Tabs

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Zaycon is back!

Anyone who knows me knows I love to eat. They also know I love to save money. If I can save money on food it's a win-win situation!

Enter Zaycon Foods - a direct-to-consumer, privately owned company, founded in 2009 and based out of Washington state.  They bring fresh meat and other products directly to you at wholesale prices. Foods are sold by the case, so the sticker shock can get you, but you have to look at the price per pound (just like you have to everywhere else, frankly!).

This time around, they have skinless, boneless chicken breasts for $1.59 per pound, in a 40 pound case. 
Case dimensions—18 in wide x 12 in deep x 7 in tall
This is a total of $63.60 for 100% natural chicken with no added hormones, additives or artificial ingredients. It comes directly from the processor and has never been frozen. The case includes four bags of chicken breasts that are still in pairs, so there is some post-processing you will need to do at home.
Each bag has about 10 pounds of chicken
You'll need to separate the breast pairs and trim the exterior fat. 
Left and right breasts attached in the middle
The size of the actual breasts determine how many you get per case. I normally get anywhere from 40-55 breasts per case.  I normally will put each chicken breast into a Ziploc bag and put 6 bags into a large Ziploc bag and stack in the freezer.  When I need chicken for dinner, I can take out as many as I need without having to thaw all the chicken. Sure, it's a bit of a waste of Ziploc bags, but I'd rather toss a bag than waste chicken!

This time around, they are also offering 93/7 Ground Beef for $3.29/pound in a 40-pound case. This is a total of $131.60 for LFTB free, fine-grind ground beef. No chemicals, additives or water is added to the meat during processing, and processing is done at a USDA-inspected, state-of-the-art plant that employs strict operating protocols.  
BEEF - it's what's for dinner

Each case contains four 10-pound 'chubs' of ground beef. 
Is it just me or does "chub" sound so unappealing?
I've not personally ordered this item (I don't eat a lot of ground beef), but a coworker has and he LOVED it!  He made 8oz burgers with them and told me later that there was virtually NO shrinkage, so he ended up with an 8oz burger cooked.

Again, you can break this up into smaller portions (like I do with family packs of ground beef from Publix) and store in your freezer. I normally will put either one or two pounds in a Ziploc bag, then use a rolling pin to flatten it out (in the bag) and store in the freezer like books. Flattening them saves LOTS of space!  If you have some free time cook up an entire 10-pound chub then store away for super-quick meals later - just dump a pound of cooked hamburger into spaghetti sauce or make sloppy joes! 

At other times of year, Zaycon offers shrimp, pre-cooked grilled chicken strips, other seafood and BACON!  

I strongly urge anyone I talk to to sign up with Zaycon. I have NEVER seen fresh boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a store for less than $1.99 a pound.  This price is a STEAL!!!  If you can't afford the entire case yourself, if you don't have the space, if you don't eat that much chicken, go in with a friend!  Split a case and then both of you get great chicken at a great price!

If you are in Gainesville, FL, they are taking orders right now for pickup on July 12 at the United Pentecostal church by SFC. 



*I don't work for Zaycon, but I did use their website for some of the information I've passed along to you. I wasn't reimbursed for this post, but I sure wish I was!*



Friday, June 1, 2012

Quick Check Up on the Countdown

Today is June 1.

Registration opens on July 10 for the Princess Half Marathon.

39 days to go!!!!!

That is all.

Carry on with your day.