Do you hoard ‘Farang’ food?

[Chomper Higgot]

A couple of weeks ago while shopping at Foodland I noticed they had a a shelf stocked with corned beef.

 

I don’t eat corned beef, but when I got home I called a friend in another part of Thailand and during our discussions mentioned the corned beef, he told me this was a rare find and could I get him a couple of cans.

 

I rushed back to Foodland to find the whole stock, perhaps 30 large cans and 30 small cans gone, an empty space left in the shelf.

 

Last week while shopping at Central, I spotted a westerner with a basket full to brimming with ‘Waitrose’ cheddar cheese.

 

I can’t imagine buying a large stock and clearing the shelves of a food product, buying enough for my immediate needs plus perhaps one or two extra is more my buying pattern, but obviously some folk see ‘rare’ stuff and buy/hoard the lot.

 

I imagine there’s a Westerner somewhere in Thailand with enough corned beef to last him/her a couple of years.... perhaps stashed alongside a year’s supply of cheese.

 

Is that you?

[Swiss1960]

Not me, only filled my 2 fridges with loads of Singha in order to prepare for the next few no-alcohol-sale-days throughout 2019

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[shadowofacloud]

No. Considering the availability of fresh veggies and fruit, good quality rice as well as fish and seafood, I see absolutely no reason to eat western food when I am here. In fact, even when I am back in Europe, my eating habits are more Asian than European. Being vegetarian (with a slight ovo-pesco bias) definitely helps.

 

But I would definitely hoard red wine, if I came across something decent and reasonably priced!

[Andrew Dwyer]

Could be !!

[CharlieH]

Depends really on what it is, with imported stuff tending to not be a regular thing, it comes under the

"get it while you can" as lord knows when it might re-appear.

[worgeordie]

Could not find Corned beef up here in Chiang Mai,

Princess that is, had a friend just arrived from UK with

some supplies,Yorkshire tea,John West kippers,

and 3 tins Fray Bentos corned beef,you cannot

beat a corned beef ,potato,and onion pie,which

i will be making tomorrow.

regards worgeordie

[Youlike]

I also do it but i won't eat corned beef. You never know when or if they get new stock in Thailand.

 

I noticed a LOT of Western luxury gifts/food/chocolate in Central Chidlom...we'll eat well this christmas!

[NanLaew]

I tend to overstock solely because as mentioned earlier, stock control is lamentable here. There's a few of my mates are the same and when we see something like corned beef, cheese, the Mission pizza bases, Homepride Cook-in Sauces, Branston Pickle, Coleman's Mustard or genuine, UK-made Cadbury's, we will send quick messages to see if anyone else needs some.

[CharlieH]

20 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

Could not find Corned beef up here in Chiang Mai,

Princess that is, had a friend just arrived from UK with

some supplies,Yorkshire tea,John West kippers,

and 3 tins Fray Bentos corned beef,you cannot

beat a corned beef ,potato,and onion pie,which

i will be making tomorrow.

regards worgeordie

You rotten git !! ???? Why did you have to say that ! I like making the same only as Pasties ! But alas none here either ☹

[tutsiwarrior]

the little tescos where I live ain't got shit so I usually plunder the big tescos and the local makro at the changwat when I go up for IO business...at the big tescos this week I glommed all of the TGM liver sausage that they had and all of the edible avocados...later at makro I took all the canned garbanzos and most of the stuffed olives, cannelini and borlotti beans...they ran outta red kidneys???!!!

 

dese guys can never keep anything in stock so ye gotta grab it while ye can...soon gotta build a pantry offa my kitchen to house my hoard...

 

 

[Justin Side]

I have learnt that if you find anything you like, buy the whole stock as you will probably never see it again.

This applies to lots of things here.

[Jingthing]

When grape nuts go on half price I buy all I can. They're good for years after the best by date.

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[Cadbury]

About nine months ago I found fresh/frozen Australian corned beef vacuumed packed in Villa Mart PloenChit and Sukhumvit Soi 11. Purchased as much as I could carry. Never seen it since.

[sammieuk1]

Top tip always travel with an airline that has a cheap or free 2nd bag option and save a fortune when you empty it here ????

[JAG]

I quite like the occasional bit of corned beef, and the Waitrose cheddar cheese is rather good. You usually can't get it, because some so and so has bought up the entire supply!

 

I was just in "Tops" yesterday, they have some frozen sage and onion stuffing in at the moment. I managed to get some, but the Bloke in front of me put six trays in his trolley. Granted, he was an amply proportioned sort of chap, but he must be stuffing a turkey the size of an ostrich this Christmas!

[balo]

No I don't . I try to avoid processed food , especially meat. 

I like western food and eat out a couple of times per week , and make my own dinner the rest of the week.  As long as there are potatoes, carrots, onions, veggies, chicken etc available I don't need to hoard. 

