Kaffir Lime Leaves

[sammy]

Anyone know where I can find fresh Kaffir Lime Leaves in NYC area or CT? I guess mail-order is also an option.

Thanks for your help.

[Jason Perlow]

You can get them in chinatown at Bangkok Center Grocery, fresh or dried.

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=ST...thai+grocery&s=

BANGKOK CENTER GROCERY

104 MOSCO STREET

(BETWEEN MOTT AND MULBERRY STREET)

(212)349-1979

[SethG]

In Manhattan's Chinatown, they are very easy to find. There is a Thai grocery store on Mosco Street (between Mulberry and Mott). There's also a small grocery on Mulberry just north of Bayard that specializes in Thai items-- they also have them. You buy them in a bundle, and they freeze well.

There's probably a bunch of other places in Chinatown where they are available.

Edit: Curse that Perlow! Beat me to the punch on the Bangkok Center Grocery-- but the other store I mentioned is cheaper!

Edited August 26, 2003 by SethG (log)

[victornet]

I'm pretty sure I've seen them at Kalustyan's, but I'd call first.

[Jason Perlow]

Seth, if you can pinpoint the address and business name of the cheaper place, that would be great.

Bangkok Center Grocery might not be the cheapest, but they have a lot of stuff in there.

[sammy]

That was fast! Thanks for the help.

[SethG]

Oh, I love Bangkok Center Grocery. I go there all the time. I can try to pinpoint the other place's particulars tomorrow, or soon thereafter; I work in the neighborhood. It's a little less clean and organized, but I do think it's generally a little cheaper.

[ratbert]

I would love to be able to find these 'fresh' and locally!

[Ruth]

That "other grocery" is the Udom Thai Grocery at 31A Bayard. Not only is it cheaper but the owner speaks good English and is very knowledgeable. I believe he is actually Indonesian. The store has a lot of Indonesian and Malay ingredients as well as Thai.

To the best of my knowledge Kalustyan, which is a wonderful resource, does not carry fresh kaffir lime leaves and since they freeze so well I see little reason to buy the dried version.

[Suzanne F]

Also:

Asia Market supplies restaurants, but also sells retail

71-1/2 Mulberry Street (around the corner and up a bit from the place on Mosco)

(212) 962-2020

[SethG]

Also:

Asia Market supplies restaurants, but also sells retail

71-1/2 Mulberry Street (around the corner and up a bit from the place on Mosco)

(212) 962-2020

Suzanne's got it! Asia Market Corp. is the "other market" I was talking about. It's just three storefronts north of Bayard on Mulberry. I first discovered the place because they sell fresh coriander (cilantro) with the roots still attached, which is good for some curry paste recipes.

I'll have to check out Udom Thai. I've heard of it before (right here on eGullet) but I keep forgetting where it is when I'm actually in Chinatown looking around.

[Suzanne F]

Glad I could help! I just adore Asia Market. First learned about it when I worked at Match Uptown -- that's where we'd get our lemongrass and Thai basil and cellophane noodles and all that stuff. Very nice people to deal with, and excellent produce.

I like that store on Mosco, too, but that's where I tend to need to figure out how to use what I've bought all on my own; the staff has trouble translating into English. That doesn't really faze me, though. Such interesting items! And it's the only place I've found Knorr Tom Yam bouillon cubes, mmmmmmm.

But I've been noticing a wider variety of Asian products in the Chinatown supermarkets -- Hong Kong (my favorite at the moment) and others. More Thai, Japanese, Indonesian than they used to have.