Business & Tech

The Five Hottest Spices in Tosa's Indian Grocery Store

Indian Groceries & Spices has tons of different spices and pickled vegetables, so we took a quick tour to find out which ingredients are the hottest on the tongue.

When you go to an Indian restaurant, do you go spicy or mild?

Thanks to a quick conversation with Indian Groceries and Spices co-owner Neil Sanghavi, we were able to figure out the five hottest Indian spices to either avoid or seek out the next time you are thinking about preparing Indian food at home.

Sanghavi said ghost chili peppers are definitely the spiciest thing in the store, and people travel from all over the metro area seeking it out. Anything involving chili powder is sure to be hot, but with other non-chili Indian foods, products can vary in spiciness depending on the brand name.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

"You can try 10 different types of mango chutney, and they will all taste different," he said.

Although the grocery has plenty of the hot stuff, Sanghavi was quick to point out that not all Indian food is hot. The store also has more than 100 pickled vegetables to select from, as well as coriander, cumin, Garam Masala, mustard, sesame and other Indian spices.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Since the business was founded in 1972, Indian Groceries and Spices has expanded from a 100 square foot store to a regional empire with more than 300,000 square feet of total warehouse space. Currently at 10633 W. North Ave, the business will relocate in about three weeks to a larger space in the first level of a nearby office building at 10701 W. North Ave. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Wauwatosa