed potatoes before with little effect on them. You could also chop them up into fries or cubes and freeze them.

Freezing butter isn't a big deal at all, either. May I ask where these deals are??? (I know I live relatively close to you)

At different places.. Meijer for one(sweet potatoes)..and Aldi's for the other two. (I really do not mind Aldi's. They are small and have a limited selection, but I have gotten potatoes there before and was satisfied with them.) There is an Aldi's, a Meijer, and a Kroger not far off the very next freeway exit from me, so pretty convenient, and if I just shop the sales between the three I can save some considerable $$$.

(Either Meijer or Kroger have the peanut butter and bread for a dollar each.)

I have had problems with freezing potatoes before(not mashed though). I have made frozen dinners with potatoes and frozen them..and it seems to totally ruin the texture. Even with small potato pieces they just are not 'the same'. same thing with beef stews or vegetable soups-the potatoes seem to lose their texture and seem to take the freezing badly.

Just Kill Me · November 15th, 2007, 11:55 AM

Potatoes are 80% water... http://www.healthypotato.com/downloa...ageandCare.pdf

Sojiita · November 15th, 2007, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Just Kill Me

Potatoes are 80% water... http://www.healthypotato.com/downloa...ageandCare.pdf

yeah that site said not to freeze them. I think it would be ok with mashed though. I think I will keep them in the fridge..they seem to keep longer and I would not mind at all if they got a little sweeter like the site said.

also they had bread for 59 cents a loaf!

A*O · November 15th, 2007, 08:57 PM

I think if you partially or fully cook the potatoes it's OK? It's what they do with oven cook fries and other commercially frozen potato products. I've frozen mashed potatoes on cottage pies, etc, and they thawed out just fine.

Sojiita · November 15th, 2007, 09:27 PM

Well I think mashing them and then storing the leftover by freezing would be ok..they are already a mush anyways then so I do not think it would be a problem..plus they could be thawed out to make..fried potato pancakes! with a little onion...YUM!

When I have put them in soups and stews and frozen them they have been small enough to not be a problem when the texture is a little 'off'. I only bought two 10 lbs bags..by the time I use those up they will be on sale again anyway. They had some good prices. 95 cents for two lbs of spaghetti, macaroni, ect. is not bad-I got some of that too. Eggs their were about $1.60 which is way too much for me..I will not buy them if they are much over a dollar a dozen..they will probably be on sale next week anyway.

I will get the sweet potatoes at Meijer tomorrow. $2.00 for 5 pounds of them is not bad at all..and I heard somewhere that they are one of the most nutritious foods of all..and they are yummy too! Just a little cinnamon and just a touch of butter..mmmm good.

*My mother has been buying tomatoes and always overbuys and gives the rest to me(she does it even though I say not to..you know how mothers are..they have a mind of their own)..they keep an amazingly long time in the fridge-much longer than I would have thought. Still taste good too. Made a Zatar/tomato/olive oil sauce that was delicious on warm wheat bread.

pacific breeze · November 15th, 2007, 09:29 PM

I love yams, they are one of the wonder foods. I prefer them to sweet potatoes, tho, they have more flavor and aren't as sweet.

Sojiita · November 15th, 2007, 09:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pacific breeze

I love yams, they are one of the wonder foods. I prefer them to sweet potatoes, tho, they have more flavor and aren't as sweet.

Aren't yams a tropical food? I do not even know if I have ever had real 'yams' as opposed to sweet potatoes..what are the differences? I do not remember ever seeing real yams for sale here. They would probably be expensive anyway if they were. Dammit. It sucks seeing all of the good for you AND delicious stuff-and not being able to get it. Like looking longingly at the fresh exotic salads mixes..and then getting a box of 12 dozen chicken ramen noodle mixes.

pacific breeze · November 15th, 2007, 09:59 PM

If we can get them in Canada for a reasonable price, I'm sure they are available and even cheaper where you are. They are originally tropical, but they are grown in the States.

They are great baked with a little butter and nutmeg, and I like mashing them and baking them for special occasions. Garnet or Jewel yams are my faves.
Sweet Potato and Yam Differences

Algernon · November 15th, 2007, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sojiita

Like looking longingly at the fresh exotic salads mixes..and then getting a box of 12 dozen chicken ramen noodle mixes.

Lol! I've been there...I know exactly what you are saying.

Soj you are always finding fantastic deals on food. I'm jealous! Or maybe I'm just not looking hard enough..as I do have a Meijer and Aldi's. I need to start totally scouring the ads like I used to.

Sojiita · November 15th, 2007, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pacific breeze

If we can get them in Canada for a reasonable price, I'm sure they are available and even cheaper where you are. They are originally tropical, but they are grown in the States.

They are great baked with a little butter and nutmeg, and I like mashing them and baking them for special occasions. Garnet or Jewel yams are my faves.
Sweet Potato and Yam Differences

Huh. I looked at the link..I do not think I have ever had yams(just given the flesh description color of them). They must have them at the markets..I will have to check the Mexican/Central American area tomorrow at the store and see if there are any.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Algernon

Lol! I've been there...I know exactly what you are saying.

Soj you are always finding fantastic deals on food. I'm jealous! Or maybe I'm just not looking hard enough..as I do have a Meijer and Aldi's. I need to start totally scouring the ads like I used to.

The really sad thing is that I have actually *gasp* grown somewhat fond of Ramen noodles(or maybe it is just familiarity?). I just lie to myself and tell myself, "Hey it is nothing but chicken soup..it HAS to be good for you..it is chicken soup for Gawd's sake"

The Aldi potatoes look really good-especially for 99 cents for ten pounds. And the butter was $1.89-more than I had thought. Meijer has those sweet potatoes for 39 cents a pound.

Bwtween shopping at Aldi's and the sales at Meijer and Kroger, I do get pretty good deals. It pays to go to the Meijers and Krogers in the upper class neighborhoods though*-they always have TONS of marked down stuff that is about to expire(and can often, if not eaten right away, be frozen/cooked then frozen and be fine). I guess people there just do not want to be seen buying 'marked down' stuff? Their 'saving face' is my $$$ gain I guess.

*Same thing with Thrift stores..better to go to the ones near the upper class neighborhoods IMO. You can get perfectly new and unused stuff/clothing just because it had become 'last seasons" or became 'undesirable' for some other inane reason.

pacific breeze · November 16th, 2007, 12:05 AM

^^Agree about the thrift stores in the good neighbourhoods. I've gotten many a great score. A lot of people here move back and forth to Asia and other places and will often ditch clothes that they haven't worn, to the point that many of them still have price tags on them!

Flak · November 27th, 2007, 11:55 PM

I buy organic apples and potatoes from azurestandard since I live in the middle of nowhere. I buy the end rolls of newsprint at the local newspaper, and the kids and I individually wrap each apple and potato in the newsprint. Then we put them in the basement, but not next to each other. This has always worked very well for us. If an apple or potato starts sprouting or goes bad, it doesn't spread because it is in it's own little environment.

Don't freeze the potatoes unless they are mashed or cooked. My family went through a "hashbrown" phase for breakfast and I figured I would dice a ton of potatoes, freeze it, and not have to cut them every morning. Yeah...I pulled out black bag after black bag of diced potatoes.

Also, grocery sales run in 12 week cycles, so in about 12 weeks you'll have the loss leaders sales for your item. (Though some veggies and fruits are seasonal, but this works for most items.)