Asian food has become increasingly popular today, particularly Korean food that has been soaring in popularity due to the Korean Wave or Hallyu, which is a phenomenon where Korean culture is being embraced by foreigners. However, despite being popular, Asian food is not as readily available in most countries compared to other types of food, and this unavailability may have been caused by the lack of Asia-exclusive ingredients in grocery stores around the world.
Luckily, people who love Asian food can actually buy ingredients online, but this can be quite tedious since you don’t know what the ingredient would look or taste like, so it may not pair well with the recipe. For those in Sweden that are looking for reliable Asian markets, there are actually a few of them that can be found in Stockholm. To learn more about these Swedish Asian markets, here is a simple guide on how to find markets that sell Asian food or ingredients in Sweden.
Consulting the Internet
The easiest way for you to find Asian markets in Stockholm is by consulting the internet, which could give you what you are looking for in just a few seconds. There are plenty of food websites out there that can give you addresses for every Asian market you can find in Sweden, although there are only a few that give honest reviews or lets people write reviews about the markets. In addition, you will also find pictures of some of the Asian markets in Sweden, and these pictures would give you a better idea of how big or small the shop is.
Google Maps can also be accessed online to tell you where to go in order to reach the Asian markets. The internet has plenty of uses whenever you are looking for something or someone, and its usefulness can also be applied in finding Asian markets in any country.
Asking Locals
Although this one method is not as convenient as using the internet, asking locals where you can find Asian markets is also another method to find Asian ingredients in Sweden. However, some locals may not even know what to tell you since they are not familiar with any Asian stores, so you would have to ask at least five to six people outside if they know any.
Not everyone is a fan of Asian food, so there are only a few locals that you can ask that will give you directions towards nearby Asian markets. However, if you are lucky, there will be some locals that would even recommend good grocery stores to buy Asian ingredients. Of course, in order for you to communicate with the locals properly if you are a tourist, you must at least learn basic Swedish words, phrases, and sentences. Learning the Swedish language can be quite easy to learn, and you would only have to read books about it or watch YouTube videos on how to learn Swedish phrases.
The Best Asian Markets in Stockholm
If you currently don’t have the time to do an extensive internet search or ask locals for recommendations, we are already here to give you the names and a small description of a few of the best Asian markets in Stockholm. So, let’s get started in enumerating these great markets.
Oriental Supermarket
The Oriental Supermarket is arguably one of the biggest Asian grocery stores in Stockholm, and it is generally popular for having almost all the Asian ingredients that people need to cook great Asian dishes. If you are looking for Asian snacks, beverages, or candies, then the Oriental Supermarket has everything you want.
Mai Mai Asian Market
Even though this store is not as big as the Oriental Market, the Mai Mai Asian Market Stockholm is still quite popular among locals and tourists because of its smaller space that makes it easier for people to look for what they need. Most of the products that the Mai Mai Asian Market sells are canned and bottled goods, but they also sell other products that would also be seen in the Oriental Supermarket.
Thai-China Supermarket
The Thai-China Supermarket is another small market, much like the Mai Mai Asian Market, but this store mainly focuses on selling Thai and Chinese food products. However, you can also find ingredients and products from other countries besides Thailand and China in this store, making it a fairly diverse market to buy Asian food.
By reading this guide, you may already see that it is quite easy to find Asian markets in Sweden, particularly in Stockholm, although the hardest part of finding these markets is actually going there. If you are near any popular Asian market, then you may only need to walk a few steps to get there, but if you are far away from one, you may have to take a train or any mode of transportation. But, once you buy all the ingredients you need to prepare your favorite Asian dish, the effort to find these markets is worth it.