Two $1 foods I found at Dollar Tree

[VanTrekker]

I'm a big fan of Dollar Tree (the "Everything's a Dollar" store).&nbsp; They have lots of stuff perfect for vandwellers and weekend campers.&nbsp; One of our Dollar Tree stores just expanded and added&nbsp;a frozen / refrigerated food section.&nbsp; I know&nbsp;many have seen this stuff before but for me&nbsp;these two items are&nbsp;a new find and worked out&nbsp;well for van cooking.&nbsp; On top of that, I could fit them into a healthy diet.<br /><br />Just a bit of background... I'm now exercising&nbsp;at least twice a day&nbsp;and&nbsp;have lost 54 lbs this year (just "dynamited" a stubborn plateau).&nbsp; I eat at least two high fiber / low carb wraps per day and like&nbsp;discovering new things to put in them.&nbsp; *** Note - the high fiber wraps have wheat gluten ***<br /><br /><br />Here are the latest finds...<br /><br />Ribeye steak (3.5 ounces)&nbsp;for... $1<br /><br /><img style="width: 167px; height: 119px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eRMX3MUALcc/TAiBIqdjZBI/AAAAAAAAAm4/aDCtV6L-K-E/s400/moving+001.JPG" alt="" width="167" height="101" /><br /><br />It's okay... Nothing thrilling but it is steak and portion controlled at that.<br /><br />About 1/3 of the 3.5 ounces is an added solution (basically salt water).&nbsp; By the time it cooks down it's more like 2 ounces of beef.&nbsp; For a main&nbsp;entree, you would need two or more packs.&nbsp; But for a breakfast wrap, one is fine.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />I also added egg substitute, a pinch of cheese, and some oyster mushrooms.&nbsp; Total calories for a nice sized breakfast wrap was &lt;300 and 14g fat, 12g fiber.&nbsp; Not bad considering just one of the teeny tiny little sausage burritos at McDonald's is 300 calories and 15g of fat.&nbsp; My burrito was&nbsp;twice as large and&nbsp;felt like it had&nbsp;enough fiber to plug up a channel of the Mississippi River!&nbsp;<br /><br /><br /><br /><img style="width: 235px; height: 116px;" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7175/6537949791_1a0fa5d949.jpg" alt="" width="237" height="181" /><br /><br />Tasty&nbsp;stuff but about 1/2 the thickness of the picture!<br /><br />Another good find was the lobster slider patties (made in the USA).&nbsp; I used both (pan fried w/ spray)&nbsp;in another breakfast wrap that&nbsp;egg substitute, onions,&nbsp;cheese, and some hot sauce.&nbsp; Total calories were about 230 calories, 10g fat,&nbsp;lots of protein, and once again, twice the size of a McDonald's sausage burrito...&nbsp; plus the 12 g fiber...&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />Thanks to Dollar Tree for helping&nbsp;provide convenient&nbsp;food options.&nbsp; <br /><br />V.T.<br />&nbsp;<br /><br /><br />

 

[katelyn]

also a big fan of the 1$ store, but be careful and look at what country it is from. a lot of the food is from china , bought frozen strawberries and they tasted like metal, found out later it was Made in China. guess it depends on what it is

 

[VanTrekker]

<p>Good point, Ricekilla.&nbsp; I try to avoid foreign, mystery companies that sell canned seafood.&nbsp; The sardines, etc. need to be with a reputable company and preferably be a product of the US.&nbsp; That was one gratifying thing about the lobster slider patties.&nbsp; They come from the southern US...&nbsp; It doesn't take much grease to cook them.. Are they full of BP oil?<br /><br />Hmmmm.... That might make a good name for a band... The Iron Strawberries<br /><br />V.T.</p>

 

[SoulRaven]

Luv them dollar stores, another great one is the 99 cent stores here on the west coast... A definite stop for at least can goods and so much more...

 

[yesican]

Nothing in Alaska's a dollar <img src="/images/boards/smilies/frown.gif" alt="" align="absmiddle" border="0" /><br />Rae

 

[SirJoey]

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Thanx for posting, VanTrekker! I'm a big fan of the DollarTree stores, too. I buy all my pop there. </strong></span><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>To me, their off-brand pop is just as good as the name-brands, so their big 3-liter bottle for <br />a buck deal is pretty hard to beat!<br /><br /></strong></span>

 

[blars]

99 cent only stores are less consistant in their inventory, but sometimes have good bargains.&nbsp; watch the dates on stuff that spoils.&nbsp; Some stuff is more expensive in dolar stores than regular supermarkets.

 

[Annie W]

The Dollar Tree also consistently sells 10 oz glass jars of pitted sweet Cherries, from Europe no less.
Mmmmmmmm ! perfect for a healthy snack, plus they store for over a year

 

[eDJ_]

I'm a big Dollar Tree fan too,  but with that said......I often find the same things in other stores for 80 cent.    If you have time to shop,  it pays to shop around.   So I hit the Family Dollar & Dollar General stores as well as the Walmart.   I understand Wednesday is about the best day of the week to shop and weekend days the worst.

