Shopping Discussion

Creating a Grocery Meat Cheat Sheet

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  • Aug 13th, 2017 4:48 pm
Member
Dec 2, 2014
458 posts
186 upvotes
London, ON

Creating a Grocery Meat Cheat Sheet

I’ve decided I want to make a “cheat sheet” I can share with my wife, family and friends to help them save money on buying meat at the grocery store. I was wondering if the RFD community wanted to crowdsource this with me?

I’ve started working backwards by adding in the lowest price per pound I’ve personally seen a particular cut at as a way to give a baseline for someone not as familiar with buying meat. The idea isn’t to only seek out the lowest price possible but to help give someone a ballpark range that they should be looking for.

I’ll continue to work on this and eventually update the OP with some nicely formatted PDF’s for anyone to use. If you’d like to contribute and help me fill out the list I’ve created a Google sheet that anyone with the link can edit. Just add in the prices and feel free to add in additional cuts.

I’ve also left fish entirely unprotected if anyone wants to chip away at that.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing

I’ll also include a list just below. You can either quote me, and change the dollar values, or just tell me what you’d pay per pound for a specific cut and I’ll include them in my averages for the final PDF. Also please feel free to add fish/shellfish in any responses.

Thanks everyone.

EDIT #1: Added additional items listed in thread, removed protection so the community can add comments/make changes (I have a backup in case anyone nefarious deletes it), and changed fish to price per 100 grams. I've also spoken with someone about adding additional sheets for dairy, produce, etc...


Beef
  • Chuck Roast
  • Chuck Blade Steak
  • Rib Roast - $5.77
  • Rib Steak
  • Top Loin Steak
  • T-Bone Steak
  • Beef Tenderloin (whole) - $8.99
  • Sirloin Steak - $4.97
  • Tip Steak
  • Tip Roast
  • Round Steak
  • Round Roast
  • Ground Beef (Regular) - $1.99

Chicken
  • Whole Chicken - $1.97
  • Boneless/Skinless Chicken Breasts
  • Bone-in Chicken Breasts
  • Boneless/Skinless Chicken Thighs
  • Bone-in Chicken Thighs
  • Boneless/Skinless Drumsticks
  • Bone-in Drumsticks
  • Chicken Wings
  • Ground Chicken

Pork
  • Ham (cooked)
  • Tenderloin - $2.88
  • Picnic Shoulder
  • Cottage Roll
  • Chops
  • Spareribs
  • Steak
  • Ground Pork

Lamb
  • Shoulder
  • Rack
  • Ribs
  • Bone-In Leg - $4.44
  • Boneless Leg
  • Shank
  • Chops
Last edited by StarScream1337 on Jan 1st, 2017 5:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
261 replies
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,,,
Last edited by magoot on Jan 1st, 2017 6:03 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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You have to split your rib roast category into cap on and cap off at the very least. Bone in cap on also shows up. The $4.99/lb Metro stuff was cap on, I remember. The $5.77/lb I think was Loblaws and was cap off.

Sirloin Tip Roast goes for $3.99 or so and steaks are a bit more.

Round roast, there was a sale for some at $.99/lb but a couple weeks earlier it was $2.47/lb and this was the leftover. So the best flyer price is $2.47 and the best store-specific sale is $.99

Ground beef, I buy those plastic 4 x 400g logs...No Frills had them on for $6 this year which is $1.71/lb (They are usually $10/bag or $2.86/lb) but I would just say $1.99, close enough

Boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs are usually $3.99/lb on sale these days and I didn't personally get a better deal all year (and I was looking!)

