Where to buy ingredients to cook your own Thanksgiving dinner

Photo: @purzlbaum/Unsplash.com

Thanksgiving might not be a Chinese tradition, but you can head over to Sanyuanli market to find all you need to make your own holiday dinner at home. Popular with expats, this local market offers an impressive array of vegetables, fruit, seafood, meat (including halal meat), poultry, alcohol, and imported pantry items.

Meat

Turkey (huǒjī, 火鸡)

The centerpiece of the Thanksgiving or Christmas meal, at Sanyuanli you can choose between Chinese turkeys or American imported brands Norbest or Hormel. It is best to order your turkey in advance, especially if you have a particular size in mind. Turkey may not be on display, but you can inquire at any of the poultry stalls.

Goose (é, 鹅)

Why not spice up your holiday meal with a turkey alternative? Chinese goose is available and should be ordered in advance.

Ham (zhūròu, 猪肉)

If you are up for cooking your own ham from scratch, you can get a bone-in-leg ham cut depending on the stall and size.

Sausages (xiāngcháng, 香肠)

Why not add some sausages to your feast? The market has a wide selection of western-styled sausages, from German favourites to Italian varieties.

Beef (niúròu, 牛肉)

Forget birds and eat steak for the holiday. There is a wide selection of beef at Sanyuanli, as well as individual steak pieces of imported beef. 

Vegetables

Sanyuanli is one of the few places you can all find the Western veggies needed for a traditional Thanskgiving dinner. There can be translation issues though, since these vegetables aren't so common in China. Here's what to ask for:

Brussels sprouts (bàozigānlán, 抱子甘蓝)

The fact that almost every stall has a small packet of brussels sprouts on display proves it's a market popular with expats.

Sweet potato (dìguā, 地瓜)

Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew

Okra (huángqiūkuí, 黄秋葵)

Look out for some Okra which is usually found next to the sprouts. 

Carrots (húluóbo, 胡萝卜)

Nothing alien here, all Chinese vegetable markets should have carrots.

Cabbage (juǎnxīncài, 卷心菜)

Turnips (luóbo, 萝卜)

Pumpkin (nánguā, 南瓜)

If you ask for a pumpkin you will probably be shown the Chinese-style pumpkin, but some stalls have western-style pumpkins as well. 

Swede (wújīng gānlán, 芜菁甘蓝)

The vegetable, not the nationality.

Herbs

Hidden on the shelves of some stalls are imported jars of herbs such as cinnamon and thyme. They have English labels. Just in case you can't find them:

Thyme (bǎilǐxiāng, 百里香)

Nutmeg (ròudòukòu, 肉豆蔻)

Fennel (huíxiāng, 茴香)

Cinnamon (ròuguì, 肉桂)

Cloves (dīngxiāng, 丁香)

Ginger (jiāng, 姜)

Trimmings

Horseradish (làgēn, 辣根)

Pecans (shānhétáo, 山核桃)

You'll find pecans at any of the nut/bean stalls

Marshmallows (miánhuatáng, 棉花糖)

Crucial.

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