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John

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Vacuum, Freeze, Enjoy (#vacuumfreezeenjoy)

I bought Kirkland Signature Brats (Bratwurst) on June 9, 2021. I paid the regular price of $8.49 for 14 links (2 packages of 7 each). I vacuum-packed and froze them for long-term storage. It took me 3 months to finish all 14 links by myself. And I can tell you that these sausages are a delight. I like them, and I will buy them again.

I made gumbo with these brats. In that gumbo, I also put in an equal amount of Costco chicken breast meat. I don’t live in the South, so I don’t know how the homemade gumbo should look and taste like. I blindly followed the generic recipe, and I enjoyed my gumbo a lot. It was very good. But people from the South may look at the picture of my Gumbo and say, “What the heck is this?”. What can I say… that would be my imaginary gumbo that came to life. 🙂 I also made the collard greens from scratch (picture).

I also fried some brats in a frying pan. For these, I put olive oil and several basic seasonings (no salt). I put it on low heat with the cover on. I purposely didn’t follow the cooking instruction on the package. While cooking, I turned over the brats only once, so my pictures would come out pretty. Don’t worry, I cooked them all the way through. I am not that clueless.

Below are the official care and cooking instructions from the bottom of the package. The instruction is there for people who never cooked before. You may ignore it if you know what you’re doing.

Care Instruction for Costco Bratwurst

• Once opened, use within 5 days
• Freeze up to 30 days
• Keep refrigerated

Cooking Instructions for Kirkland Signature Brats

• Grill – Heat gas grill to medium-low (if charcoal, allow it to burn until white ash has formed on the embers). Place links on grill. Use tongs to turn often. Grill bratwurst for 20 to 25 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165°F
• Stovetop – Spray skillet with cooking spray. Add brats. Cook over medium-high heat until browned, about 5 minutes, turning links with tongs often. Reduce heat to medium-low and add 1/2 cup of water to skillet. Cover skillet and simmer for 12 to 14 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165°F.
• Broil – Place links on broiler rack or foil-lined baking pan 7 to 9 inches below heat. Turn links with tongs every 3 minutes. Broil for 11 to 13 minutes or until golden brown or until internal temperature reaches 165°F

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John

Thank you for visiting.

Latest posts by John (see all)

• John’s Big Update - October 8, 2025
• Question: 3 pieces of dark meat - September 20, 2025
• Sorry I was away for so long. I am still here - August 19, 2025

Article submitted by a new reader of the blog, David from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

One of the things I love about Costco is that, despite being a warehouse type store, they often manage to offer multiple options for many products.  A case in point are the chicken sausages they have for sale!

I love chicken sausages.  They taste great and have less fat and cholesterol than traditional pork and beef sausages.  When I am eating chicken sausages I can at least pretend that I am eating healthy.  By the way, they are especially great when sliced thin and used as a topping for the Costco Caesar Salad!

Costco is currently offering chicken sausages from the following brands:

• Chef Bruce Aidells
• Amylou
• Sabatino’s

The sausages from all of these brands are pre-cooked and ready to eat.

Aidells’ Chicken and Apple Sausage

Bruce Aidells was a pioneer in the poultry sausage marketplace.  His brand has developed a lot of different flavors and there are a ton of great recipes on the company’s website.

I have tried lots of different Aidells products and the apple flavored sausage is one of my favorites.

Amylou’s Andouille Chicken Sausage

Amylou Foods started in 1992 out of Chicago as a side business from an existing sausage shop.

Amylou has developed a lot of interesting chicken products and even has a line of chicken bacon!

The sausage they are selling at Costco is an andouille style that is being marketed as Paleo friendly.

Sabatino’s Basil and Black Pepper Chicken Sausage

Sabatino’s is based out of California and traces its food styling origins to Palermo, Italy.
The Sabatino sausage at Costco is the Paleo friendly Basil and Black pepper flavor that they feature in this amazing recipe for Keto Corndogs!

Which of These Sausages is the Best?

I wish I could tell you that Brand XYZ is the absolute best option so I could make your shopping decision easy.

However, the reality is that all of these brands are great and the flavor profiles of the sausages are so different from each other that a Head to Head taste comparison wouldn’t make any sense.

I think it would be fun to hear what other folks think about these sausages and learn which ones are their favorites!

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John

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• John’s Big Update - October 8, 2025
• Question: 3 pieces of dark meat - September 20, 2025
• Sorry I was away for so long. I am still here - August 19, 2025

Olde Thompson’s Everything Bagel Seasoning – 11.5 OZ. At Costco

I knew nothing about Everything Bagel Seasoning until now. I bought it because it looked interesting. I have limited knowledge on this topic, so correct me if I’m wrong.

It’s called “Everything Bagel Seasoning” because there is a bagel called “Everything Bagel”. Somebody put all kinds of seasonings on top of the bagel and called it “Everything Bagel” and it became popular. It turned out, the seasoning worked with all kinds of food. So, the seasoning (without the bagel) became popular as well.

I don’t think Olde Thompson is the original creator of “Everything Bagel Seasoning”. There are many versions of Everything Bagel Seasonings out there. Mainly people associate Everything Bagel Seasoning with Trader Joe’s.

On the container it reads “Try on salads, avocado, toast, eggs, veggies, everything!” – so I tried it on both fried eggs and scrambled eggs. And yes, these are very good on eggs. It’s a game-changer. It gives me a totally different experience of eating eggs. I like it a lot. I will buy it again if I see it at Costco. I am not sure if I’m willing to pay the non-Costco price.

I can be wrong, but this is my educated guess: This product is likely to go “on and off” at your local Costco warehouse. You will find them if you find them. Some of you may have a hard time finding it at your local Costco locations. They are not available on the Costco website. They were available on the Costco Business website, but they have disappeared from the website.

Mine has an expiration date of 10/22 -16 months shelf life. Since it’s a dry good, I guess I can stretch it for 2 years if I don’t finish it sooner.

Talk to you later. Take care.

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John

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Latest posts by John (see all)

• John’s Big Update - October 8, 2025
• Question: 3 pieces of dark meat - September 20, 2025
• Sorry I was away for so long. I am still here - August 19, 2025

I enjoyed these baby back pork ribs by Big Shoulders Smokehouse. This 48 oz (3 lb) package was $12.99. That’s cheaper than 2 double cheeseburgers without drinks. 2 average-sized adults can pig out on this. In my case, 2 of us could only eat 2/3 of it. This is an excellent value. I shall buy some more.

Update: I went back to Costco 2 weeks later for some more. Now they were $13.99 each. The price went up by $1.00.

I bought this on my Costco Shopping – March 10, 2021. They are fully cooked, so I just needed to reheat in the oven. I put it in the 375-degree oven for 27 minutes.

Maybe these were as good as Tony Roma’s. Maybe these were better than Tony Roma’s. I am not sure. They are that good. The meat was tender and falling off the bone. The sauce was just right. Next time, I shall scrape off BBQ sauce and warm it up separately. Then I shall re-apply the sauce after the ribs are cooked.

As a side dish, I microwaved Kirkland Signature’s Normandy-Style Vegetable mix. I always keep a bag of Kirkland Signature’s frozen mixed vegetables. The bread was from a local store.

It took me about 40 minutes to prepare everything. It was an excellent dinner. Baby back ribs are crazy good times. If you have young dogs (with good teeth) they will love the bones. They will enjoy the bones more than we enjoy the meat.

Costco Shopping – March 10, 2021