When it comes to fresh produce, September is the month to turn over a new leaf.
Damian Toscano, owner of the Toscano’s grocery stores in Melbourne, says iceberg lettuce is the top pick of early spring, and far more affordable than the double-digit prices from last year.
“Lettuce has come right back … it’s cheaper than I’ve seen it in the last five years,” he says.
“[The lettuces] had a horror start to the season with all the rain just after they planted. Then everyone planted at the same time, so they will all come in at the same time.”
Iceberg lettuce can be found for $2.50 to $3 each, and are likely to come down even more in price with the warmer weather. They are the wrapping of choice in Lara Lee’s san choy bau; and make a crisp garden bed for Yotam Ottolenghi’s iceberg wedges with eggplant cream and almonds.
Meanwhile gem lettuce, about $2.50 each, is the vehicle for the punchy, zesty, juicy flavours of this carrot-powered salad.
Green beans, however, “are a bit of a yo-yo veg”, says Dino Labbozzetta, the manager at Adelaide Fresh Fruiterers in Adelaide. “There could be a flush or a glut, and then they slow down on the picking side.”
Labbozzetta is selling half a kilo of green beans for about $2.99, while in supermarkets they are $5 to $6 a kilo.
He says snow peas are starting to be picked locally in Adelaide’s Murray Bridge area, and shoppers should expect them to come down in price later in the month. In supermarkets they are still about $15 a kilo.
If you get your hands on some sweet green beans, char them in Ottolenghi’s fluffy eggs with spring onion daqa; if you come across sugar snaps too, make Ravinder Bhogal’s multi-greens salad with roasted peanut sauce – it’s packed full of fresh herbs, which, incidentally, are also on special in supermarkets.
Toscano says to keep an eye on asparagus, which has come down in price from about $4.50 a bunch a week or so ago to about $2.99 a bunch.
But what he is really excited for this September is garlic shoots (also known as garlic scapes).
“It’s the shoot before the garlic turns into a bulb. It’s sort of like a spring onion or a shallot – it’s like a garlic-shallot,” says Toscano, who suggests pairing it with radicchio.
“It’s great in salads, and it’s got a mild garlic flavour, not too hot.”
And avocado watchers are in luck. Thanks to a heavy crop, prices are down to $1.50 each and supply shows no sign of letting up.
Don’t forget about the florets
At Jesmond Fruit Barn in Newcastle, New South Wales, manager Dominic Iacono says cauliflower and broccoli are still good picks this season, and prices remain steady.
Cauliflower can be found for $3 each and broccoli for $3.50 a kilo. Broccolini too, is cheap at about $2.90 a bunch in supermarkets.
Iacono also expects tomatoes to come down in price as the sun comes out. At the moment, his cheapest tomatoes are about $2.99 a kilo. Find the best you can in quality and price, buy up one kilogram’s worth, and turn it into one of Anna Jones’s mixed-tomato salads.
Wintry root vegetables such as pumpkins and potatoes are still around, with Iacono recommending sweet potatoes. For springtime alfresco cooking, you could barbecue them for Meera Sodha’s sweet potato, miso and spring onion salad.
Berries steal the limelight from citrus
At long last, it is time to welcome back berries.
“Strawberries are plentiful because the Queensland and West Australian season is in full flight,” says Labbozzetta.
“The rule of thumb is that they stay good until around grand final weekend – that’s my memory and I’ve been doing this for 20 years.”
After the winning teams claim their trophies, strawberry supply will come from milder, temperate regions such as NSW.
Labbozzetta is selling strawberries for $2 to $3 a punnet, but they are now on special for about $1.80 in supermarkets. For an elegant take on strawberries and cream, try Ottolenghi’s sumac-roast strawberries with strained yoghurt cream; though if you prefer your berries with custard, it’s hard to go past Meera Sodha’s strawberry cake (it’s also vegan).
Blueberries are also “eating really nicely”, says Labbozzetta, and can be found for $3 to $5 a punnet.
Citrus fruits are still sticking around too. “Navel oranges and afourer mandarins are going to be in for the next couple of months,” says Labbozzetta.
While blood orange supply is slowing and finishes by October, keep your eyes peeled for cara cara oranges – they have the vivid, deep-red flesh of blood oranges but are sweeter and seedless.
Pears too (brown are best) remain on special for about $2.50 a kilo in supermarkets.
Labbozzetta says pineapples – on last month’s “avoid” list – are turning around. “We’ve just seen a shift this week with price easing and the flavour is really good,” he says. “You can find a good-size pineapple for between $4 and $6.”
Buy:
Apples – bravo, jazz and kanzi varieties
Asparagus
Avocado
Beans
Blueberries
Broccoli
Brussel sprouts
Capsicums
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Corn
Fennel
Garlic
Lettuce
Mandarins – afourer variety
Oranges – navel, blood and cara cara varieties
Pears – brown is best
Pineapple
Pumpkin
Strawberries
Sweet potato
Tomatoes
Watch:
Cucumbers (on their way as temperatures rise)
Grapes (likely to make an appearance in October)
Snow peas (coming down in price)
Watermelon and rockmelon (on their way)
