Ethnic groceries & specialty items

In the U.S., I was able to buy ethnic goods and specialty items quite easily. Within a 5 mile radius of my home, there was a Vietnamese grocery store, an Indian store, and my favorite, Whole Foods. Here in Mexico, the goods I need to create culinary magic are hard to come by. While Mexico city is a major international hub and most things can be acquired there, it's too far from us and my condition prohibits me from traveling. So the solution has been ordering from internet stores and having the items ship to our private mailbox in Brownsville, TX. Diego makes border trips 1-2 times a year where he brings everything down by bus. There are a couple of internet stores that have been a godsend for stocking my kitchen with exotic goods:

ImportFood.com

I LOVE this store! I found it when searching for authentic Thai curry pastes as I frequently crave Thai coconut curry veggie dishes. To my delight, not only did they stock a variety of curry pastes at good prices, they also carry brown jasmine rice, black rice vinegar, and an assortment of hard to find spices like kaffir lime leaf powder. Their service is excellent and friendly.

iShopIndian.com

As an Indian woman living in Mexico, I miss easy access to the wide range of Indian spices needed to make scrumptious Indian dishes. Luckily, this store offers all the spices one needs to make authentic Indian food. They also stock a wide variety of chutneys, dried legumes, and brown basmati rice. I definitely had fun shopping at this site and my kitchen is well stocked with Indian goods.

We only eat whole grain products and finding whole grain pasta or brown rice noodles here is nearly impossible. Stores like Amazon.com, LuckyVitamin.com, and VitaCost.com offers these hard to find items. I stocked up on short grain brown rice for sushi as well as brown rice pasta & noodles at the most recent border trip. Thank goodness for the internet!

So with my kitchen well stocked, I am well equipped to continue my international culinary adventures.

Asian Pesto w/ soba

It's pesto time! I have 3 varieties of basil growing this summer: Italian, Thai, and Mexican. I decided to start with an Asian pesto using Thai basil.

Asian Pesto

• 1 c. fresh Thai basil leaves
• 1/2 c. cilantro leaves
• 1/2 c. mint leaves
• 2 T. dry-roasted peanuts
• 1 t. raw sugar
• 1/2 t. crushed red pepper
• 1/2 t. dried garlic flakes or 2 cloves garlic
• 1 T. diced lemongrass (white stems)
• 1/4 t. kaffir lime leaf powder
• 1 T. dark sesame oil
• 1 T. hemp oil
• 1 T. fish sauce substitute (2 t. tamari + 1 t. lime juice)
• 1 T. rice wine vinegar

Blend all dry ingredients in a food processor.

Add the oil, fish sauce sub, & rice wine vinegar and process until smooth.

I tossed the pesto with soba noodles, stir-fried tofu, and a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. YUM!