In a nation of immigrants, ethnic grocers are as American as apple pie.
Ethnic markets follow the stomachs, setting up shop wherever communities are formed, says Peter Larkin, president and CEO of the National Grocers Association, a trade group.
“For years, we have seen a boom in Hispanic markets as that segment of the population has grown,” he says. “Now, we are seeing immigrants from Asia and Africa getting into the business to serve their neighbors.”
Papa’s Food Market is the granddaddy of Delaware’s ethnic grocers, opening in Wilmington’s Little Italy neighborhood in 1955.
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On a recent afternoon, owner Ralph Papa stands behind a deli case laden with cheeses and cured meats. Sausages wrapped in brown paper hang from the ceiling. A nearby freezer case is stocked with meatballs and braciole, an Italian specialty in which flank steak is pounded thin, then rolled in a pinwheel with herbs.
Papa recommends the olives stuffed with provolone displayed in a large jar on the case. He proffers a taste of homemade liver sausage, a dense, earthy treat brightened with orange zest.
“We loved this when we were kids,” he says.
Ethnic grocery stores are as diverse as the state’s population.
If kimchi is on your shopping list, you will find it at Yong’s Oriental Food Mart in Elsmere. In addition to the traditional Korean fermented cabbage dish, shoppers can browse musk melon ice pops, firm tofu marinated with squid and Sriracha, a wildly popular spicy red Thai sauce.
Yong’s is one of the largest ethnic markets in the state, offering produce, exotic herbs, meat and seafood, canned and jarred goods, sweets and skin care products imported from Asia.
Here are a few other samplings from Delaware’s smorgasbord of international grocers:
• West Indian Caricum Market in Dover specializes in Jamaican food, including jarred jerk seasonings, barbecue sauce and hard-dough bread, as well as such traditional take-away dishes as rice and peas.
• Jalisco Mexican Grocery Store in Elsmere sells handmade tacos and tortillas, including dishes made from cow tongue.
• Wang’s Oriental Food Store in Newark opened in 1996 and focuses on authentic Asian ingredients ranging from Chinese bok choy to Thai chili peppers to Japanese green tea. The owners are Chinese but the store is stocked with merchandise from throughout Asia, including Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines.
• Everest Super Market in North Wilmington caters to New Castle County’s robust Indian community. Shoppers can buy cartfuls of fresh veggies and frozen foods as well as rice, wheat and an assortment of dhals or dals, an Indian comfort food made from dried lentils, beans or other legumes. Jai Bhavani, another Indian market, recently debuted in a site previously occupied by a bike shop on Philadelphia Pike.
Expect to see more ethnic foods in mainstream markets in the near future. Mintel Group, a market researcher, estimates sales of ethnic foods in grocery stores will grow more than 20 percent between 2012-2017, with Middle Eastern and Mediterranean foods attracting the most dollars.
Younger Americans with adventurous palates are helping to feed the trend, Mintel reports. Nine in 10 adults age 25 to 34 report they have prepared ethnic food at home in the past month, compared to 68 percent of consumers age 65 and older.