International Sushi Day
What did Sushi A say to Sushi B? Wasabi!
Today is International Sushi Day and we’re rolling with excitement! Although a far cry from the sushi we enjoy today, this combination of rice and fish has been evolving for a surprisingly long time. With the holiday in mind, we did some research on where this creative cuisine came from.
The origin of sushi is surrounded by fun stories and mysteries. One famous tale tells of a woman who hid her rice pots in osprey nests in fear of thieves stealing them. Eventually, she collected her pots and found that the rice had begun to ferment. She also found fish scraps from the osprey’s meals leftover in the rice. The mixture was delicious, and the woman discovered that the rice had actually worked as a method of preserving the fish.
Everyone loves the cute fables, but the actual history of sushi is more unclear. It was likely introduced in Japan in the 19th century, becoming popular alongside the spread of Buddhism. Part of practicing Buddhism means abstaining from meat, turning many to become big fans of fish. The Japanese themselves are credited with being the first to enjoy sushi as a complete meal, combining the fermented rice with the preserved fish. This combination is known as nare-zushi or “aged fish.”
Following its rise in popularity in Japan, sushi was introduced to America by way of Los Angeles. In 1966, Noritoshi Kanai and his business partner Harry Wolff, opened Kawafuku Restaurant in Little Tokyo. Kawafuku was the first to sell nigri sushi to American patrons. In 1970, Osho, the first sushi bar outside of Little Tokyo, opened in Hollywood and catered to celebrities. Soon after, sushi bars and restaurants popped up in Chicago and New York, allowing for a rise in popularity across the country.
You don’t have to go far to notice the impressive evolution of sushi over time. A dish that originated in Japan in now more prevalent than ever in the United States. With the endless variations of tastes and styles, there’s something for everyone. Fresh sushi is available in select stores: enjoy some today at your nearest Price Chopper or Market 32 with a fresh sushi counter!
Source: http://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/history-of-sushi/
It’s Dairy Month and we’re putting some of our local dairy partners in the spotlight! Our region is home to some of the best milk in the world, and we’re proud to team up with a variety of local dairy farms here in the Northeast. When it’s made or grown here, we get it here!
Insight Dairy, Little Falls, NY
Thomas Dairy, Rutland, VT
Thomas Dairy has been a local partners of ours for over a decade. Placed perfectly in the hills of Rutland, VT the farm has been providing milk since 1921. Orin Thomas first purchased the farm in 1854, and his first purebred Holstein in 1901. When Thomas died in 1909, his son took over management of the farm, which had 40 Holsteins by then. By 1921, Thomas’ son was delivering milk to Rutland City, and Thomas Dairy was born!
HP Hood, Lynnfield, MA
Hood® has provided fresh, quality dairy products for 170 years. In 1846, the company was founded in Charlestown, Massachusetts and since then has expanded to become a national distributor of dairy products throughout the United States.
Hudson’s Dairy, Fulton, NY
We are a proud neighbor of Hudson’s Dairy, as they are located right around the corner from our Fulton store. Founded in 1931 by Daniel Hudson, Hudson’s was originally a 120-cow dairy in Granby. During the early 90’s, the dairy expanded and moved to its current address in Fulton. Today, the family’s third and fourth generations are in charge of the business.
There are lots of dairy farms in top-producing dairy states like California and Wisconsin, but we choose to source our PICS milk from our neighbors. It’s a part of our home.grown. philosophy that everything tastes better when it’s produced nearby. These farms are just a few of the many hardworking, dedicated neighbors that help us provide the highest quality, local products during Dairy Month and throughout the year!
Price Chopper is a chain of supermarkets serving customers in the Northeast United States with the Best in Fresh … and Low Prices. This blog was created to give our Chopper Shoppers the chance to be active in our community, to talk about what they love about our stores, and to offer constructive feedback about improving the shopping experience at Price Chopper.
Our June home.grown. Brewer of the Month: Genesee Brewing Company!
We love all things local, and one of our favorite sectors of local food is local beer. There are so many different brews, flavors, and styles, and so many stories to tell! That’s why we’re embarking on a new home.grown. adventure: to bring you fresh craft beer stories each month from our Northeast region; the best region in the United States if you ask us!
Up next: Genesee Brewing Company!
Located along the Genesee River, Genesee Brewing Company is the pride and joy of Rochester. Brewing began in 1857 when Reisky & Spies Brewery was established. But in 1878, Reisky & Spies was purchased and renamed as the Genesee Brewery.
