All Posts in "Wal Mart"

Little Buppa is a crazy little girl.  Recently, she was lying next to Daddy when she told him he smelled like beef jerky.  “Ummm. Yummy,” she said. “I could eat you.”  Then, she made a pretence of eating him.[ad#ad-1]

Our family ate a lot of beef jerky in the US.  My husband did not like it at first.  He thought it tasted leathery. But, he discovered that there were different brands and different flavours.  Then, it became a part of our regular diet.  It was the snack of choice for long journeys.  My favourites were any that were spicy, while the kids preferred Teriyaki.  Beef jerky was pretty expensive until we discovered the cheap alternatives at Wal-Mart and they were edible.

Yes, we miss beef jerky.  It is such a rarity here that it is expensive.  We managed to find a small kiosk at a train station that had a small pack.  That’s the extent of the availability of jerky here. 

I guess jerky is such an American thing and it has not taken hold in the UK yet.  Though BBQs certainly have.  Maybe that’s more from the Australian influence.  But, then again, I would think jerky might be something the Australians would appreciate.  Even if it wasn’t beef jerky, the Australians might have kangaroo jerky.  Americans also like deer jerky.  (My husband wouldn’t touch the stuff, but the girls and I tried some – homemade).  If the Brits ever like beef jerky, they might consider deer and even lamb jerky.  That would be a novelty.

Yank by — June 11, 2009 in British Culture 0

As I’ve said before, the EU is big on “green”.  Most political parties have some “green” agenda.  One of the big issues in this regard is the excess packaging on foods.  We have noticed this excessive packaging both here and in the US.  But the US does not make such a big stink about it.  Perhaps, now, with all the “global warming” and “climate change” talks, the US might follow suit.  Retailers are being fined for excessive packaging and most have reduced their packaging significantly.  However, the government is not fully satisfied.[ad#ad-1]

One way I’d like to suggest to reduce packaging is by making larger packages.  Many might think this is clearly greedy American thinking and would increase waste.  But that is not so.  For example, I remember going to Sam’s or even Wal-Mart and buying the large 10-lb. bags of frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  It lasted us a while.  We weren’t constantly having to do a “big” shopping every week.  Here, the best you can do is a 2-kg bag of chicken quarters with skin and bones.  Now, I don’t mind skin and bones; I think it adds more flavour.  But, the problem is that you have less meat to work with, so you run out very quickly when you’re making dinners.  There is clearly less packaging in that one 10-lb. bag than in 2-3 2-kg. bags.  I don’t know how the Brits see this, especially because they do have smaller freezers.  But it should be an option for many of us.

Yes, I miss buying in bulk.  I’ve seen that many expatriates have discovered Costco.  But there are few of these around and without jobs, you can’t even be a member.  I miss being able to buy frozen foods for more than just one meal at a time.

Yank by — June 10, 2009 in British Culture 2