Aldi's store brand "Dakota" - anybody know if this is any good

[Otis]

Went by Aldi's today for the first time, and I see they have a lot of their own brand canned goods called "Dakota".  Is this stuff any good, or does it taste not so good?
Otis

[LvsChant]

Haven't bought any of their canned Dakota brand stuff, but I love Aldi. They generally have very good products at the best prices around. Unfortunately, we have moved out of their sales region, but hope they'll eventually come out west. I'd be pretty comfortable trying their store brand stuff, based on the good experiences we had with their other products.

[spartan]

I also cannot speak of the "Dakota" brand, as I don't look at the various store-brand names when shopping at Aldi.  There's a good chance I have a few cans sitting in the pantry right now from the Dakota line.

What I can speak to, as LvsChant does, is to the overall quality of the products.   When we first shopped there, years ago at this point, products were hit or miss, but generally good enough to go and stock up on the items we use regularly and avoiding what we didn't like.  Lately, however, the quality as a whole improved dramatically and Aldi is a regular part of my family's grocery shopping.  I got back from a trip there a few hours ago.

You might not like everything you buy there, but who can say that of any store?  Pick up a few cans, try it, and let us know what you think.

[Otis]

Thanks guys for the replies!
Otis

[Sulla]

We eat Aldi's Dakota brand all the time and actually prefer it to brand name in some types especially the baked beans.

[SpareMag]

We eat Aldi's Dakota brand all the time and actually prefer it to brand name in some types especially the baked beans.

Agreed-we stock lots of Dakota stuff from aldi and some stuff is preferred by our family over other store brands.. and their Austrian chocolate is exquisite

[soupbone]

They also have great coffee - Their "Specially Selected Regular Roast Ground Coffee" is 100% Arabica, German made and comes in a 17.6 oz. vacuum sealed brick - all for $4.99.  The Fit and Active line is also pretty good.

I don't especially care for their meats, though.

soupbone

[Frugal Upstate]

I love Aldi. Never had any issue with their canned goods. I love their brownie mix, the smoked suasages they sell and their dairy products.

[Transplant]

The Dakota brand is like most other canned good they are packed in water. They don't seem to be as salty as other store brands. When we lived in NC it was pretty much the only canned goods I bought. But since moving to TX the closest one is 6 hours away. I am having Aldi withdrawals

[beakerello]

We buy lots of canned goods, butter, sour cream, and boxed goods from Aldi's. The only thing we really don't buy at Aldi's are meats, bread, frozen foods, milk, eggs. I'm sure all these items are just as good, we just don't buy them at Aldi's.

[The mad Vaper]

I used to go to Aldiss all the time when I lived in Pennsylvania . Love their prices. Which we had one here in Wa. State

[Heisenberg]

We just got an Aldi's here a few weeks ago.  I'm gonna go check it out this weekend.

[Frugal Upstate]

We just got an Aldi's here a few weeks ago.  I'm gonna go check it out this weekend.

Just in case you don't know--you'll need a quarter to release a cart, and you've got to bring your own bags and pack yourself.  

[Heisenberg]

Checked out Aldi's yesterday.  Definitely different than the typical American grocery store.  The carts were a quarter to "check out" and the cashier didn't do anything except scan the item and put it back in the cart.

I picked up $6 worth of canned food that we eat on a regular basis - beans, tomato sauce, etc. - all Dakota brand.  The price was much less but I haven't tasted anything yet.

[armymars]

What was the expiration date on the can goods? Some of the name brands are good for two years. What about canned meats?

[Heisenberg]

What was the expiration date on the can goods? Some of the name brands are good for two years. What about canned meats?

Every can was marked either 2015 or 2016.

[soupbone]

I'm glad that you were able to allay your uncertainty, Heisenberg; in principle, you should be able to save money, but I find that anything I "save" gets spent on imported chocolate, seafood and fancy cheeses.

soupbone

[Transplant]

Every can was marked either 2015 or 2016.

I opened a couple of cans of potatoes today and I remembered this thread so I paid attention to the expiration date. The purchase date I had written on it was 10/11 and the expiration dated was 12/15. Hopefully that helps.

[soccer grannie]

The purchase date I had written on it was 10/11 and the expiration dated was 12/15.

I mark everything with a sharpie with the 'best buy' or 'expiration date', instead of 'purchase date'. The only product I've bought from Aldis over the past 15+ yrs that I was not happy with is their flour.

[Transplant]

I mark everything with a sharpie with the 'best buy' or 'expiration date', instead of 'purchase date'. The only product I've bought from Aldis over the past 15+ yrs that I was not happy with is their flour.

The reason I do purchase date is so I can make sure first in first out. I am picky about my flour, it is the ONE product I do not cut corners on. I only buy unbleached plain flour or whole wheat and you just can't find store brands of plain unbleached flour. I usually stick to King Arthur but since we have moved to a higher elevation I have been buying Hugarian Flour it is for high altitude if it is outstock then I stick to King Arthur.

