[Dirty Martini]

my DH and I just bought a house in a pretty diverse neighborhood. It's pretty heavily Asian, actually, which means that there is a high concentration of Asian restaurants & grocery stores around here.

We have found two grocery stores here that we like - one is about the size of a big 7-11 and the other is the size of your run-of-the-mill safeway or other grocery chain.

can I just say - ohmigod. I am in heaven!! I've found mock duck, mock abalone, bean curd skin, dried tofu, oodles of noodles (and CHEAP! a whole package of rice paper for 69 cents, which is $3 at Wild Oats!!)... It's amazing... fresh tofu, fresh soy milk, rambutan fruit, lychees, etc etc... and the produce is awesome... i have never seen such gorgeous bok choy in my life.

Does anyone else shop at Asian grocery stores? I am just amazed at the amount of stuff available for vegetarians. We even found vegetarian "oyster sauce"!! Pretty darn cool. If you haven't been to one, dig out your phone book and look for one! Then GO!

amy

 

[kraftykraft]

I don't currently shop at an Asian Grocery store, but after reading your post, I am going to start shopping there. I need to branch out of my little neighborhood and see what is out there - I am in a pretty big city so surely I can find an Asian store somewhere.

 

[freemouse]

maybe I shouldopen one

 

[Ocean]

Yes, I live in Los Angeles county and there are many asian stores. My bf and I really love shopping at this one Japanese store called Marukai...I haven't found that much fake meat yet though

 

[freemouse]

Marukai rocks!!!!

 

[with_open_eyes]

yeah!!

i love shopping at the asian store for products that are just too expensive or not available in the health food store or supermarket.

it's funny to see the same asian brands i can get in australia, here in germany!!

mmmmm the mock duck is awesome.

we made a curry and rice with pineapple and mock chicken and it tasted a bit too chicken-ey.... still nice though!

see if you can find the small desserts that have "nata de coco" (a coconut gel) in them. there are really yummy - my fave is the mango one! mmmm (vegan of course)

nata de coco

 

[monkeyandbunny]

I have 3 asian markets within 2 miles of my apartment, the prices are totally amazing compared to the grocery store. I bought a big bottle of rice wine for the same price of a little tiny bottle of the same rice wine. I also found bottled pad thai sauce (it's vegan woo hoo!) the brand is Pantai, it's only 1.09 a bottle and it makes the best pad thai ever!

If your asian market has a frozen section, often they have frozen vegan desserts

 

[with_open_eyes]

mmmm i loooove pad thai!

 

[MelinaM]

I love Ranch 99!!!

They have lots of cool things not available at regular supermarkets!!

Melina

 

[ebola]

Hey.

what section did you find the mock duck in?

---ebola

 

[triumvir]

Richmond's population is about half asian; I should check one of these stores out

 

[Kreeli]

triumvir, t and t supermarkets are great. i shop at t and t all the time. i think you have one out there.

 

[GhostUser]

i live in bklyn ny. many asian neighborhoods. one has a large korean market. what i love best there is the green tea flavored dried bean curd. it comes in a package unrefrigerated, and is a snack. sort of like much softer "beef" jerky. they sell it in strips too, garlic and then spicy ones. the mock duck is also good, but you have to look for the frozen food section. all kinds of goodies there!

 

[Dirty Martini]

wow! So awesome that so many others enjoy shopping at the asian grocery stores. So many things I don't know what to do with

I'm goign to have to see if I can find some of that pad thai sauce...

the mock duck/chicken/fish here is all in the canned food section. Usually it's with the straw mushrooms & stuff.

I've also seen some on the internet that are in freezer bags but the stuff I've seen is all in cans. I haven't been able to find anything like frozen mutton (which I had in malaysia and was SO good!).

amy

 

[Oatmeal]

Yeah these Asian shops seem to pop up EVERYWHERE!

Don't you just hate globalization?

 

[freemouse]

One thing I wouldn't buy is the made-in-China dried seaweed and the alike. The pollution around the shores where they harvest the seaweed is really really bad. Chilli sauces are not always safe either.

 

[GhostUser]

try finding vegefarm products (frozen) a bunch of their products are vegan

 

[GhostUser]

I can attest the goodness of Vegfarm Products. Mark loves the Ham and the Steaks. They have tuna, chicken, lobster, scallops....In the freezer

They have soy milk powder, frozen pops, soymilk, juice, teas, sauces, tofu for cheap, canned and fresh exotic fruits and vegetables, tofu powder, spices, flour, rice sheets, noodles.... Have Fun @ the Asian Markets! Shannon

 

[Faery Girl]

I love Ranch 99 market here in Los Angeles. It's the best! such beautiful produce and so many fabulous soy based products. yum! Lychee really cheap when it's in season....I have to go get some now!