Comments on: Grenoble Spice

By: James Dalrymple

James Dalrymple — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:20:10 +0000

Hi Nadeen,

Either French tastes are changing slightly or there are more international residents (like ourselves!) to cater for, as I have started to see fresh chillies at Carrefour Meylan – albeit not every week …

James

By: Nadeen

Nadeen — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 13:37:02 +0000

I gave my French boyfriend some chocolate with chilli in it – despite his constant admissions of loving South American food – he nearly fell of his chair. It is easy to see the influence of North Africa in this city, but in the main I think it’s fair to say that traditional French cuisine does not really utilise alot of spice. Having spent a year training as a sous chef, the tradition mainly calls for herbs such as parsley, tarragon and thyme as additives of flavour.

Garlic, ginger and pepper seem to have been well recieved here over the centuries, but chilli…not so much.

Being Australian, chilli was something I used like seasoning. Now however, I have decided if I am going to integrate into the French culture with zeal, I happily prefer to give myself a stomach ulcer from the wine and not overly spiced food. :)

bon appetite

By: James Dalrymple

James Dalrymple — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 07:36:15 +0000

Mmmmmm … beef rendang! ;)

By: Pim

Pim — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:23:25 +0000

Fantastic post, thanks a lot. Today I was cycling through the city, desperately trying to find some lemongrass. After trying almost every shop in this list, I left home again for on last shot, Saigon Store. Now my beef rendang is bubbeling happily away :)

By: hannah dee » Blog Archive » Stuff I wish I’d known before moving to Grenoble

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 13:27:49 +0000

[...] exotic or out of season vegetables, either go to one of the international supermarkets or to Carrefour at Grand’Place. But be warned, Grand’Place is hell on earth on a [...]

By: Mickey

Mickey — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:01:17 +0000

Ooops, forgot to add a useful detail. The address of Arax is 3, Rue de Turenne, close to Place Championnet.

By: Mickey

Mickey — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:54:05 +0000

There’s also Epicerie Arax, which has a nice selection of bulk and packaged spices, jars of Pataks and other spicy sauces and condiments, and miscellaneous other not-so-easy-to-find-in-France things like Polish dill pickles. Many Mediterranean and Middle Eastern specialties – I get lavosh bread there.

Grenoble does offer some nice variety, if you know where to look. These addresses are a great help.

Thanks, Hannah for the chili pepper lead…I’m off to make chicken enchiladas!

By: subodh

subodh — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:41:55 +0000

Thanks a lot. As an Indian, single, vegetarian, poor at the French Language, Neuro-researcher I was ‘at a loss’ to find right ingredients and spices. Now I have this list thanks to your write-up, not just Raja Bazar!

By: Hannah Dee

Hannah Dee — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:42:12 +0000

Hi Suzanne

Do you mean the cluster of arabic shops around the Place Aux Herbes?
I have visited a few of those and they are excellent sources for ingredients for some varieties of cuisine. They seemed to be more stocked with dried goods and those marvellous little pastries with pistachios.

Do you have any particular recommendations? Maybe I just went in the wrong ones! I’d be happy to jump on my bike sometime and write an update:-)

Yours,

Hannah.

By: James Dalrymple

James Dalrymple — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:14:40 +0000

Hi Suzanne,

I wrote the opening paragraph. I think the French are definitely not as keen on spicey/hot food as the Brits. Southeast Asian and particularly Indian cuisine is much more prevalent in the UK than in France, simply because we have had much more emigration from the subcontinent.

I think in France the spices and ingredients found, particularly in the Old Town, naturally complement North African (rather than Indian) food – which makes sense of course. The big supermarkets like Carrefour, though fantastic in general comparison to British counterparts, naturally don’t cater as well for this particular style of cooking. As Indian food is probably the most popular ‘foreign’ cooking style in the UK, some of us Brits miss it here.

To that I should add the Indian restaurants I’ve been to in Grenoble are largely disappointing because the spiciness has been tempered for French tastes – except the Bombay on Cours Jean Jaurès, where the waiters ask you how spicey you like it and food is wonderful.

By: Suzanne Bonnefond

Suzanne Bonnefond — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 07:29:41 +0000

The French are not known for their love of spices – difficult for Grenoble’s British expats such as Hannah Dee, who comes from multicultural Leeds. Here is her guide to Grenoble Spice: the specialist food stores that hold those treasured, hard to find exotic ingredients.

!!!!!!I am so surprised to read that !!!

you forgot all the little shops in the old city of Grenoble, and which have been selling spices for decades !!

By the way, I found the hot curry paste Pataks at Intermarché !!

By: Roger Boyle

Roger Boyle — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:34:08 +0000

Just the ticket – I’ll be in Grenoble for 2 weeks in December and will need to visit all these places. Big thanks.

By: hannah dee » Blog Archive » Grenoble spice at Grenoble life

hannah dee » Blog Archive » Grenoble spice at Grenoble life — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 07:56:32 +0000

[...] October 30, 2009, 7:56 am, by admin, under France. I’ve just had a guest post published at Grenoble Life, the Anglophone website for Grenoble & environs. It’s about finding spicy ingredients in [...]

By: Shonah Kennedy

Shonah Kennedy — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:14:55 +0000

Thank you thank you thank you! This is great – I can’t tell you how long I searched for green curry paste many weeks ago…now my search is over!!