Rota das Índias

Do you like spices, tea, dried fruits, cereals, olives, seeds, salts, aromatic herbs and medicinal plants? Then you should try Rota das Índias, a place that can add lots of variety to your taste buds and routine life.

Buy in Bulk and Try Every Flavour

Here you can buy whatever you wish in bulk, from Tikka Masala to Paprika, Fresh Lemon Flavored Gem Salt to Black Cumin, Tukmaria and Anjwain seeds to Dehidrated Tomato, and many more. Variety is crazy here. You have the opportunity to try so many different flavours, and because everything is bought in bulk, you can always take a small amount of everything, try at home, and then decide whether you like it or not.

I have known this store for some months now, and I have managed to try many new spices and herbs, yet I can say that more than 90% of flavours remain to be tasted. The thing is, I tried some in the beggining and I liked them so much that I usually go to the store and keep on buying the same ones, only taking one or two new flavours to try. But there is time for every flavour!

Spices, Herbs and Many Other Flavours

My favourite ones are Tikka Masala, Doner Kebab, Guacamole, Smoked Paprika, 5 Indian Spices (a mix), 5 Chinese Spices (another mix), Cumin, Kalonji - Nigella seeds (which are black cumin), Madras Curry and Sumac. Some names can be strange and I do not know all about their origins and their content, most of them are mixes of different spices (Masala means mixture of ground spices), but if you wish to know more information on what you are buying, you can always ask the employees, as they know all about their use and have a database with all different spices used in the mixtures.

Besides spices, you also have herbs and tea. I have not tried much of them (my focus has been on the spices), but the variety is even bigger! You also have different flavored salts, such as Himalayas salt and Spicy salt. There are Hemp seeds, Pumpkin seeds, Poppy seeds, and many others. Cashews, Hazel nuts, Macadamia nuts are part of the dry fruit list. Quinoa, Buckwheat, Oats, and many kinds of flour are part of the cereal list. Finally you also have different kinds of olives to buy, such as Galician olives.

Location

The store is located in Mercado 31 de Janeiro, right next to the Saldanha Rotunda. This market in which it is located also offers many variety in food so enjoy the fact that it is all in the same place and make some shopping for your belly!

Get Spices Delivered to Your Home

There is also the option to buy online in their website. I have never tried it, but it is a good option if you are not near to the place and wish to have an order full of falvours arriving to your home.

Check out my full article on Lisbon for more places and experiences in the city!