Personal Narrative: My Visit To A Latino Grocery Store

Many Americans associate ethnic foods with those that are available at local grocery store chains and Americanized ethnic restaurants. The most visible ethnic foods in grocery stores are Asian and Mexican foods. Common food items such as refried beans, soy sauce, tortillas, sesame seed oil, water chestnuts, and salsa limit Americans perspective of cultural foods and ingredients. A visit to a Latino grocery store was an eye-opening experience for me. Supermercado El Rancho stocks common foods that I am familiar with and many that I did not know even existed. This new experience forced me out of my comfort zone and encouraged me to find out what these new foods were and how Latinos use them. Upon entry, the only shopper in the store was I. The more time I spent looking through the aisles, the more customers began to come in. Most of those shopping were Latino. There were several Latino men who looked like they were on their lunch hour picking up items for lunch; there were also a couple of families with children that came in to do grocery shopping. One gentleman I bumped into was African American, who

There was a very large selection of dried beans in a variety of quantities. Most grocery stores chains carry a large selection of canned beans and a small section of dried beans. The convenience of canned beans makes it a preferred choice in the U.S. since time is an important priority. Dried beans require soaking overnight and long hours of cooking, but can be a healthier choice since the preparer controls the amount of sodium. The assortment of dried herbs, spices, and seasoning also impressed me. I did not expect to see Adobo seasoning in the store because I associate Adobo as a Filipino food. After coming home and researching Adobo, I found that it is a dish that spans many Latino countries though the ingredients vary slightly from country to