Costco's Best Turkey Lunch Meat Isn't Kirkland-Brand

Costco is consistently teeming with great deals, big brands, and lots of delicious food. While its array of Kirkland Signature products is impressive, not every item is made equally. Tasting Table did a deep dive into which deli meats you should buy at Costco and others to avoid, providing sound advice for sourcing top-tier turkey, ham, and other meats. When it comes to oven roasted turkey breast, the superior choice over Kirkland Oven Roasted Sliced Turkey Breast is clearly Hillshire Farm Slow Roasted Turkey Breast.

Of the many packaged deli turkey brands to choose from, Hillshire Farm's offering is a cut above Costco's. Per Tasting Table's assessment, Kirkland's variety is more expensive for a slightly larger quantity with passable flavor but a rather unpleasant texture. While packaged deli meat tends toward a certain level of moisture, the turkey is both overly wet and contains an unpleasant amount of gristle. This sentiment is echoed across the internet, with commenters often preferring the Hillshire Farm turkey over the Kirkland product.

Some mention that the price of the Kirkland version is too high for an inferior product. Others note its "slimy" and "soupy" texture. Concerns about mushiness, discoloration, and an odd consistency further bolster the opinion that this is one deli meat better left on the shelf. 

Per Tasting Table, the name brand variety simply can't be beat by Costco's Kirkland Signature offering. The convenience of the large-scale package being separated into three plastic pouches also allows you to more easily portion out your deli meat and reserve it for later use while maintaining freshness. When held up against the Kirkland version, both taste and texture are leaps and bounds beyond and can be easily handled without enduring a mushy or wet mess of meat.

Online reviews of the Hillshire Farm brand of turkey meat tout it as a more favorable choice for its lower price and better quality, praising its freshness, lasting power, and versatility. For those who make a lot of deli sandwiches and need a high volume of turkey to work with, the brand is a true winner.

Even if you're not that into making sandwiches, there are plenty of recipes to use up a package of deli meat. Try chopping up your turkey breast and adding it to an herby potato salad, macaroni salad, or other deli salad for a bold boost of protein and flavor. The turkey meat would also make a great filler for savory-style pastries such as croissants. Get even more creative by adding it into soups and stews for a more rich and smoky flavor.