Don’t get me wrong – there’s an impressive array of international goods in the typical supermarket these days. Fish sauce, naan, rice noodles, and seaweed snacks – it’s all there. But there’s also specialty markets in the Philadelphia region that are geared exclusively toward the culinary offerings of particular cultures.
I recently took a food field trip to Hmart, located in Philadelphia’s Terminal Square. Consider this place the Walmart of Asian goods. An unremarkable entrance leads to a sprawling full-service grocery which fills the first floor and features fresh, frozen and sundry Asian goods, as well as a second floor full of home goods. (I never made it to the second floor … my thawing frozen dumplings were more important.)
Here’s a snapshot of the top five food finds that await you at Hmart:
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Exotic Fruits and Veggies
At the entrance of the market, find all the exotic produce that’s on your list at a very good price. Look for hot peppers, a wide range of greens and cabbages, whole coconuts, mangos, papayas, cactus leaf, and even durian fruit. I discovered nagaimo for the first time – a long cylindrical tan yam often used in Japanese foods.
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Snacking Fun
Octopus flavored chips? Yes, please. There’s a whole aisle dedicated to chips, shrimp crackers , seaweed snacks, and more. Dried squid “jerky” is quite tasty (a favorite food I first tried in Thailand), as is a tapioca style fruit drink with aloe vera. And there’s another aisle with floor to ceiling ramen options – you’ll want to try every variety.
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Endless Kimchi
If you love spicy kimchi with a meal or straight from the jar, this is your store. Lug home a vat of kimchi in gallon size buckets. The kimchi is next to a section of prepared foods like seaweed salads, seafood pancakes, Korean marinated beef, calamari salad and more.
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Unusual Fish and Meats
Find a seafood counter with whole fresh fish flipping around. There’s also a frozen section where you can find unusual meats not easily found in a regular grocer. For example, I found a frozen rabbit loin for an upcoming recipe story. Need beef blood? Find it here.
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Dumpling Delights
Who doesn’t love shumai, gyoza and other varieties of dumplings? In Hmart’s freezer section, find a breadth of dumpling varieties. Buy a couple packages of these and prepare at home for a fantastic, quick dinner. Look for options like spicy kimchi, leek and vegetable, barbecued pork buns and more.
Take a food field trip to Hmart in-store or online. The Asian grocer is located at 7050 Terminal Square in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. Visit hmart.com for more details.
