Food – part 1

Because we live in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital, we have access to several large grocery stores.  There is a large ShopRite at a mall that is about 15 minutes away from our flat.  A small shopping center about 10 minutes away in one direction has a Spar (a South African chain), which is not quite as big as the ShopRite.  In a slightly different direction, also about 10 minutes away is a Pick n Pay (another South African store).  These are both about the same size.  And about 5 minutes from our flat is a shop called Melissa!  This is a smaller market, with local produce, 3 butchers standing at a counter with huge pieces of meat, ready to cut to your order, and plenty of staple foods.  I generally shop at the Pick N Pay, but will occasionally go to Melissa if I’m in a hurry, and to Spar if I’m out in that direction.  I always stop in to ShopRite, if I’m at the mall – just to see what is there! These are a few weeks old, but here are a few pictures from the newspaper sales (“promotions”) inserts.

 

Here’s an old stand-by.  Coke is easy to find, Coke Zero is around, Coke Lite is harder to find, and other diet drinks are really hard to find!  I have discovered sparkling mineral water at ShopRite, and enjoy that.  This ad shows 6 16 oz cans of coke for $5.60 or so.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are available in the grocery stores, but are sometimes called by a different name.  Green peppers are called “capsicum,” eggplant is “impwa,” kale is called “rape”.  Some fruits and veggies come pre-packaged in bags or shrink-wrap, with prices marked.  There is also loose produce, which one chooses, bags, and then takes to the weigh station, where an employee weighs the bag, and prints out the label with the price.  If the bag is not weighed before arriving at the cash register, a trip back to the produce department can really slow down checkout!  Here is a picture of some bulk potatoes and onions – about 4.5 lbs of potatoes, and about 15 lbs of onions for about $9.  This is too much for Tim and I to store – it’s hot here, and our refrigerator is small!

Another area that is sort of different and sort of the same (and that is the story of our life here, adjusting to Zambia – “sort of different, sort of the same!”) is milk.  Tim and I prefer fat-free milk, and so far, we have only been able to find it in shelf-stable cartons.  Actually, that is pretty handy – I can stock up on 1 litre boxes of milk, keep most of them in the  cupboard, and just put one in the refrigerator!  We buy a small box of “full cream” milk for coffee.  I was intrigued to see a sachet (pouch) of milk sold – these are soft squishy bags of milk, which I assume is poured into a pitcher or jar, once one gets it home!  We have not tried it, yet, since you can see it is “full cream.”  Anyway, this is about 2 C of milk for $0.60.

Meat is pretty good, and readily available in Lusaka.  We have seen a man waiting at the stoplight, holding two squirming ducks by their feet, approaching cars to see who will buy them!  There are small shops selling meat behind an open counter, with a butcher waiting to cut whatever piece and size of meat one asks for.  There are also larger, more antiseptic butcheries, selling meat behind a glass counter, with butchers wearing aprons, cutting meat, and bagging it.  Finally there are also supermarkets, where meat is sold pre-cut & weighed, and shrink-wrapped.  Guess which one I buy from??!!

This ad is showing sausage (“Wars”) and ground beef (“mince”) for sale.  The package is about $7.50 for 2.2 lbs.  Some of the sausage is sweet, and some is spicy – I have not yet learned what each type is called – I look for the seasonings, and buy based on how the meat looks – color, fat, seasonings, etc.

This picture is from an old promotion flyer.  We were new here, and didn’t realize what a good price, and what a treat this is.  We have not yet found a coffee that we really like, and if this promotion comes again, we will snatch it up!!

Well, maybe not, this ad shows Starbucks coffee selling for almost $20 for just over 10 oz of coffee.

I will post more about food and cooking in Zambia soon – maybe even later today!