Hyderabad - Post Report Question and Answers
What household or grocery items do you wish you had shipped to post?
-Bread and pastry flours -Pecans -Tomato paste -Salsas -Maple syrup -Coffee -TJ spice mixes, taco seasoning -Vanilla/almond/peppermint extracts -Duke's mayo! (the mayo in Hyderabad is weirdly sweet) -canned tuna/anchovies/sardines -canned artichokes -bone broths - Jun 2024
There's not really anything I wish I'd shipped but didn't. We sent some leftover canned goods from our last post. You can order on Amazon for things that aren't liquid or perishable and the employee association (ACSA) has a monthly commissary order, so you can stock up on frozen goods and liquids that way too. - Apr 2024
-Maple syrup (super expensive) -Canned pumpkin -Canned tomatoes -Flour -Paper products - Jan 2023
Flour and yeast were my biggest challenges. Indian flours (neither maida nor atta) will not work for baking most Western breads. The chakki grinding process destroys the gluten, I believe. So bring flour, and yeast (or sourdough starter). You could also try adding gluten to the flour but I did try that. Also, bring lots of shelf-stable snacks for kids if you plan on traveling. - Dec 2020
Paper goods here are terrible for some reason. Most of them seem to be made mostly of plastic. I'd have brought plenty of American paper towels and toilet paper. Anything that is a liquid (hot sauce, salsa, etc.) that you'll think you want through your tour - this is a pouch-only post so you can't ship liquids from the U.S. - Jul 2020
What we couldn't find, we could ship. We came armed in our HHE with hundreds of pounds of groceries and supplies, so that helped. - Jul 2019
We can get everything we need on the local market or by ordering thru the diplomatic pouch. If I could more easily get cheeses and bacon, life would be grand. The key is to bring wine/liquor with you when you travel internationally (2 bottles per adult) as it's very expensive here. Again, if with the US Consulate, you can also order through the Embassy commissary. - Jan 2019
We loaded our HHE up with plenty of liquids of our favorites, knowing this was a pouch-only post. Don't bring dishwasher detergent because none of the housing has dishwashers. Otherwise, load up on liquids or aerosols you regularly use. I'd encourage bringing hair spray (not sold here). - Nov 2017
This is what I shipped and I was very happy I did: coffee, hot sauces, good BBQ sauce, salsa, jasmine rice, flour, pastas, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, canned beans, lots of broth, detergent, dryer sheets, liquid soap, garbage bags, zip lock bags, aluminum foil, saran wrap, vanilla essence, instant yeast, toilet paper, paper towels, lotions and shampoos, hair dye, contacts solution, sunscreen, mosquito repellent, kids toothpaste and mouthwash. Liquids and aerosols cannot be ordered through pouch, so plan ahead. The rest you can order from Amazon in the U.S. Bring heavy duty UPS as the power goes out several times a day. - Sep 2016
More peanut butter M&Ms and chips. Other than that, haven't run into needing much of anything. Probably just more liquid-like items. I brought a lot of stuff with me though. - Mar 2015
Plenty of coffee; the local coffee isn't very good. Indian rice is basmati, which is large kerneled. I prefer Jasmin rice, which is more Southeast Asian, so I wish we would have packed several large sacks of this type of rice. - Jan 2015
Having the diplomatic pouch made things easy but you can't ship liquids or certain things with batteries. You will want to ship battery back up units for the frequent daily power outages, lots and lots of booze, liquid medicines and personal care items like soap, shampoo, deoderant, etc. We shipped TP and trash bags as the local brands leave much to be desired. - Nov 2014
Peanut butter, booze, sunscreen, good mosquito spray, backup power source. We can get most things shipped through Amazon Prime and Netgrocer, apart from liquids. Bring lots of your favorite shampoos, hand soaps, and any liquid medicines you might need. Drugs are very cheap here since most are manufactured in Hyderabad. - Jul 2014
Lots of beer and wine, toiletries, pet supplies. - Mar 2012
A few more gluten-free staples that are difficult or impossible to find here and more of the powdered formula that the baby used, because her brand cost more than twice what it does in the US. - Feb 2012
Very few. It is hard to cook here, so maybe things like olive oil and balsamic vinegar, baking items, etc. - Jan 2011
