# Is there anything more curious to still find in grocery stores than lard? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 17, 2017, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659 "2017-04-17T19:42:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/81 "2017-04-20T18:50:31Z")
> [@PlumBob](#): > > I nominate Nad’s Nose Wax. > > [Nad's Hair Removal Nose Wax Kit for Men & Women](http://nads.com/hair-removal-products/nads-hair-removal-nose-wax-for-men-women) Better than Nose’s Nad Wax. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/82 "2017-04-20T19:58:40Z")
And less painful. Ovaltine. I drank it (also ate copious quantities, dry with a spoon) as a kid, but I have yet to see anyone actually have any in their carts. Yet it remains on the shelf. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/83 "2017-04-20T20:04:31Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > I would imagine most of the Hispanics are buying the cans of _manteca_. I chuckle everytime I drive through that city. > > There are some things one can find in the baking aisle that are quite interesting leftovers. And if you have a store that still stocks a full complement of lunch meats, well, have fun trying some of THOSE! 😃 Olive loaf. I have never found anyone who likes it. But there it is. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/84 "2017-04-20T20:05:48Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Well, no problem other than the price. The jars cost more than whatever you’re putting in them, and the lids are even worse. Reusable. And make great gifts. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/85 "2017-04-20T20:08:10Z")
> [@5\_time\_champ](#): > > Fels Naptha bars, or Fellsa Naptha as my grandmother used to call it. It was a heavy duty stain remover 40-50 years ago in the days before liquid stain removers. > > I think I still see in grocery stores; though when I worked in a grocery store in the early 70’s it wasn’t a big seller. > > Although I think it is now used in the production of home made soap. When I was poor, for some reason I had a large box of baking soda. 40#? Anyway, I used it for cleaning and washing clothes, using Fels Naptha on dirty spots. Worked quite well. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/86 "2017-04-20T20:10:50Z")
> [@Savannah](#): > > If I make pastry from scratch, I use lard. Only lard. Nothing else will do. > > As did my mother and grandmother. > > Edited to clarify, only lard, never Crisco or whatever. Plus flour, water, salt. One of my aunts used to send me Christmas cookies in huge glass jars, some of which I still have, now used for flour & sugar. The cookies never tasted very good. Mom said that was because auntie used lard instead of butter. Was she just blowing this out of her ass, or do we have it backwards? Maybe the cookies were stale by the time we got them (bulky shipping was slow in those days). ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/87 "2017-04-20T21:07:25Z")
> [@swampspruce](#): > > And less painful. Ovaltine. I drank it (also ate copious quantities, dry with a spoon) as a kid, but I have yet to see anyone actually have any in their carts. Yet it remains on the shelf. “Be sure to drink your Ovaltine.” ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/88 "2017-04-20T21:20:03Z")
> [@swampspruce](#): > > And less painful. Ovaltine. I drank it (also ate copious quantities, dry with a spoon) as a kid, but I have yet to see anyone actually have any in their carts. Yet it remains on the shelf. My kids have Ovaltine nearly every morning. Well, the 6 year old now prefers his milk “plain”, but the 4 year old insists on it. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/89 "2017-04-20T21:24:52Z")
Potted Meat Food Product. It’s the stuff two shelves down from tuna, one shelf down from deviled ham, and very possibly the cheapest meat-based food in any grocery. They typically have dust on the cans and prices that look like a misprint. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/90 "2017-04-20T21:25:34Z")
> [@Jumpbass](#): > > Hey! I use Brylcreem and I’m certainly not a bearded 30ish mixologist! Not even a barista! Nor hip! > > Brylcreem isn’t what it used to be. It’s not the greasy kid stuff my Dad used. It’s more like a leave-in conditioner with some mild holding properties. The greaser rockabilly guys I know won’t touch it. Maybe _they_ use lard. > > Maybe that could be the new approach for marketing lard. As a new, natural pomade. for the greasy look, I always used “Dippity Do” gel. Of course its a gel so it only looks greasy, but dries to a hard, industrially-applied hairspray-like feel. The most unusual thing I’ve ever seen at a local grocer was prickly pear cactus. Not the super sweet, red colored, prickly pear fruits themselves, but the green prickly pear cactus plant leaves. They had little tear-away pad of different recipes stuck to the front of the cooler to use them with. Lard, while limited in selection, was not unheard of. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/91 "2017-04-20T21:27:56Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > “Be sure to drink your Ovaltine.” A crummy commercial? On the Dope! Son of a bitch… ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/92 "2017-04-20T21:33:00Z")
