Exotic Ingredients, Costume Jewellery & More: Five Things You Can Buy From Shivaji Market

We found Goan ready-to-cook masala pastes – rechado, xacuti, cafreal, and vindaloo priced at INR 100 – 120 for 200g, perfectly portioned for marinating 1kg of meat. There’s also dry-spice smoked BBQ marinade at INR 200 for 100g, and a variety of mayonnaise, dips and spreads priced from INR 175 onwards for 400g tubs. We think it’d be perfect for when you have to organise your own BBQ house party!

It may seem a bit frivolous, but you can buy pretty multi-coloured glass/metal bangles from an entire row of shops at Shivaji Market; just a little ways away from the poultry and vegetable section. They start at around INR 20 for a dozen {which we think is a steal}, and we also found costume jewellery sets from INR 1150 onwards. Where: Diamond Jewellers, Shop no. 19-20, Shivaji Market, Camp, Pune 411001 Contact: +91 9049495301

One of our favourite gourmet grocery stores – Foodman – just happens to be conveniently located within Shivaji Market. Foodman is where all the city’s Chefs and gourmands source their ingredients – you can read why here. We found authentic Thai curry paste {red, green, massaman, and tom yum soup} in 1kg tubs, priced between INR 350 – INR 450; panko crumbs {the tempura kind} at INR 50 for small packets, and INR 200 for 1kg; jasmine rice at a steep INR 700/kg; middle-eastern za’atar at INR 250 for 175g; and Vietnamese rice paper for INR 240/packet. We love that Foodman stocks ingredients that aren’t available on most supermarket shelves and never leave here empty-handed.

Just outside the market, we stumbled across New Sai Provision Stores, an old-school shop that stocks ready-to-cook Sindhi papads, potato chips, rice crisps, rice papads {starting at INR 40 per 100g}, as well as wheat pasta for INR 25/200g {again, a steal} and colourful fryums for INR 20 per packet. Aside from the fact that you have to do the frying yourself, it’s a pocket-friendly way to stock up on supplies. They also have special snacks from Indore, so don’t hesitate to ask for the specialities.

There are several little shops bordering the market that sell tea, but a little bird told us that Champion Stores would be a safe bet. We picked up some fragrant loose-leaf rose tea from here for INR 40/100g. If you fancy yourself a tea addict, you can spend INR 360/kg, or try their orange pekoe {a high-quality tea} for INR 300/kg. A powdered version of the teas is available as well. Champion Stores also stocks your basic whole and powdered spices, custard powder {chocolate, strawberry, plain, pistachio}, and several kinds of masalas {pre-packaged}. We also bought a tiny box of Kashmiri saffron for INR 90.