Where do you buy Spices?

[EllenFrasier]

Where do you all buy your spices? Some recipes use so much that it would take all of my little jar of spices just for one dish! Especially this time of year with making barbeque rubs, etc. Uses lots of ingredients. Do you buy them in bulk somewhere?

 

[Bren's Mom]

I buy things we go through quickly in bulk at BJs mostly. (Costco has them too I think, and probably Sam's.) BJs also sells ranch dressing/dip mix in bulk rather than in the packets and I love that, as well as taco spice mix. We buy both of those.

I also buy some things from Penzey's. If you have one near you, definitely check it out!

 

[Shmily1]

I buy mine from Myspicesage. I do this through SR so I can get money back

 

[lovesmurfs]

Where do you all buy your spices? Some recipes use so much that it would take all of my little jar of spices just for one dish! Especially this time of year with making barbeque rubs, etc. Uses lots of ingredients. Do you buy them in bulk somewhere?

Depends on what you need. Sam's Club has some of the basic spices in bulk (onion, cinnamon, etc.): http://www.samsclub.com/sams/search/searchResults.jsp?searchTerm=mccormick&searchCategoryId=all

I have a salad recipe that calls for a lot of toasted sesame seed, which I found in the oriental foods area in the grocery store.

 

[JamesMom]

I go to Central Market for spices. They have a serve-yourself spice bar where you can buy just the amount you need. For the holidays I can get a about 4 tablespoons of cinamin for $0.32 instead of several dollars for a jar that will go stale before I can use it all. Looking now I got (about 1/4 -1/3 cup of each:
pumpkin pie spice = $0.28
whole rosemary leaf = $0.12
poultry seasoning = $0.30
ground nutmeg = $0.90
mulling spice = $0.42

At these prices I don't mind wasting a bit of it. I have tons left and will buy fresh next holiday.

 

[Scurvy]

I buy mine at Penzey's. Things I that I go through lots of (and am not as picky about the quality of) - like black pepper and salt - I get at Sams or Costco.

 

[thebeesknees]

Check Dollar Tree if you have one nearby. I get quite a bit of bulk stuff like dried onion or garlic at Sam's Club, as well. Dollar Tree had dried rosemary recently, and that stuff can be expensive if you get it at the grocery store!

 

[NotUrsula]

Another vote for Penzey's for the important ones. They are not as pricey as you might think, because they sell in jars and bags, and the bags are much cheaper if you don't need a jar. I double-box the bags inside two tupperware bins in my freezer, to keep them cold AND dry between jar refills.

For the basic things that I need a lot of, I buy at Asian markets. They tend to have large bags of things like pepper and granulated garlic at reasonable prices. (Cinnamon is a Penzey's thing for us, though -- we prefer Ceylon and Vietnamese, and the easiest place to find them for me is Penzey's.)

I would not buy dried herbs at a place like Dollar Tree. Those are old as the hills, and you easily have to use 3X as much to get the same flavor.

 

[Carmell226]

I have gotten bulk spices at Sam's Club and Big Lots. I mostly get them from an Amish Village about an hour from where I live. They have a small store called Yoder's Cheese Shop and they sell them in bulk for VERY cheap, I think a bulk size of Curry was $3.50!

 

[extremesoccermom]

My mom got me hooked on Penzey's. I love their wedding packages to easy shopping and I am done. I was so excited when they finally put a store in the St. Louis area. I stop once a month on my way home from work to stock up. I buy the bags (which are cheaper and refill my jars) Place the extra in the freezer.

 

[Golf4food]

Penzey's. You get what you pay for with a lot of cheap herbs and spices. We can tell a huge difference in quality and flavor. They also go bad and lose potency over time, so if you don't go through things quickly buying in bulk makes no sense because they will go bad/lose flavor long before you use them up, and what is the point of including a spice or herb if it has no flavor because it has been sitting for too long?

 

[dex08]

Penzey's!!!! Love them! If you get on their mailing list the catalogs include coupons for free bottles of new spices or what's "in season" (this past catalog had a coupon for free bbq seasonings).

 

[scrapquitler]

I buy some of them at Big Lots or Ocean State Job Lot, I think the brand is "Spice Island" and they have big jars for about $1.

I've also had good luck buying spices at the Asian Supermarket. I got a huge bag of whole cloves for like $3, a tiny jar at the grocery store was $6.

 

[sherry7]

I have gotten bulk spices at Sam's Club and Big Lots. I mostly get them from an Amish Village about an hour from where I live. They have a small store called Yoder's Cheese Shop and they sell them in bulk for VERY cheap, I think a bulk size of Curry was $3.50!

I laughed when I read that, because we also have an Amish market named Yoder's about an hour away (but in Pennsylvania). There are a few spices that I always buy there because they are so inexpensive. Since the containers are larger than what I would typically use, I leave a small portion out and food saver the rest so it stays fresh longer.

The rest of my spices come from Sam's Club and various dollar stores. I must confess that some of my less frequently used spices are several years old. I'm sure they aren't as strong as they once were, but I'm too darned frugal to throw them out.

 

[heatherleigh]

I buy all my spices from Watkins. The quality is very good and they last me a long time. Everything from there is delicious.

 

[Tricia1972]

I buy mine at Penzey's. Things I that I go through lots of (and am not as picky about the quality of) - like black pepper and salt - I get at Sams or Costco.

This exactly, except we don't have a Costco here, so my bulk spices come from Sams.

I am also guilty of buying things like vanilla and cinnamon from both Penzeys and Sams. If I am making a huge batch of cookies for a function that will be serving a bunch of kids, I'll use the Sams Club Pure Vanilla extract. It's still a decent quality item, but the essence of Penzeys spices would be lost on your average 4 year old.

 

[tnd]

We buy everything at Penzey's. They have a store near us, but they also have a catalog and internet site. I think they have excellent prices and the quality is very good.

 

[robinb]

I buy my spices in bulk at the local grocery co-op. It's really cheap! I have also purchased bulk spices at my local bigger grocery store (Copps) and at Whole Foods. We also have a local Penzey's but they sell spices in set amounts not by the ounce/pound.

 

[lorac4disney]

I guess it depends on what I'm buying.

For salt, pepper, and basic spices, I go to Walmart. For cayenne, chili powder, cumin, and other hot spices, I usually get the best prices buying them at local Hispanic food markets. I like spicy food and I'm able to buy it in bulk. For more exotic spices, I usually buy them from Asian food markets for the best prices. It gets a little tricky going to non-English speaking markets, but not a problem so long as you know exactly what you are looking for and/or looking at without a translation.

 

[TxRabbit]

It depends on where I am shopping. Here in Texas, I might buy bulk at Central Market, or my local HEB has bulk spices also, and sometimes I'll go to Fiesta, which also has bulk spices.

All these places sell it by weight, so I just buy it regularly and spend very little.