Save big bucks on spices and herbs

During the holidays, many of us prepare foods we don't cook the rest of the year. Just how old is that ginger, anyway? How long will it take you to use it up? Will it lose its potency before you're halfway through the bottle?

Most important of all: How much did you pay for it?

Take a look at the unit price label on the grocery shelf. At one market I visited the store-brand ground ginger goes for $3.33 per ounce, or $53.28 per pound.

That is, if you were buying it from the baking section. Just a few aisles over you could get ginger for $13.19 per pound -- and you could buy as much or as little as you needed.

The bulk-food or "health food" sections found in many markets sell a number of herbs and spices. In the Fred Meyer store near me, a sign invited me to "buy a pinch or a pound."

This is a great frugal practice all year long. Suppose you wanted to try a new recipe that calls for yellow mustard seeds. Would you rather pay $7.49 per pound in the bulk section or $18.24 per pound in the baking aisle?

Or suppose you try a recipe that calls for turmeric and no one likes the dish. You've now got a tin or bottle of the spice that could sit unused for months or years.

In the bulk aisle at Fred Meyer you could pay $10.99 per pound versus $47.84 in the baking aisle -- and you could take along a measuring spoon in order to buy the amount the recipe requires.

Incidentally, those are Alaska prices. The going rate is probably less where you live.

Get a nice price for spice

A few more suggestions for saving on seasonings:

Health food stores. Look for ones with bulk-buy bins.

Ethnic markets. Before I left Seattle I stocked up on some 99-cent seasonings from an Asian/Western market: curry, cloves, pickling spice, celery seed and popcorn salt. (An article on Ochef.com notes that properly stored spices can last from one to four years and herbs from one to three years.)

Spice/tea markets. Online or in your neighborhood. Frugal tip: Cash in for Amazon gift cards from rewards programs like Swagbucks or MyPoints and "buy" them for free.

Drugstores. Every so often spices and herbs go on sale at Walgreens, Rite Aid or CVS. We're talking $1.50 for basics like oregano, basil, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg and paprika.

Dollar stores. You'll see the basics noted above and maybe some others, depending on the store.

Those last two don't sell high-end varieties, obviously. But it may not make much difference, according to the professional tasters at Consumer Reports who compared high-end and dirt-cheap brands of oregano and cinnamon.

"A pricey spice could be worth trying in a simple dish (oregano on fresh tomatoes, for instance) or where it's the main ingredient (as with cinnamon buns). For recipes with many ingredients, you probably don't need to pay a premium," the magazine says.

Frankly, some of us don't care. I have a fairly proletarian palate; the more expensive stuff would probably be wasted on me.

If a recipe called for something unusual like fenugreek seeds, I'd buy only as much as I needed at a place like Fred Meyer. As for other spices, I generally find the drugstore and dollar-store brands taste fine. So I'll stick with them -- and save.

More on MSN Money:

• How to re-grow your grub
• 10 reasons to buy old bread
• Save money with a 'pantry challenge'
• Frugal game-day snacks