Fresh chicken wings bottom out at $3.99 IMO but I got frozen seasoned (I mean brined not breaded) for $1.99/lb this year

Forgot pork loin roast - $1.44/lb was the best this year

Pork back or side ribs, I agree, $1.99/lb

Whole bone in ham best price this year was $1.47 (last year it was under $1, ham and bacon and pork prices swing a lot year to year)

Lamb you have to watch the Metro flyer for their NZ lamb deals - $2.99/lb bone in shoulder chops at least.
Member
Dec 2, 2014
458 posts
186 upvotes
London, ON
lecale wrote: Ground beef, I buy those plastic 4 x 400g logs...No Frills had them on for $6 this year which is $1.71/lb (They are usually $10/bag or $2.86/lb) but I would just say $1.99, close enough
Awesome Lecale thanks for the help. This may be off-topic, considering I'm fixated on price, but do you ever find the meat in those tubes to be overground? I've had a few that came out like paste which isn't what you want when making burgers or in chilli so I'm wondering if it's the brand I've been choosing.
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StarScream1337 wrote: Awesome Lecale thanks for the help. This may be off-topic, considering I'm fixated on price, but do you ever find the meat in those tubes to be overground? I've had a few that came out like paste which isn't what you want when making burgers or in chilli so I'm wondering if it's the brand I've been choosing.
No, not your imagination/brand, they are absolutely fine like paste, but my other likes his food minced real small like a Pomeranian.
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Oh, another one for you: chicken legs back attached (drumstick + thigh + back, also called a Maryland) $.79/lb to $.99/lb
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How about just tracking the lowest-seen prices starting in 2017?

I looked at the flyers upcoming Jan 5 and these are all stock-up deals:

Walmart Sirloin tip roast $2.97/lb ( a dollar cheaper than lower)

No Frills Pork Side Ribs $1.88/lb ($.10 lower)

No Frills Seaquest Basa fillets 400g $2.88 ($3.27/lb)

Food Basics Selection IQF cod fillets 400g $3.88 ($4.40/lb)

RCSS Whole pork leg $.98/lb
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Aug 22, 2006
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It's a neat concept, but meat (especially beef) varies by season.
We're in a low season right now with $5-6/lb strips.
When summer rolls around you're looking at more like $12/lb.
I mean... technically you could spit it into Summer/Winter but that's a lot more work.

Also maybe I'm a snob but I won't buy ground meat anywhere but Cotsco.
Especially not Asian grocery stores. You pay less but that's because it's half cut with ice.
But even Loblaws compared to Costco sucks.
Poultry too. Also fish. Especially shrimp.
Actually there's really not too much I buy at Loblaws in terms of meat.
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death_hawk wrote: It's a neat concept, but meat (especially beef) varies by season.
We're in a low season right now with $5-6/lb strips.
When summer rolls around you're looking at more like $12/lb.
I mean... technically you could spit it into Summer/Winter but that's a lot more work.

Also maybe I'm a snob but I won't buy ground meat anywhere but Cotsco.
Especially not Asian grocery stores. You pay less but that's because it's half cut with ice.
But even Loblaws compared to Costco sucks.
Poultry too. Also fish. Especially shrimp.
Actually there's really not too much I buy at Loblaws in terms of meat.
Costco's ground beef really is on another level and worth the price of admission. They use really high quality beef in their chuck compared to the competition.

Once you start eating high quality meats from places like Costco and your local butcher (everyone should spend time looking around for one). I rather spend more to get better graded meats.
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GhostBusters wrote: Costco's ground beef really is on another level and worth the price of admission. They use really high quality beef in their chuck compared to the competition.

Once you start eating high quality meats from places like Costco and your local butcher (everyone should spend time looking around for one). I rather spend more to get better graded meats.
I use less that 12 lbs ground beef a year, and when I do use it it's in something spiced and sauced (lasagne, chili) to the point I could be eating Calgary Zoo animals and I wouldn't know.

I tend to cook more meat in recipes than slab of meat, pile of starch and a veg. If I were focusing on a slab of meat with salt and pepper, I would care more. In a recipe, where the meat is alt least dressed up a bit more, I just need something good enough to do the job.

Depends on your eating style, anyway.
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Nice list.
Fish is priced per 100g and not per pound (at least everywhere I buy it here in BC), so I think it would make sense to keep that in your chart. You can add this:

Wild sockeye salmon fillets $1.79/100g

You mentioned that the fish section in your list is unlocked, but I couldn't edit it.
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lecale wrote: I use less that 12 lbs ground beef a year, and when I do use it it's in something spiced and sauced (lasagne, chili) to the point I could be eating Calgary Zoo animals and I wouldn't know.

