Candied Fruit At Tere's Latin Market: Easy Slice-And-Eat Dessert WIth A Mexican Flair

Candied fruit from Tere's Latin Market

Mexican candied fruits are back in full effect -- the easiest exotic dessert that you can buy off the counter at Tere's Latin Market on Rte 40.

Fruta cristalizada is a treat created by repeatedly submerging the fruit in scalding water and sugar syrup.  I discovered them two years at the Estrellita Market in Jessup that closed down in 2011.  Last summer, Tere's had limes and figs, but now, they have the full box with oranges, papaya and even candied sweet potatoes.

You can go to Tere's for great casual Mexican food at the taqueria.  The front has Latin groceries, and the fruit is a terrific pick-up.  As I wrote last summer, the figs could be chopped onto cookies.  The citrus could become endless things.  The oranges are actually hollow.  It looks like fruit, but it's really just a sphere of candied rind.  

These are delicious enough to just pick up for a few dollars.  (I forgot to write down how much each piece costs, but it's about a dollar.)  But they're beautiful and unusual enough to make a dinner party.  Slice the fruit.  Make a little tray with cookies.  They're lightly sweet -- the orange and lime are delicate and light, the fig is sweeter and thicker.  It's the best kind of convenience food.

Seriously, Tere's is worth a trip just for the taqueria.  At lunchtime, folks line up for tacos, sandwiches and more.  Get the horchata.

Candied Lime At Tere's Latin Market

Candied fruit from Tere's Latin Market

The truth is that I didn't go to Tere's Latin Market for the awesome tacos.

I actually returned to the Mexican market on Rte 40 because of a comment about candied fruit by Blith on a former post.  I miss the fruit that I used to buy at the shuttered Estrellita's in Elkridge.  So I snapped up candied limes and figs near the cash register.


The candied lime is exquisite.  The figs taste incredibly sweet.  Great if you want the rush, and somehow calling me to chop them as an ingredient for Christmas cookies.  But the lime is something special.  The flesh has dried, so slices of citrus rind cut off come tart and slightly sweet.  The rind has a pleasant, chewy texture like dried fruit.


I have been slicing pieces of lime as a treat.  They last for months.  (I think.)  But the candied limes are so valuable because, like sausages and good pickles, they're convenience food for us because someone already invested time to make them.  In 60 seconds, I could quarter them to jazz up a dessert plate.  They'd go great with chocolate.  I have been trying to think of a well-paired cheese for an offbeat cheese plate.  They could certainly be diced or sliced as a topping on sugar cookies -- a variation on the candied orange here.

Whatever you do, the limes and Tere's tacos make many reasons to stop by the market.


The one down side of candied fruit is that it kills my enthusiasm for our beloved Mike and Ikes.  The complex mix of bitter, sour and sweet just make fake fruit flavors seem wrong, at least temporarily.  When I visited, Tere's only had figs and limes.  Has anyone seem broader selections either at Tere's or somewhere else that sells candied fruit?

Another Taqueria: Tere's Latin Market Gives An Option For Tacos In Ellicott City, But No Gas

Beef and chorizo tacos at Tere's Latin Market

The beauty of a food blog is that it almost justifies getting a taco on the way to dinner with friends.

I had noticed recent comments about Tere's Latin Market talking about tacos and other specialities that I don't remember from a visit in 2008.  So I detoured there on Rte 40 one night on the way to Korean at Shin Chon Garden.

Back in the day, Tere's was just a small market.  Now, there's a taqueria in the back.  It's counter service with tacos, sandwiches, and some other dishes.  For $2.50, I picked up a snack -- and found a great little place for Mexican food.

Start with the flavor.  The first taco was al pastor.  Diced pork on two fresh corn tortillas came through moist, fresh and spicy with chopped cilantro on top.  Even the takeout packet came with sliced radish and cucumber, which crunched nicely in contrast.

Tacos al pastor

Then come around the butchering.  Mrs. HowChow -- who doesn't snack on the way to dinner -- talks about the meat at R&R Taqueria at the Shell station in Elkridge.  It comes beautifully even from a tiny kitchen.  No gristle.  No chewy pieces.  Tere's Latin Market pulls off the same trick.  The pork was just better than anything I can dice out on my own.

