It’s the start of the seasonal series! I wish I’d thought of this at the start of the year, but here we go. At the beginning of each season, I will release a guide to eating in that season. Throughout that season, I’ll release seasonal recipes, usually a savoury, a sweet and some sort of beverage or snack. I will be sticking to fruits and vegetables, but I’ll link a few websites that I’m grabbing this information from which also detail meat and fish if that’s something you’d like to know. Eating seasonally is another approach to eating that lowers your carbon footprint because you are reducing air miles and chemicals. When something is out of season, it means that it has either travelled from abroad or it is being grown here under manufactured conditions. Obviously, it’s pretty difficult to eat seasonally all the time, but hopefully these recipes will give you an idea as to how to incorporate more seasonal food into your diets!
This week, I’m going over what food is most available in the UK in Spring. Spring in the UK is from March to May, which of course we are coming to the end of, but there’s still time to make a few treats!
Vegetables
There are a lot of vegetables available in the UK in Spring. Asparagus, beetroot, spring onions, kale, carrots, broccoli, peas, spinach and so many others are all in season. Towards the end of spring, more salad greens like lettuce and rocket start appearing, which are great for salads. Potatoes are also widely available in May, as well as chillies and peppers. For the full lists, have a look at the websites below.
Fruit
There isn’t as much fruit in Spring as there is in other seasons, like the summer. The big one is rhubarb, which you’ve probably seen at local markets or in allotments. Rhubarb is very easy to cook with, and you can use it in more savoury foods like chutneys as well as sweet recipes like jams, cakes and crumbles. Elderflower is also around this time of year, particularly in late May. You can eat the flowers and berries, but only after cooking them, otherwise they’re a bit toxic. Other parts of the plant are poisonous, so don’t eat them!
Herbs
Did you know that herbs are seasonal? Of course they’re grown, but I hadn’t put two and two together. Rosemary can be harvested all year round and is great to use in cooking. Sorrel, which is a tangy herb often used in Vietnamese food, is also available around this time of year. Basil, chives, dill and tarragon can also be grown around this time.
Hopefully this was helpful! Keep a look out for a couple of seasonal recipes this month before we move into the next season – summer.
Seasonal Eating Sources:
Waste Makes Waste 