Guys, I'm going to H-Mart for the first time tomorrow, along with a few other asian grocery stores

guys, I'm going to H-Mart for the first time tomorrow, along with a few other asian grocery stores.

besides common sense staples, what are things to buy?

...

All those ingredients you left out or substituted in any Asian dish that you thought were unimportant

Theres a reason it didn't taste as good as you expected

They have monkfish
They have eel sauce
They have gochujang powder (make into paste)
Their meat sections are generally cleaner than a Chinese mkt's
Korean seeded grapes have a unique flavor

the h mart where i live has suspiciously low prices on meat. haven't gotten brain parasites yet

This shit is tits

Translates to morning sunshine. came out early 2000's ish. Pretty close to Mexican horchata-a rice-based sweet beverage. Very light.

The H mart near me has the best sake selection in town. So nice.

this and soju

Instant ramen and instant udon. H Mart has the real flavors: seafood, soy sauce, kitsune udon, spicy lobster flavor. Every other store just has beef and chicken ramen. The real Asian flavors are fantastic.

You can also get some instant steamed buns, but it's a crapshoot. I once bought some ankopan you cook in the microwave and whatever brand I picked was awful.

Pick up a bottle of mirin. It's used in everything.

Most of the workers there should speak both Korean and English (a prereq for their hiring process) so feel free to ask questions.

Get porkbelly-it looks like bacon. Tasty af. Premarinated kbbq is killer, if you don't know how to make your own. Buy stainless steel chopsticks-last a lifetime.

Their banchan (little side dishes) sections are pretty good too, especially if you're going to one near a big city(philly, nyc, palisades park/edison)

If you're into unagi, they sell frozen premarinated eel. Defrost, fry/bake, serve over rice. 1/3 price of Japanese places.

What else. Buy their fresh kimchi(gimjang, guchurri, po, etc) that they make, or its cousins(kakdoogi). Anything that they make (especially if you can see older korean ladies making it) is good.

Ssamjang is great as a veg dip. Gochujang is like sriracha but 10 times better. Baked sesame seed oil is good for adding flavor to noodles, rice, salads, etc.

Get a rice cooker if you don't have one already. Buying rice in bulk is hella cheap. Mixing brown with rice is a nice middle ground btw/ flavor and healthy. Add soaked red beans if you want to add protein.

Fresh young coconuts have coconut water inside that is incomparably better than the packaged stuff.

Korean snacks is good to experiment with.
Mon cher (pic related) is my fave.

Cont.

Fish section
Beltfish, Mackerel, whiting, butterfish, yellowtail are all good fish to get as a beginner. Grill, panfry, bake...go nuts. Get the ones with CLEAR eyes, ever bloodshot/yellow/cloudy.

If you're on a budget, buy the salted/frozen fish. Use salmon bones (the leftovers from preparing the prime cuts) for soup bases/stock.

Fresh abalone are delicious cooked with butter. Kinda like giant escargot-and you get a pretty shell afterwards(if you remove it before cooking)

The live crustaceans (as long as they're moving) are cheaper/fresher than most supermarkets.

Vegetables
Sesame seed leaves, red lettuce are both perfect for lettuce wraps (kbbq)
Daikon radish (looks like a fat midget peg leg) is good for soups (cubed).

Protip: You can use even the most basic of rice cookers(with only cook/warm functions) as slow cookers. The larger ones can fit entire racks of ribs.

Frozen shit:
fish balls/oden: The Korean brands usually have less chances of sketchy ingredients(tighter food regulations vs china/japan, as they're required to include country of origin for individual ingredients.

Frozen shumai is a sin and a tasty one at that.
Frozen potstickers/dumplings: ask for the korean ones. WITH MEAT.

Korean ice cream. Get the kind that looks like a carp. Kinda like a choco taco-comes with either red bean paste or choc. Everything else, look it up or try on your own.

Ramen:
Not all ramen is cooked the same way-some require draining excess water. Read instructions.

The Sun brand fresh ramen in the frozen/refrigerated noodle section is the closest thing to real japanese ramen you can make without cooking from scratch. Comes in Shoyu(soy sauce broth), Tonkotsu(pork broth), and Miso. Miso is vegan.

that's about it. check out their bakery if they have one. the thick-sliced white bread should be labeled 'milk bread'. Tasty on its own, when toasted in a pan with butter and sugar-fucking heaven.

they're famous for their fresh seafood. should probably grab some gochujang / kimchi / and an economy pack of cup noodle if you don't care about sodium. if they have a ready made section get a roll of kimbap and some japchae. maybe bean sprouts/kongnamul too.
and anything with red bean esp pic related and rice cake/tteok with red bean inside.

