Australian Visitors Need Help Finding Ingredients

[chocophile]

Australian Visitors Need Help Finding Ingredients

This just in from my sister-in-law near Adelaide, S. Australia. Any help on the minimum number of sources to find these ingredients is greatly appreciated.

> I'm in Melbourne with a friend of mine who's the food editor for

> the Melbourne Herald Sun.

>

> She's heading over to the U.S. in mid April to give a presentation with two

> other aussies on the impact of ports--in the oceanic sense--on the culinary

> scene of Oz. It's part of the IACP (Intl Assoc of Culinary Professionals) and

> held in Baltimore.

>

> One of her cohorts is a chef from Darwin, up in the Northern Territory (Croc

> Dundee Land). He's cooking and presenting foods from his repertoire and has a

> handful of things that will be impossible to get hold of unless sourced in

> NYC, even then I wonder where the hell they'll be found. All are

> tropical/hotclimate foods. I was wondering if there is any way you can help

> find them, it'll flop unless found. Let me know what you think.

>

> Here's the list:

> 200 g. betel leaves {fresh, I assume}

> 2 lbs fresh lotus root

> 2 lbs fresh okra

> 2 lbs fresh jicama

> 2-3 sprays fresh curry leaves {???}

> 2-3 sprays fresh kaffir lime leaves

> 2 lbs fresh (or frozen) passionfruit pulp

Thanks,

Clay

[SobaAddict70]

> Here's the list:

> 200 g. betel leaves {fresh, I assume}

> 2 lbs fresh lotus root

> 2 lbs fresh okra

> 2 lbs fresh jicama

> 2-3 sprays fresh curry leaves {???}

> 2-3 sprays fresh kaffir lime leaves

> 2 lbs fresh (or frozen) passionfruit pulp

Thanks,

Clay

Betel leaves are essential ingredients in paan, which is a digestif that figures prominently in Indian and Cambodian culture. Betel leaves are also used as a mouth freshener and may have other properties common to herbal medicines.

Curry leaves are a type of herb used in Indian cuisine. Do a search for "curry leaves" in the Indian forum.

Lotus root is a type of vegetable that's used in many Asian cuisines. (Chinese/Japanese and southeast Asian cooking).

You can find many of the ingredients above in specialty shops in Indian cuisine, in Jackson Heights, Queens. You could also try Kalustyan's or Sahadi's. Okra and jicama are vegetables you should be able to get at just about any supermarket.

Soba

[slkinsey]

Based on the discussion in this thread I would check out Dowel on 1st Avenue and 5th Street.

[bloviatrix]

I have seen passion fruit puree at Kalustyans. Their web site is www.kalustyan.com. I'm sure they would be willing to help in procuring whatever is needed.

[Pan]

I would have suggested Dowel, too. You'll find betel leaves, fresh (refrigerated) curry leaves, and some of the other ingredients there.

You can get lotus roots all over Flushing and Chinatown. Try the Hong Kong Supermarket branch at Pike St. and East Broadway.

For the lime leaves, try Udon's Thai-Indonesian store on Bayard St. between Mott and Mulberry in Chinatown. If they are out, try the Thai store on Mosco St., about a block south of Udon's.

[Suzanne F]

Also try Asia Market on Mulberry Street, just above Bayard, in Chinatown for some of the fresh items. And I know I've seen all the leaves and the lotus root in several stores in Curry Hill (27th and 28th Streets, between Lexington Ave and Park Ave South -- the cross streets around Kalustyan).

Have you posted this request on the DC area board? DC is closer to Baltimore than NYC, and I'm sure all those items are available there as well.

Or if all else fails, pm me and I'll bring all that down from NYC on Wednesday the 21st. Seriously.