The Easy Way To Save Money Buying Steaks At Costco

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Costco has a famous (and sometimes infamous) reputation for selling in bulk. Customers buy large amounts of something all at once, and it ends up being cheaper than if the items had been bought individually. As it turns out, the same principle applies to something Costco sells both in bulk and in smaller packages: beef.

When it comes to buying steak from Costco, if you're able (and willing) to buy an entire roast instead of smaller, pre-cut steaks, you'll save more in the long run. A roast is a much larger cut of meat, and it's common for prices to run into the hundreds of dollars, depending on the quality. But you should be looking at the "per pound" price just as closely as the total price. When measured per pound, it's often cheaper to simply chop up a large roast into smaller steaks yourself. A Kirkland Signature roast can often be four to six dollars cheaper per pound than Kirkland Signature steaks, which adds up when you're purchasing a heavy enough slab of beef. Make sure you've got a chef's knife at home that's up to the task of cutting it, though.

With a sizable roast, you have the freedom to cut your steaks as large as you'd like them to be. If you go with the usual thickness of 1 to 1.5 inches per steak, then it's entirely reasonable to get around 15 individual steaks from one entire roast. That's far too many for a single dinner or even a family dinner, no matter how hungry you think you are (although you'll impress everyone at a large barbecue if you show up with that many). Luckily, it's easy to freeze and store the leftovers for later. Now you've saved a hefty chunk of cash and several future trips to buy more food.

Another thing to keep in mind is that any time you see smaller steaks which have some sort of fancy additional preparation (Costco sells sirloin filets with applewood smoked bacon, for example), it'll nearly always cost even more per pound. It's cheaper to buy a basic steak and garnish it how you like; it's cheaper still to get a roast, where you won't see so many fancy additions, with small exceptions like the boneless ribeye which has the rib bones removed.

The first step is selecting a roast with an even thickness so your steaks will be relatively uniform. Once you get it home, slicing your own steaks off of a roast is pretty easy if you have the right equipment. The best tool for this job is a breaking knife, such as the Mercer BPX Cimeter, that can make light work of slicing through raw meat. Also be sure you have a good cutting board and that the meat is dry to prevent any slipping. Before cutting, shape the roast into a rectangle by pushing on the opposite corners towards the center. Or you can even out the ends by trimming them. Both methods help ensure each steak is uniform.

Cut the roast with the fat side up. As mentioned, depending on the cut, the typical thickness of a steak is between 1 and 1.5 inches, but you can make them as thick or thin as you prefer. You can either eye where to cut each steak or you can use a ruler and make light slits in the fat to mark where to cut each steak before proceeding. If you end up with any trimmings, you can always use these for stir fry, stew, or other dishes that don't require a full-sized steak. Be sure to freeze whatever meat you're not using right away.

Let's say you've cut up your roast, had a big dinner or two, and still have a dozen or so steaks left over. You don't save any money if you let that beef go to waste, so how do you properly freeze your steaks? The best way is to wrap up each steak in plastic wrap as securely as you can, then place them into Ziploc or other resealable bags to avoid freezer burn. A steak (or the whole roast) should stay fresh for up to four months afterward, although it should still be fine for up to a year.

Once you're ready to defrost the raw steaks you've been keeping tucked away, remove all the wrappings and let it sit on a plate in your fridge. A single steak should be ready to cook in about a day or slightly longer — if you decided to freeze the entire roast, it may need up to four days. Checking whether the beef is done thawing is simple: It should feel soft instead of solid. Then, because you've cut it yourself, it'll come off the grill exactly how you like it.