 

 

[NanLaew]

51 minutes ago, Cadbury said:

About nine months ago I found fresh/frozen Australian corned beef vacuumed packed in Villa Mart PloenChit and Sukhumvit Soi 11. Purchased as much as I could carry. Never seen it since.

After 9 months, how much of it have you eaten?

[impulse]

2 hours ago, shadowofacloud said:

No. Considering the availability of fresh veggies and fruit, good quality rice as well as fish and seafood, I see absolutely no reason to eat western food when I am here. ........

 

But I would definitely hoard red wine, if I came across something decent and reasonably priced!

 

With you, it's red wine.  With others, it's cheese.  With me, it was a specific flavor of barbecue sauce that I found once, then it went out of stock for years.  When they came back into stock, I stocked up.  I left a lot behind for others, which turned out to be a mistake when I ran out after a few months and never saw that flavor again.  I resorted to making my own barbecue sauce.

 

[kevvy]

I stock up here in Chiang Rai.. If tops have Jarlsberg cheese I usually buy a few packs as when its gone you can bet your bottom dollar it wont be back in for a long time . Same as Makro they get in Australian smoked salmon from Tasmania . I buy about 6 packets and leave a few there . It takes them about 2 months to get more stock

[Yorkie]

1 hour ago, Justin Side said:

I have learnt that if you find anything you like, buy the whole stock as you will probably never see it again.

This applies to lots of things here.

 

"Tops" in Surin stocked Mallon's sausage when they first opened (about 4 years ago). It sold like hot cakes for a month. Never seen it since. The price sticker is still on the fridge.

[samsensam]

 

i lived and worked in mongolia 20 years ago, the local food could be pretty grim and all foreign food had to come by road. i would pop into the sparcely stocked supermarket a couple of times  a week to see if there had been a delivery of western products and stock up when there had been. thailand today is nothing like mongolia 20  years ago.

[impulse]

45 minutes ago, samsensam said:

...thailand today is nothing like mongolia 20  years ago.

 

Or like most of China today- with the possible exception of Tier 1 cities.  I get a kick out of the "imported goods" section of most Chinese supermarkets where the same crappy stuff that nobody buys back home languishes on the shelf for years.  Meanwhile the stuff that people actually crave from back home is there for a day or 2, then it's months before they get it back in.

 

[observer90210]

No it's not me...I only hoard condoms in my freezers to have stocks for winter. 

[Rc2702]

I hoard non food items as I get bored having to buy them each visit to the shops. I'd hoard up on cheese if the price warranted it. Hint hint nookie

[janclaes47]

I very rarely buy foreign food stuff in Thailand unless it is a heavy promotion, since I can live without, especially at those rip off prices, but when I go to my home country or have friends coming over, the freezer get stuffed.

 

Just a few days ago I had friend bring me President Camembert 1.70 Euro for 250gr - 515 Baht in Thailand

 

Chorizo dried salami 7.80 Euro per kilo - 1750 Baht in Thailand

 

Regular sliced salami with garlic. 0.5 Euro for 150 gram - Thailand about 300 Baht for similar.

 

Sliced Gouda cheese - forgot the price, but for sure again 1/5th of Thailand.

[Rc2702]

4 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

I very rarely buy foreign food stuff in Thailand unless it is a heavy promotion, since I can live without, especially at those rip off prices, but when I go to my home country or have friends coming over, the freezer get stuffed.

 

Just a few days ago I had friend bring me President Camembert 1.70 Euro for 250gr - 515 Baht in Thailand

 

Chorizo dried salami 7.80 Euro per kilo - 1750 Baht in Thailand

 

Regular sliced salami with garlic. 0.5 Euro for 150 gram - Thailand about 300 Baht for similar.

 

Sliced Gouda cheese - forgot the price, but for sure again 1/5th of Thailand.

I bet your fridge stinks even without the camembert

[janclaes47]

5 minutes ago, Rc2702 said:

I bet your fridge stinks even without the camembert

Why the need for an insult.

 

Do you know what I store in my fridge, and are you so illiterate that you couldn't read that I said FREEZER.

 

You do know the difference between freezer and fridge, do you?

[Rc2702]

1 minute ago, janclaes47 said:

Why the need for an insult.

 

Do you know what I store in my fridge, and are you so illiterate that you couldn't read that I said FREEZER.

 

You do know the difference between freezer and fridge, do you?

Calm down sunny jim, what have you got in your fridge to make you so serious. Merry Christmas sunny.

 

BTW. What is a freezer?

 

 

[masuk]

About twice a year, a supermarket chain in Chiang Mai used to get in Fray and Bentos steak and kidney pies.  These cook up wonderfully in the oven.  

But sad to say, as soon as any hit the shelves, they're all gone!

Why they can't place a larger order is beyond me.  Same obviously applies to corned beef.

A limit of 1 or 2 per customer might help.

[sfokevin]

Having lived thru a few coups here I have learned to keep a 6 month supply of Miracle Whip...