Today, Genesee Brewing Company features a few classic, mainstay brews. Introduced in 1878, Genesee beer has become an American icon. Brewed with six-row barley malt, corn grits and hops from the Yakima Valley, this original taste will never get old. If you’re searching for a smooth, easy drinking experience, give Genesee Light a try. A tried-and-true light beer perfect for summer weather. Last but not least, the Original Genesee Cream Ale. As they say at the brewery, “Crack open summer” with this delightful vintage brew.
In addition to their classics, the brewery team always has something new in the works, like their Ruby Red Kolsch. We’ve been partnering with our home.grown. pals at Genesee for over 40 years, and we can’t wait to see what they come up with next!
Interested in trying some Genesee brews?
Check out our in-store tasting schedule below to sample Genesee craft beer, take home some brewery swag and more.
Saturday 6/1, 11am – 2pm at our Dewitt Price Chopper
Saturday 6/8, 11am – 2pm at our Clifton Shoppers World Market 32
Saturday 6/15, 11am – 2pm at our New Hartford Price Chopper
Saturday 6/22, 11am – 2pm at our Wilton Market 32
Saturday 6/29, 11am – 2pm at our Glenville Market 32
Interested in visiting the brewery?
Make the most of everything Genesee Brewing Company has to offer! Visit https://www.geneseebeer.com/ for taproom hours and menu, get info on brewery tours and more.
Brewery House Address: 25 Cataract St, Rochester, NY, 14605
Hot sauce junkies, heat connoisseurs and spiciness fanatics: We’re comin’ in hot with our next monthly feature. Warm weather is finally here to stay, but we’ve been staying hot all year with our served-fresh Hot Sauce of the Month features!
Each month we’re bringing you fresh stories on a different sauce brand, sharing some flavor insights, stories behind the brands and more. Travel with us on an adventure consisting of varying degrees of heat each month!
June’s Feature: Horseshoe Hot Barbecue Sauce!
Hot sauce doesn’t have to be just hot sauce. Have you tried hot BARBECUE sauce? We’re big fans.
Rhinebeck NY’s Horseshoe Brand set out on their heat journey originally to craft unique hot sauces. After perfecting traditional hot sauce, they expanded their horizons into varying degrees of heat with unique flavor profiles like Kiwi Jalapeno. After they became a well-known player in the hot sauce game, they expanded their horizons even further and introduced their Barbecue and Hot Barbecue Sauce to the world, and we couldn’t wait to begin offering it to our shoppers!
What’s Horseshoe Brand’s big differentiator in their Barbecue sauces? No added smoke. The sauces are all natural, hand-crafted and produced here in the Northeast in New York’s Hudson Valley. And, something at the top of their priority list: creating a perfect blend of heat and flavor in all of their products. If you’re a hot sauce addict but haven’t thought much about spicy BBQ sauce, give Horseshoe Brand’s sauce a try. We’re fairly certain you’ll be hooked like we are!
Learn more about Horseshoe and view heat-friendly recipes at horseshoebrand.com.
Turn up the BBQ heat with Horseshoe Brand this month, and tune in next month for our July Hot Sauce of the Month!
Happy International Hamburger Day!
We’ve got some juicy news: Today is International Hamburger Day! It’s the perfect opportunity to fire up the grill and embrace the early stages of grilling season. Sit back, relax, and prepare your patties to the delicious tune of hamburger history.
Nowadays, hamburgers are everywhere. But where did they originally come from?
Ground beef first became a part of the human diet all the way back in Mesopotamia approximately 10,000 years ago. But it wasn’t until 1848 that the hamburger started to take shape. Political up rise stirred the German Confederation causing massive amounts of people to immigrate to the United States. Naturally, with the German people came German food. “Beer gardens” found success in American cities, and butchers introduced a smorgasbord of traditional meats. The city of Hamburg had a previously-established reputation as an exporter of high-quality beef, so when the German culture began to make its mark in America, restaurants advertised their “Hamburg-style” chopped steak.
Soon after, it was discovered that preparations of raw beef, whether it be chopped, chipped, ground, or scraped, were a common factor in digestive issues. But in 1867, stomachs were settled when New York doctor James H. Salisbury made the wise suggestion that cooked beef patties could be just as healthy. Cooks and physicians alike quickly adopted the “Salisbury Steak.” Meanwhile, the first popular meat grinders for home use became abundant, setting up for an explosion in the availability of ground beef.
