One of the things I dreaded most moving to Germany was the prospect of losing access to beloved ingredients and spices I'm accustomed to cooking with at home. Tahini and Za'atar, Dashi powder, Tajin, Kewpie mayo...I didn't know if I would be able to find any of these key foods in German supermarkets.
Turns out, I had good reason to worry. None of these items are available in any old German grocery store. I have to go to specialized markets, most of which are few and far between.
One exception is the Turkish markets, which are a bit of a phenomenon here. Because of the large Turkish population that emigrated to Germany, Turkish ingredients and foods are fairly accessible across the country. Turkish markets tend to have ingredients that Germans consider "exotic", including filo dough and spices other than salt and paprika.
(Side note: it is scary how much Germans love paprika. I have never encountered so many variations of the same spice in my life. You'd think it would be easier to simply use a different spice than keep reinventing the same one, but maybe paprika is one of three governmentally-approved spices that Germans are allowed to cook with. You probably have to do a training and get a license to cook with any other spice here. My favorite variety of paprika I've found here is "spicy" paprika, which is not even the slightest bit spicy. Like even my mom could eat it.)
When Thanksgiving rolled around, I asked every German in reach if they knew where I could get fresh cranberries. Again and I again I got the answer "Have you tried the Turkish markets?". I was perplexed, because I didn't know that fresh cranberries were a traditional turkish ingredient. To this day, I'm still not sure they are. I certainly did not find fresh cranberries in the Turkish market I went to.
Not a week later, I spearheaded another organized hunt for an ingredient I didn't think I'd have any trouble finding: Chili powder. (Needless to say I didn't anticipate this level of German aversion to spice/flavor/variety or I would've packed the damn spice in my suitcase. Like hello??? Chili powder??? I use it in practically every recipe I make.) Desperately, I again asked every German in reach if they knew where I could get chili powder. All I got were shrugs and the same feeble suggestion..."Have you tried the Turkish markets?".
This is when I started to realize that the "Turkish market" suggestions I kept getting from Germans were not earnest pieces of advice. In fact, I don't think a single German who told me to go to a Turkish market has ever actually set foot in one. Rather, Germans see The Turkish Market as a kind of elusive, all-encompassing Room of Requirement for ingredients they consider "too exotic" to stockpile in their own grocery stores. Fresh cranberries? Turkish markets. Chili powder? Turkish markets.
The next time my German roommates ask me if I've seen a misplaced sock of theirs, I'm gonna suggest checking out the Turkish markets.
P.S. Shoutout to my family and Elya for visiting me this month and bringing me all the spices I've missed so dearly.
