A fellow reporter recently clued me into a good way to save on last-minute meals: hitting the 50-percent-off section at Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market on the way home from work.

Each day, the markets fill a half-off rack in the refrigerated section with a revolving assortment of meat, fish, produce, prepared meals and salads, soups, condiments and other foodstuffs. Among said co-worker’s finds: ready-to-heat pad Thai and four-cheese pasta and ready-to-cook pizza, jalapeno hamburger patties, salmon steaks and filet mignon.

The stores’ orange chicken, pictured at right, is an example of the kind of thing you might find on the 50-percent-off rack. It retails for $4.79.

There’s also a discounted bread rack, with price cuts up to 75 percent off.

Typically, items need to be eaten or frozen the day you buy them, and the selection can be somewhat hit or miss since the items vary daily. You may want to inquire with your local store about when they put markdowns on display, says my co-worker. She notices selection at her favorite stores varies depending on the time of day.

Fresh and Easy has locations throughout the East Valley. Tribune dining writer Jess Harter recently reviewed the stores’ prepared foods on his blog, The Dish.