I tend to cook more meat in recipes than slab of meat, pile of starch and a veg. If I were focusing on a slab of meat with salt and pepper, I would care more. In a recipe, where the meat is alt least dressed up a bit more, I just need something good enough to do the job.

Depends on your eating style, anyway.
So your saying quality of ingredients don't matter?

Quality of meat used always matters. Same with other ingredients.
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GhostBusters wrote: So your saying quality of ingredients don't matter?

Quality of meat used always matters. Same with other ingredients.
If I have a tomato with a black spot I will carve that out, chop it up, and throw it in what I am making. Limp celery? Doesn't really matter once it's cooked or diced. Basket of bruised and moulding overripe peaches? Cut off the bad bits and make the best damn peak-of-ripeness peach pie you have ever had. And so on.

I think quality is over-hyped. All of the foods in Canada are excellent quality: we are lucky. There is no reason to believe that you need eat peak quality food at all times. I am very happy with regular quality.
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EDIT: Stupid quote system. BRB
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Nope. That's why I'm on the internet arguing with strangers. If I had anything better to do I'd probably be doing it.
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I live with a guy who is like the princess and the pea, he is really fussy and sensitive when it comes to food. There is no way he will eat a roast from Walmart. I still want to know about the Walmart sales though so I can see which way meat is trending. Whether you buy the good stuff or the fancy stuff, it looks like beef continues to go down for 2017.

If you see the Walmart beef for $2.97/lb you should be able to add a couple dollars and extrapolate a reasonable price for AAA.

I do not stick to buying at the bottom end, but I want to know where it is.
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May 28, 2012
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GhostBusters wrote: So your saying quality of ingredients don't matter?

Quality of meat used always matters. Same with other ingredients.
Since I've been buying most of my pork, fish and beef from Costco, I've had a lot less waste. There's no point in getting a deal if it's a subpar product and you end up throwing most of it out. Costco's ground beef cooks differently from other places (not just the pink paste tube stuff), there is a lot less liquid that cooks out of it.
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lecale wrote: I use less that 12 lbs ground beef a year, and when I do use it it's in something spiced and sauced (lasagne, chili) to the point I could be eating Calgary Zoo animals and I wouldn't know.
In something wet it's not so bad because the water isn't weird.
But when you're "featuring" the ground meat (even if it's heavily spiced) the wrong texture just throws off the dish.

In a recipe, where the meat is alt least dressed up a bit more, I just need something good enough to do the job.
That's the thing. It's NOT good enough to do the job, unless the job is wet.
I tried making wontons and sausage once Loblaws ground meats and it came out.... weird.
I'm not even going to get into Asian ground meats because it was inedible.
In this very specific case, if I can't grind my own then I'm buying from Costco.

Not only is ground pork actually cheaper but it's actually *GASP* pork.
Ground beef I think is fairly close in price but it looks 100X better than Loblaws.
Kiraly wrote: Nice list.
Fish is priced per 100g and not per pound (at least everywhere I buy it here in BC)
While i usually support the metric system, in cooking I still prefer imperial.
I mean... it's trivial to convert from 100g to lbs but not so much the other way (at least for those bad at math)
Also a lot of Asian markets still price per pound and let's face it, while they have terrible meat, they usually have amazing fish.


lecale wrote: If I have a tomato with a black spot I will carve that out, chop it up, and throw it in what I am making. Limp celery? Doesn't really matter once it's cooked or diced. Basket of bruised and moulding overripe peaches? Cut off the bad bits and make the best damn peak-of-ripeness peach pie you have ever had. And so on.

I think quality is over-hyped. All of the foods in Canada are excellent quality: we are lucky. There is no reason to believe that you need eat peak quality food at all times. I am very happy with regular quality.

I agree with this too.
But only when it's at a certain minimum.
Produce for example I don't need perfectly shaped specimens. But that's what you pay for at a "premium" supermarket.
As long as it's not completely fuzzy I think it's fine.