Just before the end of the 19th century, the hamburger made its first appearances on a bun, though the stories are contested. Lunch wagons, fair stands and roadside restaurants in Wisconsin, Connecticut, Ohio, New York and Texas have all been credited with leading this initiative. Despite the disagreements, it’s true that the concept of a burger-on-a-bun was first introduced wide-scale at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, an event that put the spotlight on many new food concepts such as waffle ice cream cones, cotton candy, and one of our favorite beverages: iced tea!
Celebrate history by enjoying your own hamburgers this holiday: Stop by your local store for all of your preparation needs. We’ve got you covered, from Certified Angus Beef to condiments and toppings.
Happy International Hamburger Day!
Source: https://www.history.com/news/hamburger-helpers-the-history-of-americas-favorite-sandwich
It’s National Chocolate Chip Day and we’re excited to celebrate!
Chocolate chips themselves may appear small, but there is nothing minuscule about the impact they have had on the sweets game. They’re included in a number of classic recipes, including the chocolate chip cookie, a treat that has warmed our hearts with tasty satisfaction for decades. But whose idea was it to first implement this essential ingredient in baking? We did some research to find out.
Interestingly, it is said that chocolate chips were first introduced here in the Northeast in Massachusetts, at the Toll House Inn. The story tells that owner Ruth Wakefield was baking her signature Butter Drop Do cookies when she ran out of baker’s chocolate. Acting quickly, she substituted in chopped up semi-sweet chocolate in its place. The cookie became known as a chocolate chip cookie, and the chopped up chocolate pieces became known as chocolate chips. Most fascinatingly, the chopped up chocolate actually came from a Nestle chocolate bar, gifted to Wakefield from Andrew Nestle himself.
Wakefield landed a deal with Nestle. Wakefield’s chocolate chip cookie recipe would be placed on the back of every bar of semi-sweet chocolate sold by Nestle, and in return she would be given a lifetime supply of their chocolate. To this day you can find the “Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie” recipe on the back of their morsel packages. And yes, at Nestle chocolate chips are known as morsels. Nestle first started selling their morsel packages in 1940 and the signature ingredient did not use the term “chips” until other brands like Ghirardelli and Hershey’s came about.
Luckily, your chocolate chip celebration can start right here with us! Pick up a package of Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels at your local Price Chopper/Market 32. Make the chocolate chip cookie recipe on the back of your package, add them to your favorite ice cream, or simply eat them right out of the package…it’s totally acceptable, don’t listen to the naysayers.
Happy National Chocolate Chip Day!
Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/56739/brief-history-chocolate-chip
Hot sauce junkies, heat connoisseurs and spiciness fanatics: We’re comin’ in hot with our next monthly feature. The weather’s finally warming up, but we’ve been hot all year with our served-fresh Hot Sauce of the Month features!
Each month we’re bringing you fresh stories on a different sauce brand, sharing some flavor insights, stories behind the brands and more. Travel with us on an adventure consisting of varying degrees of heat each month!
May’s Feature: Moore’s Marinades & Sauces!
The Moore’s story began over 30 years ago in rural Alabama. The small town of Jasper, AL was home to a family-owned steakhouse that served Moore’s Original Marinade, which became wildly popular among locals in town and beyond. This marinade recipe became the Moore family’s shining achievement, and it was eventually so sought after that they began to sell it in Styrofoam cups to the steakhouse regulars!
Since then, the Moore’s folks have expanded their horizons to the world of heat, including their award-winning Buffalo Wing Sauce.
Recently they cranked up the heat dial even further and introduced a line of hot sauces that you can find at your local Price Chopper or Market 32: We like them on everything from wings to burger sliders! Try their Habanero Hot Sauce (very hot), Harissa Hot Sauce (hot), Jalapeno Hot Sauce(moderately hot), and Spicy Mustard Sauce (mildly hot) and see what your taste buds think.
Learn more about Moore’s and view heat-friendly recipes at mooresmarinade.com
Turn up the heat with Moore’s this month, and tune in next month for our June Hot Sauce of the Month!
We love all things local, and one of our favorite sectors of local food is local beer. There are so many different brews, flavors, and styles, and so many stories to tell! That’s why we’re embarking on a new home.grown. adventure: to bring you fresh craft beer stories each month from our Northeast region; the best region in the United States if you ask us!
