They said it can’t be done. They said the Costco Mediterranean Salad couldn’t be made at home for the price. I say it can be, and for much less, and it will be even better! And better for you! And the only actual cooking is boiling the orzo.
Costco Mediterranean Salad – just waiting for the feta and dressing.
Now, if you’re a cook, you know that if ya go and buy everything for the salad, it adds up, but we usually count only the portions of ingredients we use and cross-utilise the other ingredients in different recipes, and we likely have most of the pantry ingredients. If you don’t cook or make food at home, will you be better off just buying the salad? We’ll see how it pans out. But either way, this might inspire you to make more food at home.
About the Costco Mediterranean Salad:
A friend raved about the Costco Mediterranean Salad, and in 2024, I dove in. The price was broken down on the package (at the time, $6.49 a pound – about the same price as Costco’s New York Strip Steak, just a few feet away was back then). Last time I checked, around Christmas, a few months ago, the salad was $5.99 a pound.
The salad, by the way, was absolutely delish. The dressing was intense, and the salad was a play on bright and salty, with a definite Greek-leaning vibe. And there were enough “extras” to keep things interesting. The slightly chewy orzo soaked in the dressing, but balanced it, too, and stood up to the ingredients without feeling stodgy.
Costco Mediterranean Salad
The Ingredients in Costco Mediterranean Salad:
When I opened the package, I was a little stunned to find my “salad” was mostly pasta, so I delved deeper. I grabbed my chopsticks and deconstructed the salad as best I could. And then measured and weighed. The ingredients were wilted, saturated, and stuck together, but I got close enough.
Full disclosure: I love figuring things out like this now and then, for myself and for you! In my final salad recipe, I did shake it up a bit.
As good as I could get – but I got an idea of what was actually in the salad
How to Quickly Judge if a Homemade Version of Any Recipe will Save Money:
I judge by figuring out how much the priciest ingredient is and how much is used. I considered these four possible “culprits”, and the salami was the heavy hitter.
If the priciest item in almost any recipe is less than the entire item you’re buying, it’s usually worth investigating more. The salad was $5.99 to $6.49 a pound; the salami used $3.90. Bingo!
- Genoa salami: $.78 an ounce, $5.49 for the package, about 5 ounces used: $3.90
- Sundried tomatoes: $.28 an ounce, $2.29 for the package, only 3 1/2 ounces: $.99
- Kalamata olives: $.43 an ounce, $4.39 a jar, about 1.5 ounces: $.65
- Feta cheese: $.58 an ounce, $3.49 for the package, about 1/2 ounce for: $.30
Total outlay: $15.66. For this salad: $5.84.
Then I look at the fillers and items that are easily variable in amount:
- Orzo: $.07 per ounce, $1.19 for the package, 3/4 cup dry for $.45
- Grape tomatoes: $1.79 per pint (10 to 12 ounces or 25 to 30 tomatoes, 10 in the salad, $.60
- Spinach: $.22 per ounce, $2.19 for the package; the 5 ounces was saturated, my guess was there was about 2 ounces actual: $.44
Total outlay: $5.17. For this salad: $1.49
The Dressing:
- The dressing is made with all pantry ingredients except for the 1/2 lemon, which was $.69 or $.35 for the 1/2.
- If you buy everything, going cheap, will run around $11.00, including 48 ounces oil, 17 ounces of white wine vinegar, a jar of Greek seasoning, a carton of salt, a 5-pound bag of sugar and a whole lemon. The portion of the ingredients for this recipe is about $.40 for 1/2 cup. (If you have the ingredients, my Greek Seasoning is fabulous!)
- Total oulay: about $11.00. For this salad: $.40
The Grand Totals:
- Purchasing every ingredient will run: $31.83. You could easily make two of these salads for close to the price of a Costo Salad if you shorted the salami a bit. If you have any of the staples, oil, sugar, salt, Greek seasoning, and vinegar, your initial outlay will be much less.
- The portion of the ingredients used for the salad costs $7.70 for 2 pounds (the same weight as the Costco salad), which makes it $3.85 per pound.
- The Costco Salad was $7.13 a pound and was two pounds, almost twice the cost of making your own.
- The extra $$ added onto the Costco salad is from the sales tax. Where I am from, sales tax is only applicable to prepared items.
As you can see, the salad was mostly orzo!
The Final Judgement – at home is Cheaper, and it can be made Better!
Making the Salad at home, with wise use of ingredients, is almost half as much as the Costco salad.
But, I’m going to be making a few changes to make it a little healthier and cost a little less: Slightly less salami, more Feta, and a few more goodies and definitely more spinach and tomatoes, in my recipe below.
Leftover Costco Mediterranean Salad:
The Costco Mediterranean Salad is sturdy and will keep in the fridge for a day or two, although the spinach will get a little wiltier (but will still taste great).
If you’d like to keep it for three to four days, add the spinach only to the portion being served.
Other Salads You Might Like:
- The Best Salad in the World: This is a fun salad I copycatted from Cub Foods in Minnesota. Not my usual style, but it is fabulous!
The Best Salad in the World
- Favorite Antipasto Salad: another gorgeous salad with some of the same ingredients. This is a great salad to make to use some of the same ingredients, and it has chickpeas rather than pasta.
Favorite Antipasto Salad
Saving Money on Groceries:
What you pay for groceries depends on not just WHERE you shop, but WHEN. Be strategic and stock up at rock-bottom prices.
- The best sales are before holidays; check out Win at the Grocers. Think beyond the occasion & use the opportunity to stock up at a low for the coming weeks to months.
- If available, take advantage of discount stores like Aldi or Lidl. The pricing at Buyer’s clubs is not always the lowest, but can trump in quality. Be selective when shopping there.
Where I Shopped:
- Most of my ingredients were picked up from Lidl.
- The Feta was from my local grocery, although Costco has great pricing and quality at their Warehouses. (Since I broke my leg, I don’t venture into Costco as much, but every day, it’s a little better.)
- The olives were from the discount rack at the grocery store. Speciality items often end up there. I pick them up at a low price for just such an occasion as this.
I hope that the Costco Mediterranean Salad has given you some food for thought! And that you enjoy the departure (with receipts!) from my regular posts. Some might not care about a few dollars here and there, but for others, careful shopping can make all the difference.
Mollie
Costco Mediterranean Salad – this is better and less expensive than Costco!
Costco Mediterranean Salad
An easy main dish salad; sturdy enough for meal prep.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
- Category: main dish salad
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
For the orzo:
- 3/4 cups uncooked orzo
- 1 teaspoon salt
Salad dressing:
- 1/4 cup salad oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 teaspoon Greek seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the salad:
Measure with your heart
- about 3 ounces of Salami from a tube of Salami, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1/4 cup sliced Kalamata olives (pitted are easiest to work with)
- 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, sliced (or sub in roasted red bell pepper)
- 1/2 pint grape tomatoes (15 or so)
- 1/2 10-ounce bag of spinach, preferably not “baby” spinach
- 4 ounces crumbled or diced Feta
Instructions
For the Orzo:
Cook according to package directions, with a teaspoon salt. Drain very well and cool.
For the Salad dressing:
Add all ingredients, the oil, white wine vinegar, lemon juice, Green seasoning, sugar, and salt. Shake well. Taste and adjust flavors, more seasoning, sugar, or salt as desired.
For the Salad:
Mix together the cool orzo, the salami, the olives, the tomatoes, and the spinach. When ready to serve, add the Feta and mix with the dressing.
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