So I had to go back.  Like the next day for lunch.  I ordered up two tacos -- chorizo and beef.  Again, moist, flavorful meat with spices.  Chorizo was rich and greasy.  (In a good way.)  Beef was butchered right again and went great with squeezes of lime.  There is a small bar of fresh salsas and chopped peppers and other vegetables.  You can doctor them in the fashion that works for you.

Seriously folks, these were delicious tacos, and Tere's pairs them up with horchata -- the creamy, refreshing Mexican soft drink that makes a special meal.  R&R Taqueria makes a magical meal in a gas station.  Now, there is an Ellicott City option as well.

Now, I wonder if I just missed the taqueria when I walked through Tere's back in 2008.  Kevin added Tere's to Urbanspoon back in 2010.  What else have people enjoyed at Tere's?  Do you know when the tacos started?

Tere's Latin Market
8525A Baltimore National Pike (Rte 40)
Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-8555

NEAR: Tere's is on the east-bound side of the Rte 40.  It's just east of Rte 29 and just before the traffic light with the Normandy shopping center.  Look for the Quizno's.  Tere's is on the end of the same shopping row.  There is parking around back.

Link: Teres Market On Chowhound

It sounds like Teres Latin Market in Ellicott City has added a taqueria at the back -- offering up Mexican basics like tortas and tacos.

I haven't been to the market on Rte 40 in years, but I just read two Chowhound posts one by elgringoviejo apparently from April and one by baltymoron this week.  Lots of Howard County voices on those posts, and I especially take advice from elgringoviejo:

This place merits high praise. The owners are Mexicans who prepare delicious authentic Mexican food at reasonable prices. One of the employees is Salvadoran and makes delicious pupusas revueltas, as good as those served at Dona Azucena near Langley Park in Prince George's county. At two bucks apiece, two or at most three of these delicious and extremely filling pupusas make an excellent yet economical meal that constitutes chow-worthy cheap eats. One afternoon I enjoyed a plate of flautas that would be th envy of many a fonda or fogata in La Republica (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) where I have enjoyed over a hundred meals. The piece de resistance of Tere's is the condiment bar that includes both green and red salsa as well as pickled chiles. Tere's deserves ample chowhound patronage IMO.

Is it just me, or are there fewer posts on Chowhound these days?  I feel like there used to be dozens of posts a day on the DC/Baltimore page.  I hadn't been going as often, and now I feel like there can be days with fewer than 10.  It's a great resource.  There are several regular commentators about local places, and I like the "Question and Answer" connection.

Ethnic Markets and Cookbooks II

An Indian market was the glaring hole in my February post about local ethnic markets and cookbooks to bring for inspiration. Along with a small Tere's Latin Market on Rte 40, I found friendly, accessible Desi Market in Columbia, and I plan on returning over and over to explore. Also, I found an African market on Rte 175, although that place wasn't accessible on my first visit. I'll go back to try again, but I can't say that I knew what to buy or even to ask.

(Update: Check out a comprehensive list of ethnic markets in Howard County.)

West African: Afia International Market
I would love anyone else's suggestion about Afia International Market in Jessup -- in the shopping center on Rte 175 just east of Rte 1 that My Organic Market calls "Columbia East."

The store seemed filled with dried goods and packages from Nigeria and Ghana, but it wasn't accessible for me. I don't know the cuisine, and, honestly, the smell set me back. More like a butcher in Bangkok than in Columbia, and the smell made the sight of carved goats seem far more off-putting than the same display at Lily's or the Laurel Meat Market. Then, no one said anything as I circled the shelves under the blare of televisions bolted above. The talking stopped as I came near, then started again as I passed. I retreated.

I want to go back. Can you suggest anything? A cookbook? A treat like the samosas that I suggest at the Desi Market? A staple to try? The first time that I went into Aladdin, I had only a few minutes and endured a similarly cold experience. For the second, I brought a recipe and took my time to inspect the shelves and to ask questions. It has been welcoming ever since, although I still haven't finished the pound of roasted watermelon seeds that I bought on the owner's recommendation. (Nice crunch, little flavor other than salt. I can't eat more than a handful at a sitting. Still cheap at $3.49 to connect with the owner.)

Afia International Market
7351 Assateague Drive
Jessup, MD 20794
This is actually the address for My Organic Market in the same shopping center.

NEAR: IT's on Rte 175 just east of I-95. There is a large shopping center on the right just after you cross Rte 1. Look for the Starbucks. Turn right into the shopping center, then turn right and go past the Starbucks and the Rita's Italian Ice. Afia International Market is around the far side next to the Goodwill.

