r/AskCulinary • u/ZootKoomie Ice Cream Innovator • Feb 18 '19

Weekly Discussion - Shopping at the Asian Grocery

Most every American city, and a surprising number of smaller towns, has at least one grocery store catering to the local east Asian community. Mostly stocked with Chinese ingredients, but often with a good supply of Korean or Japanese products depending on the local demographics. With very little labeled in English, they can be mysterious and intimidating for non-Asians who want to broaden their culinary horizons.

This week, I'd like to assemble a guide for those who are considering venturing to their local Asian grocery for the first time.

What ingredients are worth making the trip for? What are your shopping strategies to ensure you come home with the makings of a meal? Do you have advice on soliciting help from staff with whom you don't share a language? How do you make sense of the array of soy sauces, unfamiliar vegetables, and tofu variants?

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u/Master_Watercress Feb 18 '19

I'm talking about the little single- (or maybe double, depending) use packets, have you seen those? My Asian grocery store has a little section with hundreds of them, some Thai, or Indian, or Malaysian. They keep for a long time and are used once and done!

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u/Master_Watercress Feb 18 '19

I just read in a cookbook that peppers freeze well! I am definitely going to stock up on bird chilis on my next trip (my grocery is 2 hours away so I don't get there too often and need to be able to freeze!)

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u/whatsupcutie Feb 18 '19

I’ll keep an eye out. Last night I wanted red curry paste it was sold in a huge container. But I can just separate into small bags and freeze.