The Asian Grocery Store Demystified (Take It with You Guides) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Jonathan Eismann (Foreword)
Key Phrases: lycium berries, wonton noodles, mung bean starch, Oriental Mascot, Southeast Asia, Peony Mark (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Though many Americans are eager to cook Asian dishes at home, the thought of navigating an Asian grocery store is a different story. For a non-Asian it can be bewildering territory full of pungent aromas, packages with labels in Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Korean or Vietnamese and odd-looking specimens you don't know whether to eat or to plant. At last there is a book that takes you by the hand and gives a clear and fascinating tour of these markets. It couldn't have a better title, The Asian Grocery Store Demystified. The author, Linda Bladholm, begins by describing the layout of an Asian grocery store in her neighborhood in Miami. As she explains, there is indeed an order to these markets. "Asian markets are generally stocked according to the principles of balance, " she writes. "Hot, spicy, chili sauces and curry pastes are all in one place; salty items are together in one row, and bitter, sour or sweet things are in other sections." That explanation changed my entire perspective, making these markets seem more manageable and interesting. Ms. Bladholm not only sorts out the cultural context of an Asian grocery store, but also does it in such a way that makes you hungry to return. -- Book Description

Product Description

Do you want to prepare an Asian meal as delectable as those in restaurant? Are you too intimidated by the exotic ingredients to try? And what's inside those mysterious bottles, bags and boxes in your local Asian grocery store anyway? This handy Take it With You guide provides the answers. Author Linda Bladholm, who has lived, worked, cooked, and dined in locales as diverse as Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Hong Kong, China, Korea, Laos, and Vietnam, takes you on a tour of a typical Asian grocery store and expertly describes what you'll find. Make Your Next Shopping Trip a Successful and Fascinating Journey Peppered with over 400 illustrations, plus stories about the ingredients used in every major Asian cuisine, this guidebook identifies and tells you how to use the vast array of meats, fruits, vegetables, noodles, tofu, rice and delicacies. A bonus section of the author's favorite recipes will help you create savory, authentic dishes that will impress everyone--and it will open a window onto the remarkable civilizations of the Orient.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Renaissance Books; 1st edition (April 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580630456
• ISBN-13: 978-1580630450
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #164,073 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

72 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Serves a purpose, but not the best, March 26, 2002

By	glbb (Charlotte, NC USA) - See all my reviews

Unfortunately I was not as enraptured with this book as most of the other reviewers. I don't feel it would be terribly useful for a beginning Asian cook.
I also found some inaccurate or less familiar descriptions; for instance many recipes call for "thick soy," which in this book is called "dark soy, or superior soy" but a novice wouldn't know those distinctions.
Additionally the book only gives one or maybe two names for the same thing; if you're cooking something from another culture confusion may reign! For instance in this book belacan (spelled blacan in most other Asian cookbooks I own), which is a common Asian ingredient, is the only word used for dried shrimp paste -- it's also known as trasi (Indonesia), kapi (Thailand) and mam tom (Vietnam). In the grocery store I have bought a wonderful paste that is packaged only under the name "trasi." Using this book, who would know?
Among its weaknesses I find the dearth a pictures a detriment. Many shoppers (like me) are quite visual and look for colors or bottle shapes. It would be more helpful to have photos of some ingredients; for instance showing the difference between bean thread noodles and rice sticks, or what a jackfruit looks like.
I found the index difficult to use. Something might be referenced in the text but not found in the index. Drives me nuts.
However, there are some strengths to this book. It's a convenient size to bring to the store and gives a nice overview. It's also helpful for the novice to have brand recommendations, but I can safesly say, having shopped for ingredients in Minnesota and California (and in Australia), that not all the same brands are imported to everywhere and that what she recommends may not be in your market.
If you really want to get serious about Asian ingredients I suggest you check out three books: "Chinese Cooking, Step by Step techniques" by Yan Kit Martin (Random House). This book has photos and Chinese characters for many different ingredients. You can easily take it to the market. Charmaine Solomon's "The Complete Asian Cookbook" (Lansdowne) has a good glossary of ingredients in the back of the cookbook, but it's a big book to heft around (I think the new edition is paperback though). Lastly, if you can find it, "Charmaine Solomon's Encyclopedia of Asian Food" (William Heinemann Australia) is well worth seeking out. It's the best of the bunch. Loads of ingredients listed alphabetically, pictures, a great index, some good recipes -- this weighty book has it all. Worth lugging to the market if you need help.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like seeing the tree in its leaf, December 31, 1999

By A Customer

Asian food tastes good, that part is not so mysterious. As a lifelong lover of the gifts of the Oriental cornucopia, and as an occasional, bewildered visitor to Oriental markets, I have found a trustworthy guide to calm my fears and open my eyes to the logical patterns extent in Asian groceriesÉ. Sort of like seeing the tree in the structure of its leaf. BladholmÕs handy, compact guide is jam packed with a veritable taxonomy of Asian foodstuffs. After several trips, guidebook in tow, I now know my way around the numerous varieties of noodles, rice, veggies, spices, condiments, and sweets. My taste buds require fire and ice, and the yin yang organization of a typical Asian grocery that Bladholm so clearly and deftly describes, complete with charming, lovingly done, little word sketches drawn from her extensive Asian travels, as well as her uncannily accurate, line drawings helps to make a trip to the Asian grocery store as easy as apple pie and ice cream, just substitute the apples with pomegranates and the pie with soy bean paste confections that boggle the palette as well as the eye. Hers is a great book, it does what it title claims. It is a totally demystifying experience!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice compendium explaining some of the more esoteric foods, July 9, 1999

By A Customer

The author does a great job of shedding some light on some of the lesser known cuisines of Asia--such as Korea and Cambodia. That is not to say that the more familiar cuisines of China and Japan are not covered. She explains many of the more esoteric ingredients and herbs of those countries as well. A really useful book for both the beginner, interested in expanding their culinary horizons, and the more advanced who don't have the ability to read asian languages--I've cooked Asian foods for many years, and still find myself stumped with trying to figure out what the heck to do with an ingredient. I usually ask someone, but I now have a resource to turn to, to supplement my information. Also, a plus is the size of the book--it will neatly fit into one's back pocket or purse. Well done!