Is it safe to buy fresh vegetables at the Asian grocery store?

The US has a much larger agricultural engine than any Asian country right now. This results in Korea and Japan importing rice and other farmed products from California. It wouldn't make sense for Asian grocery stores in the US to ship produce (most types of produce, anyway) from Asia. By buying locally or at least domestically, they get a cheaper price, and as you've noticed, a fresher product. I can't find the article right now, but there was a profile a few years ago of a Korean grocer (a small grocery operator, not someone that works for Super H Mart or something) that said he got to where the farm trucks showed up at 4 AM or so to make sure he got the first crack at the best stuff. It is always cheaper and fresher than the normal supermarkets, but I have qualms about where it comes from and how it has been grown. Not that I know where the other produce comes from either, but it just seems like it has gone under more safety checks. It sounds like you have no logical reason to believe that Asian supermarket produce is less safe than "American" supermarket produce, yet you're inclined to believe it anyway. I just want to let you know that Asian Americans and Asians living in America have, on average, the same standards of cleanliness and interest in fresh and safe foods as white Americans.

Echoing BinGregory here. I didn't think it was racist at all. Your Chinese wife being cleaner than you has about as much to do with pesticide use in China as my husband's cleanliness has to do with pesticide use in the U.S. I feel like if the OP was actually racist and thought that all Asian things must be dirty, that he wouldn't bother asking the question and wouldn't even consider shopping at the Asian market. On the contrary, I think it's a good idea for people to understand the food they were eating, where it came from, and how it was processed. When it comes to big chain stores, people who are curious about such things have some idea about their country's laws. For everything else, they need to ask. I think it's a shame to call someone racist for asking.

My wife is Asian and she's cleaner than I am. I think I'll show her this question. I wonder what she will think. Obviously, she will be a little hurt that Asian = dirty. For some reason, I feel compelled to answer your obviously racist (just because you're ignorant, doesn't mean you're not racist) question anyway. Besides what other people have already, I would also point out that grocery stores also pay for the privilege of ordering first at a local produce wholesaler. Chains or stores that are unwilling to pay the higher fees have to wait their turn each day, which means these stores have less quality produce to choose from. This cuts costs... and sometimes quality.

Your belief that a big box grocery outlet is more attentive to its food sourcing is erroneous. They are all getting food produced under the same regulatory umbrellas: the checks on the issues you're concerned about do not occur at the retail level. If it's fresher and cheaper it is because they are sourcing it more directly and providing it with fewer middle-men. Always wash your produce thoroughly, and you'll be fine.

There's no reason to take things personally, KoKoRyu. China has been in the news a lot lately over the melamine thing, for one, and pesticide use is a lot less regulated there than in the States. In Malaysia, there are frequently China-sourced and Aussie-sourced vegetables side by side at the supermarket, and the Aussie-sourced stuff sells for double the price. People are willing to pay the premium because they trust that the Aussie stuff is grown under stricter regulations. The OP claims to be worried about similar issues; I don't see any reason not to take him at his word. It's maybe a little racist to conflate China with ethnically Chinese people living in Virginia, no? If the produce is fresher, presumably it is not being grown in China and being shipped over really really quickly.

Yes, and once you discover sriracha you'll thank us. :)

I feel compelled to answer your obviously racist... Sorry for the derail, but this reminds me of a friend who once wanted to take me to a local Asian supermarket. Friend: *driving* We need to go to the yellow place! It's just down here. Pointystick: OMG, how can you say such a thing! You shouldn't call Asians yellow, that's racist! Friend *sighing* Look. *points out building, painted bright sunshine yellow, yellow shopping carts, and cheerfully dressed in yellow employees* Pointystick: Oh. Whoops.

The main reason that the produce is cheaper in those small ethnic markets is that they buy the stuff that's closer to fully ripe or overripe as it will keep less time and is worth much, much less on the general produce buying market. So while you can buy bananas in your supermarket that are very or slightly green, and won't have a brown spot on them for a couple of days, the ones in your local Asian market will be fully yellow with possibly a hint of brown on them already. Your supermarket pays a high premium for those underripe items since they want their displays of produce to be unblemished and for you to not return those items tomorrow saying they've gone off already. The stuff your supermarket is selling on the 1/2 off sale shelf is not much further gone than the stuff your Asian grocer is still selling at their regular prices -- which was half off in the first place. The main thing you have to deal with when buying groceries from those markets is the fact that it is closer to ripe/overripe already, so you need to use it within a day or two instead of a week (specific timelines obviously vary with the particular type of produce). If you're shopping for tonight's dinner or tomorrow's, no problem. If you're shopping on Saturday for the whole week, you're going to have a lot of rotten produce by Wednesday.

It's under the same flood safety regulatory regime as the food sold elsewhere