I frequently just gawk, mouth open-puzzled look, at the section of a top shelf in the canned food section that has the potted “meats” and such. The labels of many of these “meats” are nightmare fuel. Who buys this stuff? Searching indicates that the proper term is “potted meat food product”. Read the Wikipedia [page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potted_meat_food_product) at your own risk. Never mind actually eating the stuff: “… make it unhealthy for regular consumption.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/93 "2017-04-20T21:34:40Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Who buys this stuff? _raises hand_ And not even so much me. I only have maybe 6 cans of Spam and related potted meat products in the house. My folks, good Eastern Europeans that they are, stockpile this stuff in case of nuclear war. If you ever find yourself in a Polish or Eastern European supermarket, or one that has a decent section that caters to them, your mind will be blown at the varieties of potted meats, pates, canned hams, mysterious meat and offal spreads you will find there. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/94 "2017-04-20T21:36:38Z")
> [@guestchaz](#): > > The most unusual thing I’ve ever seen at a local grocer was prickly pear cactus. Not the super sweet, red colored, prickly pear fruits themselves, but the green prickly pear cactus plant leaves. They had little tear-away pad of different recipes stuck to the front of the cooler to use them with. Just like the lard that started the conversation, cactus leaves are extremely common in Mexican cuisine. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/95 "2017-04-20T21:37:15Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > A crummy commercial? On the Dope! > > Son of a bitch… Twenty minute response time–not bad, not bad at all. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/96 "2017-04-20T22:18:57Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > Just like the lard that started the conversation, cactus leaves are extremely common in Mexican cuisine. Yea, nopales are widely available. Sometimes they’re the whole leaves (paddles? Tongs are provided), sometimes the spines are clipped, other times the fresh leaves are despined and cut into strips (rajas) before being portioned into a deli tray and wrapped. The rajas are also available canned. ---
**Author:** ![PlumBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@PlumBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlumBob)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2017, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/97 "2017-04-21T13:45:25Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > _raises hand_ > > And not even so much me. I only have maybe 6 cans of Spam and related potted meat products in the house. My folks, good Eastern Europeans that they are, stockpile this stuff in case of nuclear war. If you ever find yourself in a Polish or Eastern European supermarket, or one that has a decent section that caters to them, your mind will be blown at the varieties of potted meats, pates, canned hams, mysterious meat and offal spreads you will find there. A second hand is raised. My local Vietnamese grocery caries a variety of the offal spreads, useful when preparing banh mi. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2017, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/98 "2017-04-21T14:11:29Z")
I found my old Hungarian cookbook a few days ago and was flipping through it. Virtually every recipe (apart from a few desserts) requires lard, often in large dollops. That said, from what I remember of my (Hungarian) mother’s cooking she preferred bacon grease to lard, although obviously not for pastry - she used Crisco for that. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2017, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/99 "2017-04-21T14:19:32Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > “Be sure to drink your Ovaltine.” “But I want a Red Ryder BB gun!” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2017, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659/100 "2017-04-21T14:22:50Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > Yea, nopales are widely available. Sometimes they’re the whole leaves (paddles? Tongs are provided), sometimes the spines are clipped, other times the fresh leaves are despined and cut into strips (rajas) before being portioned into a deli tray and wrapped. The rajas are also available canned. Indeed. Around here, you will usually find whole, despined paddles in the produce section. Then there’s usually plastic bags of the paddles diced into maybe 1/2 inch cubes. That’s usually in the refrigerated part of the produce section, IIRC. Then there’s the cactus salad you find in the jars (and I think at the salad bar, too). And also the canned cactus. I don’t think my grocery has the fresh cut-into-strips version from what I remember. You can also find big leaves of aloe at the local grocery here, too. At least I think it’s aloe. I suppose it could be maguey, or something else, though I’m pretty sure it was aloe. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-more-curious-to-still-find-in-grocery-stores-than-lard/784659.md?page=6)