[soccer grannie]

For what it's worth ... The reason I stopped marking with the purchase date is I found out some of my later purchases had a longer best buy or expiration date. So in my case I didn't always need to use first purchased.

[Heisenberg]

Just tried the Aldi's canned corned beef hash.  It was awesome.  A little too fatty for regular breakfasts, but very tasty.  Price is about 1/3 less than the big chains, so I'm gonna go get some and bury it deep in the stash.

[soupbone]

Just tried the Aldi's canned corned beef hash.  It was awesome.  A little too fatty for regular breakfasts, but very tasty.  Price is about 1/3 less than the big chains, so I'm gonna go get some and bury it deep in the stash.

Cook it, don't just warm it - it should be a bit crispy on the surface. You can also nuke it for the same effect, sort of. Their hash + a couple of eggs - YUMMY.  The hash is fully cooked, iirc, and can be eaten cold in an emergency. Never tried it that way, but it can't be worse than some MREs.

Aldi's canned corned beef is pretty good, too. If you like fish, try their canned herring fillets [several sauces available] or their sardines. For long term or SHTF situations, I would trust their canned meats more than I would anything I could preserve at home.

soup

[nelson96]

Just tried the Aldi's canned corned beef hash.  It was awesome.  A little too fatty for regular breakfasts, but very tasty.  Price is about 1/3 less than the big chains, so I'm gonna go get some and bury it deep in the stash.

Okay, I have to chime in now . . .  We don't have an Aldi's so I have no idea what you are talking about, but why would you ever buy canned corned beef hash?  Canned corned beef, sure, but why wouldn't you make your own hash?  I'm sure it depends on where you are from as to the way to make it, but try this and you'll never buy it canned again.

Peel and cut (dice in to small square pieces) 5 medium sized raw potatoes, do the same with 1 medium onion, add both to frying pan, also add contents of one container of corned beef, fry all three until brown and crispy, add spices to taste while cooking.

You can also substitute corned beef with smoked fish.  Canned tuna is good too.

[Frugal Upstate]

Okay, I have to chime in now . . .  We don't have an Aldi's so I have no idea what you are talking about, but why would you ever buy canned corned beef hash?  Canned corned beef, sure, but why wouldn't you make your own hash?  I'm sure it depends on where you are from as to the way to make it, but try this and you'll never buy it canned again.

In an acute situation, sometimes it's nice to have food that you can just "heat and eat" or even eat cold out of the can.  If you've spent all day cleaning up flood damage, or cutting up a tree that's blocking your driveway, or the power crashes right before dinner, you haven't got anything started and now have to spend your dinner "prep" time getting the generator hooked up etc. . .well, in those sorts of cases it's just good to have premade food on hand.  It's sort of the place where I see it as an exception to the "eat what you store/store what you eat" mantra. . . I don't usually eat a lot of premade stuff.  And in the "making your life better even if nothing goes wrong" vein--there have been a couple of times since I started storing that stuff that I DID crack into it on an evening that I just didn't feel like cooking--having it on hand prevented us from getting takeout, so it wound up saving us money.. .

Just my $.02

[nelson96]

In an acute situation, sometimes it's nice to have food that you can just "heat and eat" or even eat cold out of the can.  If you've spent all day cleaning up flood damage, or cutting up a tree that's blocking your driveway, or the power crashes right before dinner, you haven't got anything started and now have to spend your dinner "prep" time getting the generator hooked up etc. . .well, in those sorts of cases it's just good to have premade food on hand.  It's sort of the place where I see it as an exception to the "eat what you store/store what you eat" mantra. . . I don't usually eat a lot of premade stuff.  And in the "making your life better even if nothing goes wrong" vein--there have been a couple of times since I started storing that stuff that I DID crack into it on an evening that I just didn't feel like cooking--having it on hand prevented us from getting takeout, so it wound up saving us money.. .

Just my $.02

Sorry, I guess my post could have been taken as criticism, but it wasn't meant to be.  There is definitely a value in premade foods in times of crisis as you mentioned, but some may not realize how easy it is to make homemade hash, including how much better it tastes. . . .  The prep time is maybe 10 minutes longer than heat and serve, depending on your skills to peal and cut, of course.  And I figured if one has the ability to heat the premade, then the assumption is they can also fry taters.

[jm_sol]

The houston area has now several new Aldi stores. As we are an hour away, I would ask the forum if the prices and variety are worth the trip?

[soccer grannie]

I've shopped at Aldis for years and the only thing I've bought that I didn't like is their flour. You can sign up online for Aldis ad to be emailed to you each week - then you can compare prices.

[PrepperJim]

I live in Houston and I've never heard of them. There is not a store near where I live, but one close-ish to where I work. I'll have to swing by on my way home from work one day and check it out.

[soccer grannie]

Just a heads up: You have to put a quarter in the slot in order to get a grocery cart - you get your quarter back when you return the cart. Also, you must bring your own bags & sack your own groceries.