Reddit Is Cheering A Costco Fan's Solution For Preventing Moldy Food

Whether you want to save money on your weekly groceries or have to feed a very hungry family, buying in bulk is a smart solution. One of the best places to shop wholesale is Costco. You can save at least 20% on your next shopping trip, according to the blogger at Squawkfox, especially if you buy Costco's in-house brand Kirkland. The popular bulk retailer, which has more than 800 locations around the world, has almost anything and everything you could want in terms of groceries, from fresh produce and meat to an extensive bakery and frozen food section.

However, unless you have a big family with an even bigger appetite or are hosting a party for 20, some things that you buy at Costco come in such large quantities that they can be difficult to use up before they go bad. Take the 27-pound macaroni and cheese bucket that contains 180 servings, for instance (via CNBC). Fortunately, there are ways to prevent your food from spoiling. One Redditor recently revealed their secret for keeping their Costco buys fresh — and people are applauding the easy hack.

If you've ever struggled to finish a jar of something from Costco before it went bad, you aren't alone. In a recent Reddit thread, one shopper revealed what they do to prevent their purchases from spoiling. All you need? A vacuum sealer and a freezer. "I solved the issue of my 505 roasted green chilies sauce getting moldy before I could finish," the original poster wrote. "Freeze half the jar in a Foodsaver bag, defrost and refill!" Others chimed in that they also divide and freeze their chiles and that the trick works for other types of saucier foods too, including salsa.

One person points out that if you don't have a vacuum sealer, you can also just put the food in an air-tight, freezer-safe bag and seal it securely to keep it fresh in your freezer. According to the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, food can last anywhere from one month to a year in your freezer if stored properly. If you plan on freezing part of your Costco purchase, it's best to do so right when you buy it, instead of waiting until it's on its last legs. "If frozen at peak quality, thawed foods emerge tasting better than foods frozen near the end of their useful life," the FSIS says.