But when you start doctoring things (eg ice to ground meat, and yes I know I come back to that one a lot) that's where I have issues. Same with phosphate meats.
If it's as nature intended, I'll take it.
Do you not have anything else to do rather than argue with strangers on the internet
Nope. That's why I'm on the internet arguing with strangers. If I had anything better to do I'd probably be doing it.
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Mars2012 wrote: Since I've been buying most of my pork, fish and beef from Costco, I've had a lot less waste. There's no point in getting a deal if it's a subpar product and you end up throwing most of it out.
To be fair, this is a point AGAINST costco too because unless you're a family of 12, you're not eating 5lbs of ground meat before it goes fuzzy.
That is unless you have a vacuum sealer.
But even then I'm usually against freezing meat at home.
Costco's ground beef cooks differently from other places (not just the pink paste tube stuff), there is a lot less liquid that cooks out of it.
That's because a lot less liquid goes INTO it.
The reason Asian markets can sell ground meat for so cheap is because they cut it with ice.
So you start with more water.
It's the same reason that phosphate chicken and shrimp can't be overcooked. Water chemically bound with phosphate to the protein.
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death_hawk wrote: That's the thing. It's NOT good enough to do the job, unless the job is wet.
I tried making wontons and sausage once Loblaws ground meats and it came out.... weird.
I'm not even going to get into Asian ground meats because it was inedible.
In this very specific case, if I can't grind my own then I'm buying from Costco.

Not only is ground pork actually cheaper but it's actually *GASP* pork.
Ground beef I think is fairly close in price but it looks 100X better than Loblaws.
Well you are cooking at a level where you want to control the detail down to the meat:fat ratio and the grind. And you are more meat-centric than me.

A proper sausage is 25-30% fat by weight and I don't think the supermarket offers something that fatty in ground pork.

The cream-of-ground-beef in a tube makes an excellent smooth sandwich deli meat style meatloaf that slices up real nice. It gets a bare pass in all other applications, but I'm still a fan. I like cutting it open and wringing it out of the tube: it reminds me of doing Pillsbury as a kid ;)
death_hawk wrote: While i usually support the metric system, in cooking I still prefer imperial.
I mean... it's trivial to convert from 100g to lbs but not so much the other way (at least for those bad at math)
I use a lot of metric in baking and canning recipes. Pretty well all else, I think in imperial. The units are all a meaningful size, and I can visualize the amounts much better.
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lecale wrote: Well you are cooking at a level where you want to control the detail down to the meat:fat ratio and the grind.
That's true. I actually grind my own fat to add to the ratio for sausage.
However, the base meat product still has a large effect on the final product.
And you are more meat-centric than me.
That's also very true. I'm a meat snob.
Actually a food snob.
A proper sausage is 25-30% fat by weight and I don't think the supermarket offers something that fatty in ground pork.
I'm not sure what the supermarket average is (it wouldn't shock me if regular was that high) but Costco is I'm fairly certain much leaner.
Either way I just add my own fat because grinding a pound of fat for 10lbs of sausage is trivial.
It's the grinding the 10lbs of pork that's the pain.
The cream-of-ground-beef in a tube makes an excellent smooth sandwich deli meat style meatloaf that slices up real nice. It gets a bare pass in all other applications, but I'm still a fan. I like cutting it open and wringing it out of the tube: it reminds me of doing Pillsbury as a kid ;)
I mean... the opaque tube means it that could very well contain forcemeat.
I don't recall what the texture is actually like since I haven't purchased those in quite a while.

I use a lot of metric in baking and canning recipes. Pretty well all else, I think in imperial. The units are all a meaningful size, and I can visualize the amounts much better.
Oh I forgot about that.
I was more meaning price per unit and temperature.
180C is just.... weird for some reason.

But all my recipes are metric. And by weight. Precise weights too. I have a "drug" scale accurate down to 0.01g for spices.
Because using every single measuring device in the building sucks when I have a scale and a tare function.
Do you not have anything else to do rather than argue with strangers on the internet
Nope. That's why I'm on the internet arguing with strangers. If I had anything better to do I'd probably be doing it.

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