The rice bags from Costco are the perfect purchase for any family looking to save money. I love this bag of rice for so many reasons, and I truly believe that every family with young kids should know about this wonderful, money-saving deal.
Costco carries any rice and grain that you can imagine. They have brown rice, white rice, quinoa, and- my favorite- the Kirkland Signature Thai Mali Jasmine Rice.
This Kirkland Signature Thai Mali Jasmine Rice is my favorite for so many reasons. For one, the taste is amazing. For another, when you cook this rice, your entire kitchen smells heavenly.
I can’t really describe it, but if you have ever cooked Jasmine rice, you know what I am talking about.
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Some people think that buying one of the giant bags of rice from Costco is ridiculous. It’s too big and too difficult to use the entire thing- but I beg to differ.
As a Mom of 3, I have found countless ways to use this 25-pound bag of rice and keep everyone healthy and happy.
You read that right- the Costco bag of rice is 25 pounds and has over 50 cups of rice in it. That is many opportunities to get creative both with meals and with crafts at a really great price.
Let me break it down for how the Kirkland Signature Rice saves you money.
- 2 pound of Jasmine Rice on Amazon: $3.07
- 2 pounds of Kirkland SIgnature Rice: $1.52
That’s less than half. I love a good deal!
Cook the rice (of course!)
I cook rice for dinner several times a week; it’s just so easy to add to any meal to help keep my constantly growing kids full until the morning.
I love to pair rice with lots of meals, like this Chili Recipe, this Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets recipe, or even just with beans and roasted vegetables.
Knowing that I have enough rice to last us a few months makes it even easier to cook. As a mom on a budget, I can feel guilty if I don’t have some grain in the pantry.
Am I the only one? Knowing that I don’t have to worry about having enough rice for the next couple of months calms me.
In addition, the Kirkland Signature brand is one that I stand behind. Costco always finds farmers that grow in the best environments where the climate, soil conditions, and seasonal rains produce the best jasmine rice from Thailand.
I know it sounds messy, but hear me out.
This activity with rice has been done for decades with Montessori schools and homeschool circuits for quite some time to help encourage playtime.
Basically, you take a bin, fill it with rice, then other toys to encourage play and creativity. The rice texture feels good and encourages your preschoolers’ senses to develop for a long time.
Sit back and watch your child feel the rice, hear the rice, and play with toys in the rice.
Another bonus? Playing in rice helps strengthen the muscles in their hands to be ready to hold a pencil when they start writing.
Some of the themes that my little ones love and play with for hours (yay!) are:
- Prehistoric times (I use small dinosaurs and a caveman)
- Princesses (I use our Little Tykes Disney Princess Set)
- Cowboy (See the picture above)
- Alphabet (we take wooden letters and the kids have to get them out using kitchen tongs)
It’s fun to get creative with the themes! (Let me know what You’ve done in the comments)
As for the mess, I either have the kids play outside with them on our patio or a sheet inside. If the rice somehow gets on the ground, then it gets thrown out, and we are done with that sensory bin for a while (the time frame depends on the mess, but it’s at least for a week).
This also helps your kids develop a sense of responsibility and an understanding that sometimes your actions have consequences.
Looking for more activities to do with your kids to keep them busy and creative? Check out this article from The Frugal Farm Girl!
Art Projects
What I love about this super cheap bag of rice is that you can get really creative without fear of throwing away money at the same time. There are hundreds of art projects that you can do with rice!
A few of my favorites include:
- Gluing rice to paper– its great for teaching kids how to glue smaller objects and can give an awesome texture to whatever they are trying to create.
- Dying Rice (Just soak it in some food coloring and pat dry!) and add to glass jars for rainbow art!
- Rice Drawing– just fill a small baking sheet with a thin layer of rice and use your fingers to move the rice around to create an endless amount of pictures, shapes, and letters!
Share with a Friend
If the activities above aren’t enough to convince you to run to your local Costco, one piece of advice that I got from a friend is to share.
That’s right- split the bag.
That way, two families are blessed with 12.5 pounds of rice, which is still enough for all of the activities mentioned in this article!
I love this bag of rice from Costco, and I think that any house with young kids should keep one in their pantry.
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