The $1.25 Dollar Tree Find I Use Every Day (It Keeps Lunch Bags Clean)

No more leaky disasters.

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I used to dread opening my daughter's lunch bag at the end of the day. She was a good eater, so it wasn't that it would come back untouched. The problem was the sauces that (too frequently) escaped their containers, coating everything in a greasy film. 

It felt soul-sucking to clean those disasters. So, when I found small silicone dressing containers at Dollar Tree a few years ago, I picked one up. Now I own a few, and my cleanup issues are limited to the occasional yogurt cup that somehow got punctured. Dressing and dip catastrophes are a thing of the past.

Dollar Tree Cooking Concepts Silicone Salad Dressing Container

• Price: $1.25 for a two-ounce container
• Why I Love It: They’re affordable, easy to clean and lightweight. I use them in lunch bags for ease and the fact that they never leak.

Simply Recipes / Dollar Tree

Why I Love the Dollar Tree's Silicone Salad Dressing Containers

First, they're a great price. At just over a dollar each ($1.25, to be exact), they're half the price (per unit) of similar multi-packs from Amazon, which typically cost $10 or more for a four-pack.

The bottle is made of flexible, sturdy silicone, and the plastic lid screws on tightly. It has a snap-top with a small hole for squeezing the condiment out of. It's compact, holding just the right amount of dressing for a single salad (about two ounces) without being bulky. 

I've had mine for years, and they've held up through countless washes and being tossed around in lunch bags and backpacks. The leak-proof design is, without a doubt, the main reason I keep them around. (One reviewer on Dollar Tree’s website had trouble with them leaking, but this has never happened to me.) 

For the most part, they're also easy to clean. Just soak them in hot, soapy water, shake them well, and give them a good rinse. If the insides get greasy, I recommend scrubbing them with a bottle brush.

How I Use Dollar Tree's Silicone Salad Dressing Containers

My husband takes one in his lunch bag several days a month. He fills it with dressing, hot sauce, or sauces, like zhoug, chimichurri, or sriracha mayo, to add to his dinner leftovers. (Note: Some of these sauces are too thick to squeeze through the hole, but can be easily squeezed out after unscrewing the lid.) The fact that he's been using the same one for years says a lot about its durability.

The real parenting win is using the container for my kids' lunches. Now that both of my kids are in school, they like bringing a side of ranch or other veggie dips with their veggies or honey mustard for chicken tenders. 

The lid is easy for my littlest to open and close on his own, and the flexible silicone makes it easy to squeeze out whatever's inside, which is a big deal when you're a kid on a mission to eat your carrot sticks. 

I've also used them to send a tiny amount of maple syrup for these four-ingredients protein pancakes. And since both of my kids love rice, I fill the containers with a ginger-soy sauce to squeeze onto rice. 

They're perfect for condiments, dips, sauces, and even non-food items, like lotion, hair cream, and face wash, when traveling. For just five quarters, they've helped me solve a real-life, hot mess of a problem. If you're a lunch packer, lunch taker, or the on-duty, post-school dishwasher for your family, these will save you from many future deep cleans.

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