Up next: Druthers Brewing Co!
“You are your choices” is both a quote from Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca the Younger and the company motto at Druthers Brewery and Restaurant. Fittingly, when trying to be the best you, the best choice is to choose a brew or two from Druthers’ tasty roster. Give it a shot: Seneca would be proud.
Druthers began in the mind of CEO Chris Martell when he became inspired by the West Coast IPA movement as a resident of 1998 San Diego. Pursuing his cravings, Martell turned to his brother CPO (Chief Pub Officer) Brian Martell for ideas and help with home brewing. They found success and the idea of opening a brewery eventually became a real possibility.
After relocating to Saratoga Springs, NY, Martell discovered a vacant lot between two buildings on an already busy main strip of town. He envisioned it as a perfect spot for a new brewery and a few years later Druthers was born. Fast forward to today, and you can find locations in Saratoga Springs, Albany, and basically across the street from our headquarters in Schenectady!
One of our favorite Druthers brews is their All-In IPA. This one is a hoppy, American-style India pale ale. Amarillo and Citra hops are the dominant varieties, with Horizon providing a strong yet smoothly bitter finish. German Vienna malt is there to provide balance. Pick up a pack at your local Price Chopper or Market 32!
Interested in trying some Druthers brews?
Check out our in-store tasting schedule below to sample Druthers craft beer, take home some brewery swag and more.
Saturday 5/4, 11am – 2pm at our Wilton Market 32
Saturday 5/11, 11am – 2pm at our Eastern Parkway Market 32
Saturday 5/18, 11am – 2pm at our Clifton Shoppers World Market 32
Saturday 5/25, 11am – 2pm at our Amsterdam Market 32
Interested in visiting the brewery?
Make the most of everything Druthers Brewing & Restaurant has to offer! Visit druthersbrewing.com for taproom hours and menu, get info on brewery tours and more.
Brewery & Taproom Address: Saratoga Springs – 381 Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Albany Location: 1053 Broadway, Albany, NY 12204
Schenectady Location: 221 Harborside Drive, Schenectady, NY 12305
Written by Rainy McEwan
Washing isn’t just for hands!
Washing your hands before working with food is a crucial first step, but we must remember to wash our produce as well. Fruits and veggies can come with a little dirt still on them, as well as pesticides used in the growing process.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human services recommends using water only. Soaps and commercial produce washes may leave residues on your produce that can be harmful to your body, or at least don’t taste very good!
Scrub brushes can be used for more hardy produce with a natural outer “shell” such as a cucumber or potato. Luckily, if you don’t want to worry about finding a sink to enjoy your apple, just grab a bag marked “pre-washed” and you’re good to get munching!
What Not to Wash
One thing that should never be washed is meat! Raw meat has bacteria on it that, while killed in the cooking process, can be harmful if transferred to other food or prep materials in the kitchen. When washing raw meat, some of the bacteria gets sprayed off by the strong jet of water, and lands on the items around it. This is called cross-contamination. It can also happen when you touch something such as raw meat, a dirty dish, or even your hair, then touch another food or prep item.
Eggs bought from the store also do not need to be washed. When laid, eggs have a natural outer coating on them to protect the porous shell from invading bacteria. Eggs are washed at the facility before having a layer of edible mineral oil applied, which adds the layer of protection back before being shipped to the store. That’s why eggs bought at the store have to be refrigerated, while farm fresh eggs can be safe on the counter.
Give the Board a Bath
Hand Washing: The Final Frontier
Hands: we’re always using them! That’s why they’re the most important thing to wash. Before preparing any food, wash your hands using hot water and plenty of soap. Scrub for 20 seconds (To keep track of the time, try singing the alphabet!) Then just rinse and dry (Using paper towels or a clean kitchen towel, of course!) Make sure to get under the nails, between the fingers, and up around the wrists as well! Hands should be rewashed after handling food, using the bathroom, touching a pet, another person, or yourself, and after sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose. After all, you wouldn’t rub your dinner all over a door handle!
If you want to prepare early, Global Handwashing Day is only 6 months away! Stock up on soap for October 15th!
Sources:
- https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/safe-food-handling/washing-food-does-it-promote-food-safety/washing-food
- https://www.foodnetwork.com/grilling/grilling-central-how-tos/articles/meat-and-poultry-temperature-guide
- https://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/basics/clean/index.html