Hi, foodies in the Hive!
On this occasion, we're going shopping for rice!
For as long as I can remember, I've been a very efficient rice eater! 😁 I'd like to include more brown rice in my diet; anyway, this is a pending task, as I didn't find any at the supermarkets I visited this time. So I contented myself with buying white rice, which I usually have in my pantry; parboiled rice, which I like for salads; and risotto rice, which I seldom buy because it's somehow expensive for me.
Thanks a lot, @plantpoweronhive for keeping this space open and @sirenahippie for hosting this fun contest: Your Veggie Shopping. You can click on the link and learn how to participate! There's still one day left 😌
Special thanks to @sagarkothari88 for granting us his support once again.
First of all, I'd like to show you what I've bought, and how much I've paid for this.
I bought a total of 2.8 kilos of excellent quality rice: Mary white rice, "Esmeralda," Mary "Dorado" rice (steamed - parboiled), and Riscossa "Carnaroli" rice for risotto. Mary is a Venezuelan brand, while Riscossa is Italian.
Although I went shopping on April 21 (Friday), it wasn't until the 23rd (Sunday) that I decided to make my purchase. I always try to get the most for my money, as I work two jobs and really hard to earn it. I paid a total of $7.51 for 2.8 kg of rice.
The first store I visited was in Lechería, Anzoategui State. This is the neighboring state. I live in Sucre State (in Cumaná), but I travel to Anzoategui every weekend to my second job. On Friday night, I accompanied my sister--who is my boss at my second job--to shop for some items we'd bee needing for dinner. We went to La Cascada, and I took the opportunity to look at the rice prices and varieties they offered there. They had Mary and Primor (also local).
Their prices were about the same as in my city, so I didn't buy any. This would be more weight to carry in my luggage, and after 12 years of traveling interstate, I've learned to go light.
A package of Scotti rice for risotto really caught my eye, but the price put me off: $6.51 for 1 kilo.
I left La Cascada del pan with 300 gr of almonds I found cheaper than in my hometown, but no rice.
It was a good couple of days at work, so on Saturday, I finished too late to come back home. I stayed, shared some quality time with my sister, and then came back on Sunday morning. As soon as my husband picked me up, I asked him to take me to some stores. The first one I visited was El Hato Grill; I visited this store first, as I was almost sure I wasn't buying anything there; most of the time, they have higher prices. But also, they have good products, so I wanted to take a look.
El Hato Grill must be the nicest supermarket in town. They had Primor and Mary as well. No brown rice, though. Neither they had any risotto rice.
They had this expensive packet of Basmati rice: $8.56. How I love this aromatic rice; most of the time, I add raisins and nuts when I cook it... then, a pour over thick and spicy gravy. But it was going to be some other time. Next!
I was very disappointed when I arrived at the supermarket where I normally shop (New Market). They didn't have good brands. I examined a package of "Doñita" rice, but although it was very cheap, it had a lot of broken grains. We like our rice to have loose, whole grains. Next!
My last hopes were for Royal Automarket, a small, traditional supermarket in my city. They are located on Miranda Avenue, near my house. A couple of years ago, we stopped visiting this store, as it had declined a lot, but to our joy, they have invested in improving this business: now you can find variety, good brands, and good prices. And it smells good; may it last 😉.
It had rained a lot, but Cumana is so hot that the streets were already drying out, and you could feel the steam coming off the pavement on your face.
At Royal Automarket, they had the same brands I had found before plus many others, although not my favorite ones. Their prices were a little lower.
Immediately, I took a package of Mary white rice, "Esmeralda". National production. Excellent quality. Good price: $1.5.
I was thrilled to have found a package of Riscossa risotto rice at a great price: $4.76.
It was an Italian brand, as I had already told you at the beginning of this post.
I also took a package of Mary parboiled rice. It's not as good as brown rice, but it kepps its nutrients better than white rice. This is 800 gr for $1.25.
I was done! I was armed with 2.8 kilos of delicious rice at a very good price. I went to the cashier to pay, to go home at last!
As soon as we got home, my husband made coffee, while I organized the shopping. Canela, as always, came to inspect before the products went into the cabinets and boxes under her custody. So many things to smell.
She approved the risotto rice purchase; even though she doesn't eat rice, she is happy for us 🐱
I keep rice well stored, far from direct sunlight or heat. After I open the packages, I keep them in the fridge, because even though we love to eat rice, we're trying to cut down on it. So it lasts us a long time--relatively speaking, maybe this purchase will last us a couple of months.
Thank you so much for your visit :)
All text and images are my own. I have taken the pictures with my Redmi 9T cell phone. And if any GIFs here, I've used GIPHY for all them.
