Asia Foods Store is probably the best Indian/Pakistani store in the West Los Angeles/Culver City area. Asia Foods is right there on Venice Blvd, just past Motor Ave if you are driving East on Venice Blvd. The store offers all your standard grocery needs like spices, rice, atta, snacks, frozen foods etc. They have a Halal Meat counter as well. One of the things that is great about this store is they have a very good fresh vegetables section where you can get a decent variety of Indian veggies like Bhindi, Palak, Karela etc. They also have a good selection of fresh herbs like coriander leaves, curry leaves, mint leaves. Most of the other stores in the area are quite poor (with the exception of Samosa House).

This store is very popular in the area and this means that their products sell out fast and so there is fresh stock on the shelves all the time. Whenever you go to the store (especially in the mornings), you can see them stocking the shelves or adding fresh vegetables. The store owners are very friendly and very helpful (unlike India Sweets and Spices where they are pretty rude in my opinion). You would enjoy shopping here.

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A & S Food Market is a little store on the corner of Venice and Midvale Ave.  If you are driving on Venice Blvd, you cannot miss it. I typically visit the store for its convenient location (a 2 minute walk from where I live). The store is a standard size Indian grocery store and has about 5-6 aisles of spices, masala pastes, rice, atta and other Indian cooking needs. It also has a fairly big Halal meat section at the back of the store. There is a frozen food section which carries your standard products like milk, juices, frozen vegetables, rotis, parathas etc.

One of the big factors why I dont shop here is the variety of available items is much smaller that some of the other stores in the West LA area. They have very limited options on most of the items. They also do not carry many fresh vegetables. You will probably find only potatoes, onions, ginger, garlic and tomatoes and if you are lucky some fresh herbs.

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The United States has a very large Indian community in many of the large cities such as New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco Bay Area among others. Some of the stores are small mom and pop stores selling basic needs such as rice, dals, spices and vegetables. These stores probably have most of the things you would need to do typical Indian cooking.

However in some locations like New Jersey, the Indian grocery stores are really large. These stores are almost as large as the American Grocery stores and sell other products such as cooking utensils, DVDs, CDS, Books and Magazines etc. They also carry a larger variety of the basic products. 

The Indian Food & Grocery section of the website has a list of such stores. The site currently has over 900 Indian food & grocery stores listed in the United States. If you think one of the stores has incorrect data or if you have a new store you would like listed, please do contact us. We would greatly appreciate it, if you would provide a review of these stores.

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Indian cuisine is distinguished by its sophisticated use of spices and herbs and the influence of the longstanding and widespread practice of vegetarianism in Indian society. Food is an integral part of India's culture, with cuisines differing according to community, region, and state. Indian cuisine is characterized by a great variety of foods, spices, and cooking techniques. Furthermore, each religion, region, and caste has left its own influence on Indian food.

Many recipes first emerged when India was predominantly inhabited by Vedic Hindus. Later, Christians, British, Buddhists, Portuguese, most importantly Muslims from Turkish, Arabs, Mughals, and Persians settlers and others had their influence. Vegetarianism came to prominence during the rule of Ashoka, one of the greatest of Indian rulers who was a promoter of Buddhism. In India, food, culture, religion, and regional festivals are all closely related. Indian meat and fish cuisine is mostly influenced by the Muslim population. 

Sanjeev Kapoor (b. April 1964) is one of the top chefs in India. He has authored many books and is the host of Khana Khazana a popular cookery program shown on Zee TV every Sunday since 1993. The show has completed 450 episodes. He started out in the hospitality industry in 1984 with a diploma in Hotel Management from IIHM (Indian Institute of Hotel Management) Pusa, Catering Technology & Applied Nutrition. he started his career in the ITDC under their kitchen management scheme.

He was a topper in his batch. After working in many hotels, he became the Executive Chef of the Centaur Hotel in Mumbai (Bombay). His television show won the Best Cookery Show Award given by the Indian Television Academy (ITA) in 2001.

Haldi or Turmeric (Curcuma longa, also called tumeric or kunyit in some Asian countries) is a spice commonly used in curries and other South Asian cuisine. Its active ingredient is curcumin. It is a significant ingredient in most commercial curry powders.

Turmeric is also used to give a yellow color to some prepared mustards, canned chicken broth, and other foods (often as a much cheaper replacement for saffron). It makes a poor fabric dye as it is not very lightfast (the degree to which a dye resists fading due to light exposure). 

In Ayurvedic medicine, turmeric is thought to have many healthful properties and many in India use it as a readily available antiseptic for cuts and burns. It is taken in some Asian countries as a dietary supplement, which allegedly helps with stomach problems and other ailments. It is popular as a tea in Okinawa, Japan. It is currently being investigated for possible benefits in Alzheimer's disease, cancer and liver disorders. Sangli, a town in the southern part of the Indian state of Maharashtra, is the largest and most important trading centre for turmeric in Asia or perhaps in the entire world.