A month or so ago, I bought wild garlic at the market here in Moscow - lovely stuff. I was assuming they were growing it in some greenhouse outside Moscow, until I found a few pine needles as I was washing it, which made me realize it had come from an actual forest - way cool. I was meaning to ask the vendor about the origins of the herb, but kept forgetting.

A few days ago, I was buying wild garlic again, and did remember to ask: the current supplies that they have are from Moldova; what I bought last month came from Grozny, Chechnya.

Apples at the market here are from Moldova, too. Tomatoes are from Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, though some are from the south of Russia, Krasnodar. Cucumbers and young potatoes are from Azerbaijan. Strawberries - from Israel. Oranges are from Morocco and Spain, of course.

I can't wait to ask where that delicious chestnut honey comes from.

Marta's favorite Uzbek bread is baked in a tandoor by a red-haired ethnic Uzbek from Tajikistan.

And here's a related post that I wrote four years ago:

Moscow...

At a new deli nearby they are selling lamb from NEW ZEALAND... "Yes, there's no lamb in Russia," they told me...

A sweet and beautiful vegetable vendor at the market nearby is from Daghestan; her name is Serenada...

At that time, I was buying most of my fruit and veggies from a middle-aged man named Ali - an ethnic Talysh from Azerbaijan. That market - just off Bolshaya Bronnaya Street - is no longer there: replaced by some large-scale construction now, I guess.