 

[jimindenver]

Since I do not do pop anymore I like the big bottles of lemon or lime juice for a dollar at Dollar tree.

 

[Annie W]

Since I don't kill myself with alcohol, nor pop,
aside my many... beloved Herb teas too I drink Fruit-juices, & 1 especially that I sooo wish the Dollar tree would sell.
(sadly not).
Everyone (over 10) I have shared a bottle with, instantly also falls in Love LOL

 

[4x4sporty]

If your store carries Gossner milk it is great for traveling. No refrigeration needed until you open it.

 

[eDJ_]

Dollar Tree Stores in my area that have the refrigerated foods tend to carry Bar-S brand smoked sausages. (small links) 

The ones I find are about 5 inches long and about 10 in a pack for a dollar.

I can do a lot with these when out at camp.  Heated in the microwave a few seconds a couple of them can be cooked to fold each into a slice of bread with a squirt of mustard and make a tasty little hot dog.  In camp they can be used to cook numerous things and go well with any time of day.  A couple of packs won't require much refrigeration/ice chest space so they offer a lot of utility.

These can add much to the cans of Tomato Okra & Corn that they sell there that I fix with white rice. 

I've baked them as whole links in cornbread too. 

If you have a cast iron skillet with cast iron lid that fits it, you can bake in a campfire.  Just set a few rocks under the skillet to keep fairly level and up off the hot coals and you can use it like a makeshift Dutch Oven.
There's a lot of foods you can use together from Dollar Tree to make Casseroles or one pot meals.

 

[Desertthorn]

We always pick up the Sunday paper and check out whats on sale before going to the dollar store as often canned goods are cheaper on sale.

 

[Firtree]

Is there a brand or type or several brands of wraps you find that are high fiber and low carb? 
Are there other posts where you have talked of your method to reduce your carried “30 day emergency food supply”?

 

[Wanderer]

Yeah, I loved cooking out using the $1 store ribeye steaks. 4 made a nice sandwich.

In some cases, I have bought the creamer there for coffee if I'm going to be away from refrigeration for awhile,

There 100 bags of tea is not a bad deal either. I used 5 per cup (Bubba jug) 2 sweet and lows (No cream) and got me buzzing.

 

[Dingfelder]

I love Dollar Tree for baskets, waste bags, wipes, cheap reading glasses, kitchen utensils and shampoo, and such.  

As to food, I find that WinCo, if you can find one, is often very cheap and sells things for less than anywhere else in my town.  Some of those dollar cans you find in Dollar Tree might be going for 80 cents at Winco.

 

[JohnHarrelson]

We have two Dollar Tree stores here in Carson City, north and south. The north one is only a couple of blocks from my home and I shop there a few times a month.
There are several things I get there, cleaning supplies, bleach, toothpaste, Mrs Freshley's cakes  (think Little Debbie cakes) , and especially their brand of Nose Spray..

I have severe allergies and use nose spray several times a day just to breath during allergy season. The Dollar Tree brand of nose spray is the same thing as "AFRIN" nose spray but only cost $1 -vs- $5 AFRIN  at Walmart or the Vicks brand for $8. 

The "Box" milk.. No refrigeration needed, is the other main reason I shop at Dollar Tree.. 

if not opened it has a shelf life of 6 to 10 months. once opened it will stay fresh for about 7 to 10 days just like the milk from the refrigerated section of your favorite grocery store.

it's important to remember that  "Dollar Tree" stores are TRUE  Dollar stores. Absolutely nothing they sell is over one dollar.

Those other so-called Dollar stores are not true "Dollar" stores.. their prices range from under a dollar to many, many  times more than one dollar.
Also keep in mind that just because it's a "Dollar Tree" store does not mean everything is cheaper than other stores like Walmart.

example: canned goods cost 79 cent to $1 and the same can of veggies may sell for only 39 or 59 cent at Walmart.. 

The other thing that makes folks like me shop at Dollar Tree is the quick in and out convenience and being able to park close to the front door unlike trying to park at Walmart.  

But as always,, to each their own, this is just my 2 cent's worth. 
John

 

[Deb_A]

I love Dollar Tree too, but you do have to know your prices. I started to notice this with Hunt's spaghetti sauce. It was only $.79 in the grocery store. I'm a "shopper," not a consumer. I love to look around stores just to see what is cheaper there, and take note. I've found Aldi has a lot of things that are cheaper than even the Dollar Tree. If I'm on the road, though, and don't know the stores I'm shopping in, I'll hit the Dollar Tree every time.

I like some of their frozen foods just because it's single serving size, so I don't have to worry about using up a whole big pack once it's opened. Sometimes that keeps me from wasting food so it's well worth the tiny bit extra in cost. One thing I did not like there was the fake crab. It was so dry, there was no rescuing it, not even in crab salad. I do like the small packs of sausage links.

 

[AreWeLostYet]

Frozen sweet potato french fries. Just heat up a fry pan (ideally iron skillet) and keep your eye on them, turning frequently. Enough for one or two.