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/ck/ - Food & Cooking

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4520837 No.4520837 [Reply] [Original]

>got bored
>drove down the street to the Grand Asia Market
>300 Asians and I'm the only white guy
>entire store smells like spoiled ballsack
>start gagging
>turn around and leave after walking halfway through the store

Why do asian grocery stores always smell so terrible, /ck/?

>> No.4520845

>>4520837
It's the fish. Clearly you've never had any contact with real food and only eat processed cheese. Asian markets have numerous ingredients that are much cheaper or even nonexistent in regular grocery stores.

The smell is from the fish.

>> No.4520868

>>4520845
pretty much this.
fish is smelly, and asian people love their seafood.

>> No.4520877

>>4520837
>Why do asian grocery stores always smell so terrible, /ck/?

But they don't.
Deliciousness is in the nose of the besmeller.

>> No.4520888

>>4520837
I dont know but I date an Asian(flip), she does not smell. However, I work for Koreans. Holy fuck balls I know what smell you are talking about. That is what every Korean smells like. A cross between sesame seed oil,and fish.Mixed with balls. Blame it on them.

>> No.4520896

I like Asian markets for the availability of ingredients not generally sold elsewhere, but holy shit, could you find a more unpleasant shopping experience? I read Japanese and a small amount of Chinese, but even that won't stop the owners from being racist as fuck. And the Koreans are the worst. They know more English than the Chinese and the Japanese, and they are by far the most racist. How does this square?

Vietnamese are pretty cool though. Which is surprising given how much shit we gave them in the 60s.

Anyway, my general rule is to be very suspect of the meat in Asian markets, but to go for the produce and spices. Just make sure you wash your produce well before using it. Ethnic markets usually have some pretty suspect meat, even the halal ones, which you would think would be pretty trustworthy, but I always find it smells rather funny.

>> No.4520901

This. I was visiting my dad's old neighborhood in New York, which had been taken over by Asians at this point. We were waiting to cross the street, and the Asian Market behind us smelled horrible. A very unpleasant experience.

>> No.4520911

>>4520837
Because as a people, they do not bathe.

>> No.4520918

>>4520845
good freash fish should never smell

if it reaks like fish turn around and leave

>> No.4520932

>>4520918
This only really makes sense if you're used to dealing with seafood. I find a lot of Midwesterners find odd fishy smells in seafood markets that people on the coast do not. Seafood smells like seafood.

Still, it's not a bad metric. If you can say it "reeks" then it's probably bad. But (and I'm bringing the midwest up again) a few times I've been to the West Side Market in Cleveland, Ohio, and while I've been warned to avoid it, I've found some decent (if not great) seafood there. But holy hell, was there an awful smell. I think a lot of it had to do with how they disposed of the refuse, because the product on display smelled pretty good.

I'd say if you have no experience with seafood, avoid smelly places. But you might be missing some pretty good fish.

>> No.4520953
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4520953

Come on guys. I'm as white as a glass of milk on a glacier, but even I know that smell is from all the fermented products. If you're not used to it, it can seem overpowering, but you'll get used to it. Also, if the smell is very very strong, then it's probably not a very quality market. I go to my local Asian market all the time, and it has a light smell to it, which is stronger around the fermented foods, and slightly briney-fish around the fish counter, but that's it. I buy meat, produce, fermented stuff, frozen goods, sauces, noodles, spices, etc. etc. there all the time and have never had a problem with it. They also have a deli that sells the most god tier fried fish. I always pick up a whole fried mackerel while I'm there as a snack.
>tfw people watch me eating a whole fish wrapped in paper on my way home.

>> No.4520954

I love asian markets and always find the people working there be helpful; but even more so, I find the asian customers to be a blast. Maybe since Im over 6 foot and have a giant red beard they think of me as some kind of attraction they get a kick out of helping me. Also helps to know a few colorful pieces of the language.

>be in china town chicago
>looking to buy a durain.
>two old ladies in line next to me start eyeballing me and the fruit
>one starts telling in the worst broken english on how to pick durian
>other old lady clearly doesn't think she is giving good advice but doesnt speak english at all
>Old ladies start flipping out and yelling at each other in cantonese
>one old lady grabs my durain and takes it back to pile and grabs me another one-apparently she was the durain expert
>two old ladies still arguing in chinese with each other

>> No.4520963

>>4520954
also

>be at joong boo market in chicago
>buying stuff to make kimchi
>ask older korean woman which is the hotter chile flake
>ask me if my korean gf/wife is making kimchi
>tell her no, Im making it for myself
>old lady precedes to drill me on kimchi
>partially satisfied she begins to rifle through my cart making sure I have all the stuff

old asian ladies are funny

>> No.4520967

>>4520954
Hehehe, I know, right? >>4520953 here.
Everyone is always really nice and helpful to me also, and they always like to ask what I'm making with my stuff or what I'm using it for. (I'm 6'1, pale ass whitey with strawberry blonde hair. )

>> No.4520985

>>4520954
You should buy Durian from the southeast Asian places, they're much better. Argyle is the shit. Vietnamese food and this market called viet hoa is amazing.

>> No.4520999

>>4520985
Ive been meaning to go there for awhile now, but I don't think durian is for me. Was like a trial thing. Still be willing to give it another shot or two to make sure.

>> No.4521122

>>4520837
you are a fucking idiot and a cunt if you think this

>> No.4521208

List of smells in Asian grocers.
Dried fish.
Fish sauce
Prohoc
Dried meats.
Star anise
Curry leaves
Ginger/galangal
Soy
Mints
Sesame
Exotic fruits, durian, jackfruit, milkfruit, pandanus etc.
Teas.
Leafy green vegetables.

I mean seriously OP can you even into VOC's from fragrant fresh foods and dried meats and spice?

>> No.4521250

>>4520918

Generally the smell is not from the fish itself on display, but probably from the fish counter area in general, since most fish is gutted and de-scaled on the spot (lots of customers buy live from the tank).

Or like >>4520953 noted, it may also be from various fermented foods.

Some groceries have a hot food section with prepared foods - sometimes these dishes can be very pungent, or the resulting mix of smells can be pretty overpowering if ventilation is poor.

Finally, some places also have traditional medicine counters that come with a lot of smells of their own due to all the various medicinal herbs used.

>> No.4521393

>>4521122
>you are a fucking idiot if you think the truth!