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Buyers Picks- April 2003

Adam Perfetti, Cook’s Corner, Galloway, NJ
Borsari is a fairly new product that’s doing well. It is a mixture that includes sea salt, garlic, basil and black pepper that can be used on poultry, meat or in salads. There are also versions in citrus flavor or orange ginger. Dean Jacobs bread dipping spices sell well; they are also great on vegetables. My picks include:
• Borsari “The World’s Best Seasoned Salt
• Walker’s Wood Jerk Seasoning
• Busha Browne’s Authentic Jerk Seasoning
• Dean Jacobs Sicilian Bread Dipping Seasonings
• Historic Lynchburg Tennessee Whiskey Barbecue Seasoning & Rub

Joe Huffman, Weiland’s Gourmet Market, Columbus, OH
We carry two lines of spices, Spice Hunter and Morton & Basset, that comprise about 90% of sales in the category. We also have a popular signature store rub called Blue Ribbon that we buy in bulk. My picks include:
• Spice Hunter Jamaican Jerk Blend
• Char Crust dry rubs
• Saffron
• Old Bay Seasoning
• Morton & Basset coarse ground pepper and peppercorns
• Lysander’s rubs
• Blue Ribbon Hog Rub and Yard Bird Seasoning

Charlie Sahadi, Sahadi’s, Brooklyn, NY
We’re a Middle Eastern market. We sell all of our spices in bulk and use them in our prepared foods. We use sumac, a lemon spice that enhances the dried bread in Fettouch salad. Mahleb is a seed that is ground and used in breads and pastries. Za’atar is a spice mix; everyone has a different formula. We mix ours into a paste with olive oil, pour it on top of bread and bake. My picks include:
• Cumin
• Sumac
• Coriander
• Mahleb
• All-spice
• Za’atar

Steven Schattman, Rodman’s, Washington, DC
Overall, ethnic spice mixes are growing in popularity versus individual spices. This is especially true of Middle Eastern and Indian mixes. We’re also seeing a lot of growth in saffron. My picks include:
• Vanns Herbs for Fish
• Saffron
• Taste of Thai Green Curry Base
• Spice Hunter Chile and Red Curry Base Powder Blend

Tom Erd, The Spice House, Chicago, IL
Black peppercorns are always our biggest seller. Over the past five years, we’ve seen a resurgence in cumin; people are doing more ethnic cooking and it is called for in both Mexican and Indian recipes. Specialty salts have also taken off as have chile peppers because there are so many new varieties. My picks include:
• Black peppercorns
• Vanilla beans
• Cumin
• Chile peppers
• Hawaiian Black or Red Sea Salts
• Fleur de Sel Sea Salt