I used to always skip the grocery aisles at Dollar Tree, shopping for household items like storage and organizing products and cleaning supplies instead.
Then a Dollar Tree employee told me the grocery section is one of the most popular sections in the store.
So, I grabbed a shopping cart and headed down my local Dollar Tree’s grocery aisles, scoping out $1.25 grocery items to put to the test. (Dollar Tree previously sold items for $1 but recently upped its baseline price to $1.25.)
At first, I was skeptical about finding foods I liked at such a low price. But I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and taste of several items, ranging from soup and snacks to pickles and protein drinks.
Read on for my favorite cheap grocery items at Dollar Tree, along with what I liked about each one.
1. Miso pork ramen soup
Price: $1.25 per 2.6-ounce bowl
I don’t eat grocery store ramen these days, preferring takeout from my favorite ramen restaurant. But I ate a lot of grocery store ramen when I was on a tight budget in college. I found the Norita Tonkotsu miso pork ramen bowl to be much tastier than the ramen I used to doctor up with veggies or meat to make a filling meal. The miso broth was tasty, and I added the included packet of chili sauce, which gave this noodle bowl some heat.
Pork isn’t listed in the ingredients, only “meat flavor powder,” and the broth didn’t taste much like pork. Still, the broth and noodles made a quick and filling meal.
One caveat: This product has a high sodium content — 1,900 milligrams per bowl. That’s more than 80% of the recommended daily value, so you might want to skip salt for the rest of the day when you indulge in this ramen bowl.
2. Protein shake
Price: $1.25 per 8-ounce bottle
I was happy to find Dollar Tree offers Boost, a name brand of protein nutritional drinks, in chocolate and vanilla for $1.25 each. That’s cheaper than at Walmart and roughly comparable to what Amazon charges. But to get that low of a price even on Amazon, you’d have to buy at least a couple dozen bottles at a time. Dollar Tree sells single bottles, which cost $1.25 apiece, no matter how few you buy.
That said, I’ll be stocking up on these shakes next time I visit Dollar Tree.
3. Panko bread crumbs
Price: $1.25 per 7-ounce canister
I used Dollar Tree’s Colonna panko bread crumbs to make battered, air-fried zucchini slices. These panko bread crumbs were just as good or better than higher-priced brands I’ve used. They cooked beautifully to create a crisp and delicious batter on my zucchini, so I’m betting they’d also be great for breaded shrimp and other recipes that call for panko bread crumbs.
I’ll skip the pricey grocery store bread crumbs next time and buy these instead.
4. Vegetable spring rolls
Price: $1.25 per bag of 8 rolls
I love a good spring roll, so when I found an 8-pack of Jennifer’s Garden traditional vegetable spring rolls in the freezer section, I had to try them. These spring rolls can be cooked in the oven or microwave or pan-fried. I opted for the oven method since I wanted them to be crispier than they might have turned out if microwaved.
These spring rolls were so good. They were crispy, packed with vegetables and tasty when dipped in a sweet and sour sauce. This is my favorite Dollar Tree grocery item so far. I plan to stock up on this quick and delicious food that works great as a snack or a light meal.
5. Toaster pastries
Price: $1.25 per box of six pastries
I loved Pop-Tarts as a kid so I gave these Toast’em Pop-ups a try. These pastries were flavorful with a decent pastry crust. I didn’t find these toaster pastries to be as tasty or to have as much filling as the name brand. Even so, the Brown Sugar Cinnamon and Frosted Cherry toaster pastries as an afternoon snack hit the spot. Those flavors were equally delicious to me. There’s also a Frosted Strawberry flavor.
Are they as good as Pop-Tarts? I didn’t think so. But they’re easily cheaper, so I’ll likely buy these pastries again.
Guacamole-flavored tortilla chips
Price: $1.25 per 5-ounce bag
I love guacamole, so I was grabbed a 5-oz. bag of El Saboroso Guacachip guacamole-flavored tortilla chips to find out if they really do taste like “the dip’s in the chip” as advertised on the package. These corn tortilla chips coated with avocado powder, onion powder, garlic powder and buttermilk powder are delicious. I love these chips and will buy them again to snack on while working or watching TV.
Fruit and grain bars
Price: $1.25 per box of four bars
I’ve always liked soft-baked fruit and grain bars, so I was eager to try this product. I’m a big oatmeal fan, so I appreciated that these Sunbest Fruit & Grain Bars are made with oatmeal and oats as well as whole wheat flour. I enjoyed both the blueberry and strawberry bars (they’re also available in apple cinnamon), but I wish they contained more filling and actual fruit instead of fruit flavoring and fruit juice concentrate. Even so, I may buy a box to keep in my car for road trips or if I get stuck in a long traffic jam at dinnertime.
Pickles
Price: $1.25 per jar (I found a 24-ounce jar at my Dollar Tree, but that’s not the only size available)
When I first bit into one of these Breckenridge Farms Kosher Pickle Spears, I was disappointed. I found the pickle limp rather than crispy and stowed them in my fridge in case I was ever desperate for a pickle. But a couple of days of refrigeration transformed these pickles, giving them just the right amount of crispness.
Olives
Price: $1.25 per 7.7-ounce jar
I had low expectations for the Breckenridge Stuffed Olives, but they were pretty good, too.
If you prefer gourmet pickles and olives, these may disappoint. But they’ll work just fine on a holiday relish tray. Pickles and olives can be pricey, and these are a good deal, so I’ll probably buy them again.
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