World Markets: Be Culturally Savvy for Less

June 6, 2007 By Matthew Paulson

Not having a ton of money and trying to eat well is no small task. One needs to maintain a healthy level of nutrition while not busting the budget. Many people in this situation resort to eating inexpensive foods such as ramen noodles, beans and the like. This practice can get old rather quickly, fortunately there’s a way that you can eat for very little money and sample foods from all around the world. Most ethnic specialty markets offer inexpensive cultural foods that are very often below the price of the big-box stores and standard grocery stores.

The key in searching for deals at world markets is that you have to know where to look. Different cultural markets will have different specialties, so you’ll need to do some first-hand research about the world markets in your area. If you live in a more rural area, this might not be an option to you. You can still check out your local farmer’s market for a deal though. At world markets, you’ll find generally cheaper produce and find foods that are used frequently by a certain ethnic group to be sold in larger packages for a lesser amount of money.

In Iranian markets, you’ll find very inexpensive produce and all sorts of fresh herbs. In addition, you can find a variety of teas that are very inexpensive and quite the treat to drink. There are great flatbreads that are worth taking home with you. In Indian markets, you’ll find all sorts of spices which are freshly ground and much less expensive than if you had bought them at the super-market. Israeli markets are known for their Dairy products, including yogurts, puddings and cheese. They also have all sorts of different coffees which will give your morning a fresh new start.

Japanese markets have excellent seafood and other great fish. You’ll also find a number of strange imported snacks that you probably won’t be able to make heads or tails of. Most of what you’ll find in Japanese markets is pre-packaged. If you happen to visit a Korean market, you’ll be inundated with seaweed! Apparently toasted and seasoned sheets of seaweed are a snack in that part of the world, and it’s good or you too!

These are just a few examples of what you can find at world markets. Take an afternoon and go look through all of the ethnic markets in your area and notice if there are any great deals. Shopping at ethnic markets will allow you to sample great specialty foods from around the world and allow you to do so at a very inexpensive price.