Off to ethnic supermarket tomorrow - what should I buy and what can I make?

[AuntieMaggie]

I'm going to visit a recommended ethnic supermarket tomorrow and fancy buying something different to try a few new recipes... so any suggestions?

Plantain. When it is really ripe (so the skin is black), chop off the ends & chuck it is the microwave for 3-4 minutes. Yum.

Rather depends on what you like and which ethnic group the supermarket caters to. My favourite caters to several ethnic groups as it is in a hugely varied community. Have you any particular type of ethnic food/recipe in mind?

its mainly indian/asian...

do you like curries?

You could ask at the counter.

My indian shop love to tell you what things are and the best way to cook them. Even standing in the queue there I have asked varies people what they've got.

It usually leads to an explanation about how to make plaintain chips or mashing yam. All very good natured. People like to tell you about their cooking skills.

I was asked the other day at the counter what I was going to do with the black peppercorns I'd bought.

When I said I was going to put them in the pepper mill and explained why I was met with a bemused look.

Seems that sprinkling ground peppercorns over cooked food is considered a bit odd amongst people from Southern India.

i love curries!

it was a bit busy by the time i got there this afternoon to ask anyone anything due to me sleeping until lunchtime...

Lol AuntieMaggie!!

What did you end up getting then??

all purpose seasoning, dried chillis, okra, curry leaves, cinnamon (though not as big a bag I wanted), tandoori masala, paprika, garlic (big bag) flat bread things, mango chutney, and some crispy chicken coating

oh and curry leaves!

Mmmmmmm

Sounds lovely. Did you suss out something to do in the end?

My favourite Asian supermarket has a freezer section and you can buy packs of frozen crushed ginger. I always buy that, but only ever seem to use it in chinese dishes.

I only ever tend to use cinnamon in sweet dishes. Do you use it in savoury??

It's very cheap to buy fresh ginger and freeze it.

Then when you want to use some take it out of the freezer and grate what you want into the dish you're cooking.

Grating frozen ginger is so much easier than trying to chop or grate fresh.

God where do I start?
All of the following are must haves for indian, thai, persian, moroccan
They make you life much more eciting if you are vegetarian and can make the cheapest ingredient taste like a 5 star meal

basic dry pantry for spices is:

• garam masala

-yellow curry powder

• tumeric
• coriander powder
• cumin
• cinamon
• paprika
• chili
• mango powder
• mustard seed
• curry leaves

dry goods:

• daal red lentils
• gram flour (to make pakoras - fritters)
• urad daal flour ( to make dumplings)
• rice obviously
• chickpeas
• "bombay mix" as in snack mix actually used to make salads or "chats"

condiments:

• fish sauce
• sesame ooil
• ghee
• brown sugar

fresh foods"

• coriander leaves
• red onions
• garlic
• chillies red and green
• lemongrass, ginger, limes, lime leaves that work well for thai food too

Now I realise am too late am I?

I would add jaggery to the condiment section and for Moroccan cookery, dried fruits like dates and apricots plus a jar of preserved lemons.

Check out the cocunut milk. I went to Sainsbury's yesterday and a can of coconut milk was £1.83 . Went to my local asian supermarket and it was 49p.

Sounds like you did well! I get all my herbs and spices in my place as they are much, much cheaper than Tesco and you get a much better selection too.

missmartha, what do you do with jaggery?

Where would you use your cinnamon Slim/Missmartha? Thinking about it I do use it in Moroccan cooking, but do you use it in curries at all?

I use jaggery in any Indian sweet cooking and for sweetening drinks.

In fact if you're cooking Indian food and a recipe calls for a pinch or so of sugar, I'd use jaggery.

Cinnamon is an important ingredient in Moroccan cooking. Any lamb or chicken dish really.

thanks! I've often seen it in the supermarket but have not been sure what you'd do with it.

favorite moroccan tagine is "mrouzia" a traditional jewish morccan recipe.

1. toss lamb in olive oil until brown (in a dutch pan)
2. sprinkle saffron strands, salt and pepper, cover halfway with water.
3. cover with 4 large white slivered onions and one layer of sliced tomatoes
4. sprinkle 3 tbspsugar mixed with tbsp cinamon and pop in oven 3 hours.

there is a lovely middle easter rice dish called "maklouba" litterally "upside down"

let me look up my recipe. Always feels really more fastidious than it is that I forget...yum, you giving me ideas....coming back

ok, this is layered egplant and rice with mince.

1. rinse, slice and sprinkle eggplant with salt to drain excess water.

2. stir fry 2 onions with 1lb mince lamb (as in making bolognaise) then add handful pine nuts, 1/2 tsp all spice and 1 tsp cinnamon

3. rinse 3 cups rice 5 times to get rid of all the starch then boil in 2 cups chicken stock with saffron until evaporated.

4. fry eggplant

5. in a pyrex bowl, layer eggplant rice lamb and rice again. Add 1/2 cup stock cover with foil and steam "au bain marie" in oven for 20mn.

6. remove and let sit 30mn before turning upside down

yes preserved lemons and coconut milk a must

To be honest though. I make my own preserved lemons. It's so cheap and easy.

No not too late slim as I'll be going back definitely!

I'm short on recipes for the dry goods you listed do you have any good ones?

I didn't see any jaggery but I'll keep my eye out!

I've made a few curries, and basically have just been throwing spices in and going by smell... I would love some good recipes though, especially for the sweeter tasting curries.

I sometimes put a teaspoon or half of one of cinnamon in my curries but if I put too much in DP moans. SW uses it in dishes like spag bol too.

I forgot the coconut milk too - they used to do several types at my local asda and you could get a cheaper version with the asian stuff but that seems to have disappeared as has the plain cous cous (well they have some but it's almost 3 quid for a small bag and it's not their own which is cheaper!)

definitely a pinch in bolognese!

Another of my mother's favorite is saffron/cinnamon chicken. This is an ancient recipe from moorish andalucia.

1. fry 2 grated white onions and 4 crushed garlic cloves in olive oil until tender not brown. Add 1 heaped tsp ginger powder (or fresh grated ginger) , 1 stick cinnamon, 1 good pinch saffron and 1/2 tsp tumeric.

2. add chicken and water to cover (halfway, you made add a bit more later if a bit dry) stew until sauce goes a bit sirupy. Serve with "fiddaus" which is very thin angel hair broken pasta (also used to make a kind of paella).

The preserved lemon version would have you drop the cinnamon and replace with one chopped preserved lemon.
The sauce really goes goey and delicious. In this version, add fresh chopped coriander to serve.

Now if you really want to go for something original, take this latter version of preserved lemon tagine.

1. beat 4 eggs and add the chicken + about 1/2 of the sauce. Add a handfull of fresh coriander and 1/2 squeezed lemon.
2. put it all in a baking dish and pop in oven until set. The best frittata you have ever had. Its called "tagine swiri" (from essaouira-morocco)