A viral grocery shopping hack posted to TikTok has reached viewers just in time for the holiday cooking season.
User Recipes with Maria (@recipeswithmaria74), who documents her job as a tow boat cook for over 37,000 followers, said she first discovered the hack via social media years ago: Buying spices in the international foods aisle for cheaper than what they cost on a different store shelf.
In her TikTok video, which has been viewed over 595,300 times since it was first posted on Oct. 28, Maria showed the “American” brand of chicken bouillon, found down one aisle, for 58.8 cents an ounce, amounting to $1.47 per package.
@recipeswithmaria74 Save money buying the “mexican” brand. This is a game changer!! #riverboatcooks #fyp #foryoupage #everydayimhustling #food #foodtiktok #addflavor #seasoning #viral #savemoney #savemoneytips ♬ original sound – Recipes with Maria
“You come over here to the Mexican section and it’s the same exact stuff, the Knorr brand, and it’s 13.5 cents per ounce,” she revealed in a different aisle. “The exact same stuff.”
It seemed too good to be true when she first heard about it, but “you save so much money just buying it from the Mexican section,” as she stated in her video. Viewers concurred.
“The International aisle often has lower prices. Goya products in particular,” user @nocateesteve wrote.
“Mexican spices are a lot cheaper! I got a huge thing of red pepper flakes for $3!” another shared.
Chicken bouillon wasn’t Maria’s only find. A Mexican vanilla blend from Molina was found to cost 19 cents an ounce, while various “American” brands of pure vanilla extract cost between $2 and $5 an ounce.
“Isn’t that crazy how the prices are so different? I thought I’d just point this out to anybody that hasn’t heard about it yet,” Maria concluded her video.
Some viewers lamented the possibility of stores now raising prices on international brand spices and other products, while others argued that other brands simply tasted better despite costing more.
“I’m a penny pincher BUT, past months, hooked on Better than Bouillon. Difference in food flavor,” one wrote.
Others pointed out that differences in size and ingredients between American and international brands may affect costs. “The Mexican bouillon is 34.8 cents per ounce/13.5 per cube and the cube sizes are different,” a viewer corrected.
“The Mexican has more real ingredients and less chemicals,” another explained.
The Daily Dot reached out to Maria via TikTok direct message.
