What I learned today

My grocery store sells over-ripe or nearly over-ripe veges and fruits in red mesh bags for 99 cents. I went there looking for clearance bags of sumos and found two bags of seven each. They were in fine shape. I figure people weren't buying them fast enough at the price of $2/ea. and a new shipment came in. And, since they're ugly to begin with and people don't know what they are, they were sitting there pour moi. I am the walrus.

[Jenise]

That's great! No bargains up here. Not sure where the old produce goes but none of the stores around here sell any.

That's great! No bargains up here. Not sure where the old produce goes but none of the stores around here sell any.

FM has a basket with a few of those around at least once a week. Since I know you shop there take a look around. I've bought the $1/bag bargain vegs and fruits when I know I'm going to use them in a day or two. Great bargains.

[Jenise]

Only been there once in the past year so I'm rusty about what they do or don't, but I don't recall seeing them. Or maybe what they do have flies out in the morning, where I'm generally an afternoon shopper. When we lived elsewhere, I fondly remember buying bargain bags of dried-up mushrooms to reconstitute and grind into a soup or duxelle, that kind of thing.

Today I tasted my first Sumo Mandarin, and I'm in love.

The Sumos we get are pretty sweet and are definitely one of the more reliable citruses to come through our WF year after year. They also have a pretty long season and seem to be pretty consistent. At least what comes through our WF.

Which is what it all comes down to me for me. I love citrus (and fruit in general), and have a hard time picking absolute favorites. It's usually more about what is the best option available to me in my local store on any given day.

[Jenise]

That's good to hear, Rahsaan, about the reliability. I adore citrus fruit and am mystified by why/how I didn't try these sumos before except that I've mistaken them for the softer-textured low-acid tangelos I don't care for.

When I was a kid, my mom would buy valencia oranges at these outdoor market stands where things were considerably less expensive and often uglier, but tastier than supermarket produce for like two for a penny. They were small, often quite scarred which was somehow related to sugar content as they were the best ones, and I'd often eat five or six at a time, cutting them in half and eating them out of the shell. In those days, it often fell to me to make my own meals when I didn't like what everyone else was eating, and this was a frequent option. Those valencias disappeared along with the groves of orange trees that made them in the Orange County of my California childhood.

Nowadays I do that with clementines--just sit down with a bowl of them. And this year I had a type of tangerine called Gold Nuggets, which were great. But other than Cara Cara oranges, citrus fruit is often quite dicey. Sometimes pretty, but tasteless. Where and how they were grown matters a lot and you can't tell that by looking at them.

Navel oranges have become worthless to eat - they're big, and round and pretty and... woody.

I've recently started to like blood oranges a lot. I'll eat clementines, in season, 3 or 4 at a time. But the rest of them, oranges, mandarins, tangerines, tangelos, etc., are all about the same.

But the rest of them, oranges, mandarins, tangerines, tangelos, etc., are all about the same.

??? Surely you can get good sources in Nyc! Even my last resort Whole Foods usually has a few very good citrus options out of the 10+ options that are for sale. I love tangelos (as I love zippy wines) and am surprised to hear Jenise refer to them as sweet. The whole idea is that they are crossed with pomelo/grapefruit and should have a nice tart edge. My local WF had a good 3-4 week run this season with top notch versions.

For those who are really committed, there are various outfits in FL that will ship direct. I've done that before and had good results.

Maybe I'll have to make an effort to assemble a sampler and try them all again. I used to eat fresh oranges as snack food but lately I've lost my zest for them.

[Jenise]

Navel oranges have become worthless to eat - they're big, and round and pretty and... woody.

I've recently started to like blood oranges a lot. I'll eat clementines, in season, 3 or 4 at a time. But the rest of them, oranges, mandarins, tangerines, tangelos, etc., are all about the same.

Agree almost completely--I love cara cara oranges. But, feeling as you do I have to emphasize that these Sumo mandarins are different--they really deserve your attention.

I'll keep my eyes open for them. None of the nearby shops has them, but there is one 'better' grocer about a 15 minute walk down Court Street so I'll check them out (when it isn't raining).

Those sumos are dee-lish... have been eating lots of those this year!!

[Jenise]

I love tangelos (as I love zippy wines) and am surprised to hear Jenise refer to them as sweet. The whole idea is that they are crossed with pomelo/grapefruit and should have a nice tart edge.

As a kid I loved them. Last time I bought some they were soft and low-acid (sweetness without acidity comes across to me as too sweet) and I haven't bought any since.

I went to the better grocer. They had them. Eaten one so far, with a half a navel (or was it a cara-cara?) for comparison. The sumo definitely shows its tangelo heritage - peeled very easily, it is more acidic, less sweet and less-textured mouthfeel. Good, anyway. (Pumpkin said, "Those look like fruit drawn by Dr. Seuss.")

[Jenise]

If you had a Cara Cara, it would have been noticeably red in color vs. the pale orange of modern navels. But hurray, you've joined the club. Tell Pumpkin I love his comment.

This was pale, and will do.

That's great! No bargains up here. Not sure where the old produce goes but none of the stores around here sell any.

A lot of old produce goes to food pantries and soup kitchens.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Yes, our local Co-ops are able to donate away 90% of their surplus that way. Not sure the big chains bother, though.

Looked into it for the first time....I should be able grow fenugreek and if successful have enough fresh for summer, fall and to cook and freeze for winter, spring. Always look forward to a challenge.
Also learned that is is in the legume family.

[Jenise]

Didn't realize that.

Last time I bought it, I bought it in Canada and it got seized at the border. They took my fresh curry leaves because they're in the citrus family, took my 3 yr aged basmati because they don't allow rice from anywhere but China, took my eggplant because no nightshades ever anytime (none of this I knew prior to that day) and just to punish me they took anything else I forgot about being in the car and failed to name specifically. Can't recall which side of the problem the methi fell on.

So sad! I would have been very upset if that happened to me. I've realized this past year how important being able to grocery shop and cook is for my psyche. My mood is always buoyed finding good produce or an interesting or unknown ingredient and thinking about how to use. I've made do with trying to creatively cook and clear out the pantry, fridge and freezer. Finding the unexpected - the methi and curry leaves in a BP gas station -Quick Mart was thrilling !

I hadn't realized fenugreek was a legume until I first saw it fresh. The leaves are very similar in shape to clover and alfalfa.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

You're kidding--a gas station Quik Mart?!!! I understand the thrill, and you remind me of something. A Sikh just opened a small convenience store in a former duty free shop at the Peace Arch park, the only no man's land along the Canada-US border, a few miles from here. Until I read your post I had forgotten that I'd read that, in addition to the kind of last-minute beers and pre-coital libations for desperate cross-border couples meeting in tents in the park (yes they do it in the park and everyone knows and feels sorry for them!), he planned to carry hard to find Indian food ingredients. Perhaps I should check that out.

And yeah, re the confiscation. It was annoying to lose $50 worth of groceries, but much more than that what irked was the punishing, rebuking tone in which I was treated like a smuggler. The "you're just lucky we're letting you go" stuff.

Probably not coincidence....this BP-Quick Mart is 1 block away from a former bowling alley, now Sikh Temple. It carries all the spices, dals, flours, rices in really huge quantities - 50# flour, 5# dals and 1# spices. The limited fresh produce comes from Chicago weekly and knowing when the delivery is helps freshness. No better place for okra, leaves, ginger, mango.
Definitely check out the Peace Arch Park. I suspect that there might be a lot of others missing their ethnic groceries.