The Beloved Regional Costco Find You Can Only Snag In 2 Places

It would be an understatement to say that you can buy a great deal of different things at Costco. On top of being known for its wholesale prices and its famous inflation-resistant food court hot dogs, Costco is also famous for having shelves upon shelves of interesting and sometimes hard-to-find items. And as it turns out, some of these unique items are limited to the specific region in which you find yourself. So on top of your list of must-buy items when visiting Costco, you might also want to keep a look out for some local favorites. And if you happen to be located near the northern border of the contiguous states, a big bag of cheese curds might be in your future.

That's right; you can stock up on cheese curds on your next Costco run, but only if you live in a certain area of the continent. Cheese curds, which have a truly ancient origin story, are a unique dairy product (and are arguably the most defining ingredient in poutine), and they featured in Chowhound's list of the best regional products to find at Costco. Unsurprisingly, this product seems to be restricted to where cheese curds reign supreme — notably, the midwest and Canada. If you're in one of these regions, you can snag a five-pound bag of the stuff at your favorite wholesaler. And don't worry, you can freeze cheese curds if you want to make the most of this enormous bulk buy — or you can just set a new personal record for the largest homemade poutine.

If you do happen to stroll through a Costco that sells fresh cheese curds, then they seem to be well worth throwing a bag into your shopping cart. But when you come face to face with a heaping 5-pound bag of curds, you might be tempted to branch out and explore some new dishes. After all, poutine can only go so far, even if it is Canada's most famous dish. Luckily for you, though, cheese curds are a lot more versatile than you may initially think.

For a proper midwest dish, you can't get much simpler than some fried cheese curds, which make for a delicious snack or appetizer. But if you want your cheese curds to serve a supporting role instead of the starring one, you can also use them as an ingredient in salads or as a topping on pizza. The unique texture and fresh taste of cheese curds will add a fun twist to whatever cheeses you'd normally use, and can have you burning through that Costco-sized bag of curds in no time at all — so long as you're in the right area to buy them in the first place.