Smaller containers, typically just a plastic baggie, much cheaper; any reason to steer clear? I can put them in my own small airtight containers, and I surely don’t need as much for a special recipe as are in the regular expensive containers on the spice shelves. I see most of the spices I use in the Hispanic foods section-anyone have a reason not to save money by buying them?
Go for it. That’s where I get my bay leaves.
Yep, and the same thing for buying spices at Indian markets–you can usually buy a baggie full of cumin or pepper or cardamom, cheaper than a little glass bottle at a grocery store.
At the Ethnic markets, I know the turnover is high, so I just grab and go. At the supermarket, I’ll take the first few off the hanger, grab the fifth or sixth one back and replace the others. Light - I’m concerned that due to a greater surface area exposed to light, those plastic bag herbs in the front may not be quite as potent as the ones further back, or the ones in glass with a label wrapped over most of it.
But yes, they’re generally fine.
I don’t do herbs/spices from China, though. Just don’t trust the food safety for such a notoriously and easily adulterated product.
Grab and go. Save some dough.
They are probably fresher than McCormick, and 1/5 the price.
Yeah, I recently discovered them, too, and was amazed at how cheap they were. Haven’t had a chance to try any of them yet, though.
You should know that Mexican oregano isn’t the same thing as true oregano. They come from different plant families, and their flavors are different enough that you might want to use one in place of the other. I don’t think, for example, that Mexican oregano would taste quite right in an Italian pasta dish.
I don’t think they’re THAT different. I keep them both around, but have been known to substitute one for the other in a pinch, and it hasn’t made a huge difference at all.
If you use them near the end of cooking, they’re noticeably different, but I never use oregano near the end of cooking. By the time they’ve had a long simmer, the most volatile essential oils are gone, and those seem to be the ones that differ.
I think Mexican and Mediterranean oregano are as different flavor-wise as something like marjoram and oregano (I’d say more different, actually). I’ve tried using Greek oregano in Mexican dishes, and it just doesn’t taste right at all to me. Mexican oregano in pasta sauces makes the pasta sauce taste, well, more “Mexican” to me. I prefer Mexican oregano being used in Italian dishes to the other way around.
For me, they’re different enough that I leave it out rather than substitute.
I wouldn’t worry… well-regarded spice merchants like Penzeys sell spices in plastic bags as well- usually the larger quantities. I’d think if there was an issue, they’d sell in jars or something.
I’ve had great luck with Bolner’s Fiesta brand spices in the little packets (what I’m guessing you’re seeing).
Going to be fresher and better than McCormick, which I will no longer touch after picking up a couple of different bottles of it two weeks ago in the store and noticing every goddamned one of them said ‘Product of China’.
Oh, and I’m talking things like onion powder, and garlic powder, stuff of which there is a lot of in America.
And, yes, the spices will be fine. I never buy the overprices McCormick’s spices. Never. You’re just paying for the jar. Either buy at an ethnic market or at a place like Spice House or Penzey’s, both of whom have the highest quality of spices (and great selection) at much better prices than McCormick’s.
I’ve had good luck with Cora spices, too, in the Italian section.
Penzy’s is also great. It’s not as inexpensive as the ethnic brands in the supermarket, but their quality is far better than McCormick.