Indian: Desi Market in Columbia
The Desi Market should be a Bhutanese market because it is hidden in a commercial area north of Rte 108. But instead of selling food from the "Hidden Kingdom," the market offers everything that you need to have fun with Indian food. Mangos ready to eat in the car. Samosas ready to be baked tonight for dinner. Frozen foods. Flours, rose water, and spices.

Spices are the bedrock for Indian food and the first reason to visit Desi Market. You'll get a far wider supply than any supermarket. You'll also get a bag of spices for the price of a 1 ounce tube by an American spice company. Start with whole peppercorns, whole mustard seeds, whole cumin, whole coriander, and cardamom -- either whole pods or the tiny seeds already broken from the pods. If you like those, branch out to tumeric, fennel, cloves, or fenugrek. Or ask for tamarind pulp, a tart part of cuisine from India through Thailand that you can store in your pantry.

If you want to start with Indian food, borrow or buy Mangoes & Curry Leaves by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. They're Western photographers who have travelled in Asia for 20 years and have been writing cookbooks since 1985. Their site. Their book Mangoes & Curry Leaves has recipes that range from simple to complex and that cover almost every Indian food that I have enjoyed. The recipes are clear and written for an American kitchen, using the tools and the ingredients that you could get at Desi Market -- with substitutions that you could get anywhere. It has the most beautiful photos and short writings. By general rule, I discard photo-heavy cookbooks as precious and not useful. This book is the exception that makes me question the rule entirely.

Desi Market is just as friendly as the Mangoes & Curry Leaves. The young couple running the place were friendly and talkative. They answered questions. They suggested a recipe for a refreshing drink. If you walk in with a cookbook, I think they'll help you locate ingredients and even suggest what else you could buy.

Buy spices. Buy a bag of frozen naan. Check out the vegetables or stop somewhere to buy your own. You could be cooking Indian tonight. But while you're there, try a samosa -- either fresh or a box of frozen. Try the papad that I wrote about. Pick a bottle of rose water and Indian-style yogurt for the lassi recipe below. If you have a friend from India, buy a $1 bottle of Limca, the lemon-lime soda that Coca-Cola sells there. The glass bottles were on the floor facing the freezer case, and they're a nostalgic moment for anyone who has stood next to a Bombay vendor drinking soda from a straw.

If you are looking for Indian groceries, also check out Food Cravings a few blocks from Desi Bazaar and Apna Bazar or Eastern Bazaar in Laurel. And in the comments below, check out Askok's comment about Food Cravings.

Sweet Lassi from Mangoes & Curry Leaves
2 c. plain yogurt (full- or reduced-fat)
2 c. plain cold water
pinch of salt
sugar to taste
1/2 tsp. rose water

Whisk the yogurt and water together in a deep bowl until frothy. Add the other ingredients and beat in. Serve cold over ice. (Variation: Replace the rose water with 1 or 2 coarsely chopped bananas and mix all the ingredients in a blender.)

Desi Bazaar
9179 Red Branch Rd # H
Columbia, MD 21045
(410) 997-8400

NEAR: This is in a commercial area off Rte 108 just east of Rte 29. You can't see anything from Rte 108. You turn north on Red Branch Road at a traffic light, and Desi Bazaar is in a commercial building on the right. The parking is actually before the store, so we had to U-turn and go back.

There is another Indian store on Red Branch Road, but it was even harder to find out where to park. I had frozen food in my car, so I didn't go in.

Mexican: Tere's Latin Market
Tere's is a small Mexican market on the south side of Rt 40 in Ellicott City. It has a basic supply of spices, tortillas, and vegetables like plaintains, onions, tomatoes and avocados. It's a great stop if you need dried peppers -- costenos, japones, guajillo, chipotle, arbol, all on the back wall -- and the woman working when I visited was solicituous in fluent English. She would have answered any questions.

But Lily's Mexican Market in Columbia has far broader offerings with extras like the meat counter and larger freezers. Tere's -- with its supply of Mexican pharmacy and cleaning items -- is probably just as useful to a person who grew up with Mexican food and needs the basics. But there is less to explore.

Tere's Latin Market
8525-A Baltimore National Pike
Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-8555

NEAR: Tere's is on Rte 40 east of Rte 29. Just east on an Acura dealer is a shopping center that faces Rte 40. Tere's is next to a Quizno's.