Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Asian Market


For those of you who know, I'm an avid cook and gourmand. Sometimes the ingredients you want aren't at your local Whole Foods, so you have to go to a "ethnic" grocery store. The powerhouse of Asian grocery stores in Boston is Super 88. There is one in Brookline, Medford, and a small one in Downtown Crossing which I just visited.

These places are hidden gems. They have lots of produce, tons of Asian (duh) ingredients, and they are usually much cheaper than their Whole Foods counterparts (sometimes for the exact same product). I just picked up 5 stalks of lemongrass, a huge bunch of Thai basil, and 2 lbs of pho noodles for less than 5 bucks! The only downside is the inconvenience of going to another grocer, which usually wins out. That is why I suggest you make a run to Super 88 and stock up on things like Shao Xing, Rice Vinegar, Noodles, Sambal, Soy Sauce, and other things with long shelf lives. Then you have them, you saved some money, and you can go back in 6 months.

Although these places have lots of meat and seafood, I have to admit I haven't tried it yet. I'm not ashamed to admit that it weirds me out a little, plus they don't fillet, scale, and gut for you!

2 comments:

Lilac - Like The Flower said...

and the rumor is that they don't leave the fridge's on all night... stick to the shelf-stable stuff.

Capt. BS said...

...and tread carefully around the food court.