A handy guide to shopping at the Indian supermarket

The Spinoff

18-07-2025

With prices continuing to rise at the big supermarkets, Perzen Patel offers some tips for Indian grocery shopping.
The other day, I mentioned to some friends that I haven't stepped foot in a big supermarket in almost a year. I only do one click and collect Pak'nSave order a month. For the rest, there's my weekend ritual.
Every Saturday, after the kids finish their sport, we swing by our local butcher – Pakistani, Indian or Asian – for meat. And once that's done, we head to our local Indian grocery store. We don't go there for the frozen naan or the Frooti (mostly). Nor do I go for 'Indiany' vegetables – though a bottle of chutney or achaar often sneaks into the trolley. No, I head to the Indian shop for basics. Milk. Eggs. Yoghurt. Rice.
Most of my friends think of the Indian shop in the context of stocking up for curry night. And many I know avoid it altogether because yes, it can be overwhelming. The shelves are jammed, the aisles narrow and most of the packaging is unfamiliar. The bright white tube lighting is my pet peeve though I do enjoy the loud Bollywood hits from the 90s as I roll around my squeaky trolley.
But here's the thing: in the middle of a cost of living crisis, your local Indian grocer is one of the best places to do your everyday shop. Especially when garlic feels like a luxury item now and the doctor tells you to eat more nuts and seeds without checking what they cost at the supermarket!
At almost all Indian stores, you'll find several options for cheap milk and yoghurt. This is partly because most shops are owned by Punjabis, who buy several litres of milk a week to make paneer and various other goodies. But it's also because for us Indians, yoghurt isn't some new age fermentation superhero. We add yoghurt everywhere – salads, cereals, smoothies, marinades, curries and for lassi, of course. In my trolley weekly is four bottles of blue milk – 2x two litre bottles for $6.80 – and a 2kg tub of yoghurt that's normally about $7.
Next up is rice. I never buy the tiny bags from the big box stores mostly because it wouldn't last longer than three days in my rice-loving household. At the Indian shop there's as many rice varieties as wines at New World. I'm partial to the Royal India or Daawat brand that have 5kg bags ranging from $12-$20 depending on the grain length and age of the rice.
And then there's garlic. In my opinion, fresh garlic can be saved for the cooking shows. Woolworths sells one tiny bulb for $2.90 which is criminal and I can't be faffed with all the peels sticking to my fingers either. Instead, my go-to is Reet's ginger and garlic paste. A kilo tub is $5.49 and allows me to make everything I cook taste deliciously garlicky and gingery. Occasionally, I'll buy frozen, pre-peeled garlic cloves ($3.40) for dishes where only sliced garlic will do.
Ghee is another win. These days, you can easily find jars of Gopala ghee at mainstream supermarkets for about $20, but at the Indian shop there's an entire shelf of different brands, types and tins. You can experiment with a tiny tub of New Zealand made Milkio ghee, there's the super cheap tin of Amul ghee for everyday dal and soup and also the giant 4kg or 8kg tubs you might want to gift the keto fanatic in your life.
And while you're there, you might as well stock up on eggs too. You won't find them categorised by size or chicken origin but you can't go wrong with 30 eggs for $20. Especially if your house like mine is filled with boys who go through six eggs a day!
For some of you maybe my everyday basics soliloquy didn't resonate. You're welcome to continue buying eggs, milk, rice and whatnot from the big box stores. But there are some categories for which it would be an absolute crime to do so.
Nuts are the prime example. At Woolworths, a 250g mixed-nuts bag, loaded with peanuts and a sad sprinkling of almonds, can easily set you back $10 (or $40/kilo). But at the Indian store, almonds, walnuts, pistachios and cashews come in generous 500gm or kilo bags starting at about $24/kilo.
When it comes to lentils and beans, it's more about the lack of variety. My doctor recently told me to focus heavily on lentils and beans. And if I shopped at the big box stores I'd mostly be having chickpeas, cannellini beans, red and yellow lentils. Meanwhile at the Indian shop there's an entire aisle devoted to these beauties – chana dal, moong dal, masoor, urad dal, black chickpeas and so many more – all for about half the supermarket price.
It's a similar story for spices. You could cook with the overpriced spice blends sold in tiny cardboard packets, complaining that your food doesn't taste like it does at restaurants. Or, you could purchase your spices at the Indian store where they taste and smell fresher and punchier. They are also cheaper. While a 40gm packet of turmeric is $2 at Pak'nSave, at the Indian shop you'll get 200gm for $3.50. It's the same-ish scenario for other spices like cumin, coriander, mustard seeds and chilli powder too.
My favourite buy? A packet of Gaay's whole garam masala, which is essentially a mixed bag of bay leaves, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and more.
If you're a baking enthusiast, the Indian shop has you covered too. At Woolworths, cinnamon quills are like rare treasures priced at $4 for a measly 20gm. Meanwhile you could grab an 80 – 100gm packet of these for $5 at the Indian store – enough for you to add cinnamon everywhere from cake to scrolls to porridge.
Every visit to the Indian store feels a bit like exploring my grandma's kitchen. During my last visit I found a shelf of ayurvedic health powders such as ashwagandha, beetroot and moringa to add to my smoothies. At $7 for 200gm, it's worth a try even if my skin doesn't magically become goddess-like in two weeks. And I always do a slow walk across the snack aisle where I'm bound to find a new type of poppadum or biscuit.
Back in 2002, the Indian shop used to be the place I went to get a flavour of home. Stock up on spices or buy a packet of Haldiram chakli. Now, it's just where I buy food.