Cafe du monde coffee

The one I've been to had a good selection of Jap/Korean curries. Stock upon them.

>So nice.
>So rice.

One job, one job...

Aw man, I love that fish ice-cream. Getting the cravings now

This stuff is more sugar than anything but definitely get some, the H Mart in my area usually stocks it.
Apart from that, get some Shin Ramyun Black, Choco Pies, and see if they have the kimchi stuffed cucumber, that stuff is godly.

BLACK RASPBERRY WINE

OP here, thanks guys, I truly appreciate your help. This really makes me wish the workday was over already. I goto my local Korean Grocery till the owner said he was too old and sold the building now its a nail salon supply company.

I hope I can score some free empty mooncake tins from some of the smaller places, like i used to from the one.

does H-Mart sell weeaboo snacks like calorie mate and BOSS coffee?

fuck the rest of these hipster cunts
reduced sodium soy (light soy)
dark soy sauce
shaoxing wine
chili paste
dried Asian Chile's
spicy bean paste
mirin
rice wine vinegar
oyster sauce
black bean paste
fermented black beans
Hong Kong noodle
sesame oil
peanut oil
mei fun
Jasmine rice/whatever Asian hipster rice you want
>he stir fries in a sautee pan
buy a Wok faggot
spend time learning how to season said Wok

fuck premade foods. you can make 90% of all Asian dishes with those ingredients

>fuck the rest of these hipster cunts
>proceeds to act like a smug hipster
Post discarded

>basic ingredients are so hipster
gotchu famalam.
enjoy your shit tier life you nigger

No, insulting everyone else and being a condescending fuckhat because some people suggested some already prepared/frozen/instant/snack foods, and then proceeding to list staples even though OP said "besides common sense staples" makes you a hipster. Dumb hipster.

marinated bulgogi meat
durian fruit
xxl container of MSG
fresh macaroons from the french bakery
hello kitty trinket
korean grandma apron

>insulting everyone else
nigga where is you vs where you need to go back to
>impying you know exactly what OP meant by basic staples
jesus my head hurts at how stupid you are

Hentai Mart?

Mine has 2 aisles of pocky, kakipi, c.c. lemon, can coffee (not sure brand), Korean snacks, and the like. I don't recall seeing calorie mate or boss, though.

Hey buddy, you don't have to resort to ad hominem just because you got called out for being a dumb little shit.

says you

>besides common sense staples, what are things to buy?

Are you white and tall?

If so you better buy a 2nd cock and a few boxes of condoms. Don't bring your girlfriend.

Not op. But thanks, also go for the nongshim instant udon.

The Asian milfs who shop at Atlanta-area Hmarts are GOD TIER

but can you get the beignets?

>used to live 15 minutes from H-Mart
>closest one to me now is 90 minutes away

truly suffering

Are you going to the one near Finch Station in Toronto? If so, do try their curry pork cutlet (on rice) in the prepared foods section, it's super good. Their version of inari sushi is also good, not as sweet and sour as the original Japanese, or the Chinese version, but Korean Bean Curd Rice has sesame seeds on it.

For ramen there, look up "Seafood Party", it's in a blue package

>8▶
> (OP)
>>used to live 15 minutes from H-Mart
>>closest one to me now is 90 minutes away
>truly suffering

I'm in South Etobicoke. On one hand, this is a beautiful white neighbourhood. On the other hand, there are no asian grocery of any sort within walking distance. It's a culture shock for someone who used to live in Scarborough. I don't miss the littering from the mainlanders or the litterings and catcalls from 'basketball americans', but I miss Taro Ice Cream. Also Korean BBQ's lunchbox special, for $5.99 there is a box with BBQ beef or pork or chicken (lamb is one dollar extra), panfried bean sprouts, vinegared carrot/daikon strips, rice, HK-style milk tea, AND a cup of plain tea.

+if you're not used to eating whole fish cooked, just go with mackerel because it's not as bony as the rest of the fish listed here. the sesame leaves might be caller perilla leaves instead.

Try some of the 매실 juice. They usually mix it with aloe or something. Also, get MILKIS

>MILKIS
fuck yes. my racist little nephews will only go with me to the Asian marts if i get that for them.

Go to the meats section and try the premarinated stuff.