It’s like a changing of the guard right now, the warm weather produce is at the end of its season, and the winter fruit & veg starting to pick up. Just like us consumers, the cooler temperatures and recent rains have fresh produce hiding inside over the last few weeks, with inclement weather impacting supply.
Some of our favourite vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and corn are in light supply – the Victorian corn, snow pea and sugar snap season has slowed down, with our supplies now coming from Bundaberg.
On the upside, butternut pumpkin is in good supply, also from Bundaberg. We don’t really think of pumpkin as a sweet dish in Australia, but for something a little different, put some cinnamon and brown sugar on it and throw it in the oven until it’s caramelised. It’s not really that different from using carrots in cake, which are also in good supply; who doesn’t love classic carrot cake with cream cheese icing and some crushed walnuts on top?
The nectarine and peach season has finished, and plums are in very light supply, if you can find them at all. Packham pears from Shepparton remain in good supply, and we still have pineapple arriving from Townsville and the Sunshine Coast – have you ever tried pineapple with lime and chilli? We have plenty of limes coming from Northern Queensland, and they’re in heavy supply as are seedless lemons from Gayndah.
Apples thrive in winter and we have an excellent supply from Batlow in NSW and Shepparton in Victoria, while Stanthorpe in Queensland is still supplying new-season Red Granny.
Mandarins from Gayndah, Queensland are also in great supply – look out for those, they’re great quality right now, and packed with Vitamin C. Passion fruit is in good supply from Bundaberg, and the Sunshine Coast season has just started for both passionfruit and strawberries, which are currently still light in supply.
We have a good quality, adequate supply of lettuce coming from the Lockyer Valley, and a healthy supply of kale coming from Toowoomba. Bok choy is in demand and pak choy is in good supply from Greenbank, Brisbane. That’s a great salad right there – just throw in some radish from Rochedale in Brisbane, and Silverbeet from Toowoomba.
Good news for those who throw out the recipe book and measure garlic with their hearts – it’s in fair supply from local Queensland farms, and ginger from the Sunshine Coast is in moderate supply, too.
This week’s hero is the hardy bean, which we have a healthy supply of from Bowen and Bundaberg. Here’s a fun fact: the green bean is not a vegetable, it’s a fruit! Why? Because fruits contain seeds and a green bean is a pod which has seeds inside it. Beans are a great side dish with any meal, jaz yours up into a delicious salad or for those who like to experiment with food and flavours, find a bean curry recipe and grab a small leg of ham, chop it up into small cubes and throw it in while the beans are still cooking so that it’s also covered in the spices – it’s a little different, and a lot delicious!
– Produce report supplied by Brismark