Guide to UK seasonal food in the Winter&Spring. Plus health benefits of some of your favourite foreign fruits!

In today's world we have unlimited choice which our ancestors could never have dreamt of. We can buy any item we want at any time of the year. We can now eat strawberries in the Winter for example! However out of season fruit and veg has traveled a very very long distance to be in your kitchen and all items loose a lot of their nutrition on the journey.

The fruit and veg are picked when they are ripe but before actual ripeness. Although the fruit & veg may gain colour and ripeness on the journey, the real taste and juiciness comes straight from the ground into the stem and into the food. As soon as it is picked the item loses a bit of its nutritional value each day.

As we have moved from using local farmers on local land in yesteryear..... to huge companies foraging huge amounts of fruit and veg...enough to supply the world!!! The health and the nutrition of the fruit & veg has taken a back seat to sturdiness and how shippable the food is.

I am definitely partially thankful to the globalisation of farming because now I can eat bananas and my favourite fruit all year round. Cook with vegetables I would never have had the chance to years ago. The type of dishes we can all produce is endless! But now I do want to start eating in with the seasons, saving my money and eating the freshest fruit and veg packed full of goodness all year round.

Buying seasonal food is also a great way to support your community. The food is normally in abundance and also cheaper so we all win if we start buying more seasonal food!! You also get maximum health benefits from eating seasonal food as you are eating it at its peak ripeness.

So I've decided to start a guide. Each month I will add whats in season at the moment in the UK.

Winter - December, January & February

Fruit: apples, clementines, lemons, oranges, passion fruit, pears, pineapple, pomegranate, rhubarb, satsumas, tangerines;

Vegetables: beetroot, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, chicory, horseradish, artichoke, leeks, kale, onions, parsnips, potatoes (maincrop), radishes, red cabbage, rocket, salsify, shallots, spinach, swede, turnips

Herbs/Nuts/Funghi/Flowers: almonds, Brazil nuts, chestnuts, chives, coriander, hazelnuts, mushrooms, parsley, black truffles, white truffles

Meat: beef, chicken, goose, guinea fowl, hare, mallard, partridge, pork, rabbit, turkey, venison

Fish & Seafood: brill, clams, cockles, cod, coley, crab, eel, haddock, halibut, hake, langoustine, lemon sole, mackerel, monk fish, mussels, oysters, plaice, scallops, sea bream, skate, squid, turbot, winkles.

Seasonal Juice: 2 apples + 1 orange + 1 beetroot + 1 handful of kale

So if you can try buy more of whats featured in the above lists in Winter you will be eating the freshest food available with the highest level of goodness.

Spring - March, April & May

Fruit: Rhubarb

Vegetables: asparagus, cauliflower, cucumber, Jersey Royal Potatoes, Purple Sprouting Broccoli, radishes, savoy cabbage, sorrel, spinach, spring greens, spring onion, watercress

Herbs/Nuts/Funghi/Flowers: chives, coriander, mushrooms (cultivated), parsley (curly), sorrel, truffles (black

Meat: beef, chicken, pork, rabbit, turkey, wood pigeon

Fish & seafood: cockles, conger eel, crab, dab, dover sole, eel. hake. john dory, lemon sole, lobster, mackerel, mussels, oysters, salmon, scallops, shrimp, skate, whitebait, winkles

Seasonal Juice: 2 oranges + a squeeze of lemon + a squeeze of lime

So when we have delicious fruit and veg growing happily over in the UK we should chose eating local produce other imported fruit and veg. However during our cold winter there are some fruits which have no chance growing in our cold. So below I will now highlight the fruit which is at its best abroad which we can find in our local grocers or in our supermarkets.

Cranberries: because they are equally useful in both savory and sweet dishes. For exmaple the sourness makes a fantastic sauce for meat and game meat...which is in season!! When buying cranberries look for bright, dry and plump berries with NO winkles. If fresh they are extremely hardy and will last in the fridge for up for 2 weeks...as long as you remove any decaying ones. You can freeze them on a tray without any touching each other, then, once frozen solid freeze them together in a bag. These can then be used for smoothies!!

Pineapple: I love pineapple and have it at least once a week and you don't have to worry about buying a ripe one. A pineapple will ripen perfectly well at room temperature. But do NOT refrigerate because they will deteriorate very quickly if cold. Unripe pineapples are green, ripe pineapples are yellow and when they turn brown its a little bit late!! You can also turn the pineapple upside down and give it a good sniff....If it smells of lovely juicy pineapple then it should be ready to eat!!

Pomegranate: If you have the time to de-seed a pomegranate then you can use the seeds to scatter over salads. The fruit has a lovely wine like taste which works well with most salads. However if your a busy bee then you can just buy the seeds separately. The flesh of the fruit can be used to make cordials or a tasty marinade. Pomegranates are rich in antioxidants which help maintain healthy immune systems, healthy heart and prevent cancers. They are a good source of folate, Vit C, fibre and potassium which is important for healthy blood pressure.

Passion Fruit: is such a fragrant and exotic looking fruit. It has a very sharp flavour which is still quite sweet. A fantastic idea is to half the fruit, scoop out the flesh with a spoon. The flesh is delicious over vanilla ice-cream or mixed with anything creamy!! To get the best pulp, force the flesh through a fine sieve with a tablespoon of boiling water. Passion fruits are best to eat when the skin is wrinkly.


I will add more lists as the months passes. Please feel free to leave any comments with any questions you may have.

Hope this helps anyone who reads it.

Thefcdeli uses local farmers, growers, producers and suppliers wherever possible to ensure that we supply the freshest produce as its high quality all year round. Please visit the website today to order the juiciest food around! www.thefcdeli.co.uk :-)