Seasonal Food: March

Friday March 2, 2007 · by Scott · in Misc.

Note:� This is the second part of an ongoing series (of which this is the first) of posts highlighting seasonal food, which should hopefully help you in finding fresh produce.� Although I’m from the UK, I hope the tips apply to elsewhere, too.

Hooray for March – which brings with it promises of Spring and sunshine, with daffodils blooming and all manner of greenery starting to grow.� From a culinary sense, this is exactly what we are looking for, too.

Vegetables: March brings with it one of my favourites, Purple Sprouting Broccoli – which is delicious steamed with a simple dip – and also�Beetroot and Radishes (did you know you can eat the leaves of both?).� Leeks and spring onions should be doing quite good, too – and a peer into your herb garden should show that both your chives, parsley�and mint have also started growing.

In the hedgerow (i.e. the local Nature Reserve) I’ve noticed small shoots of Sorrel and Nettles growing already – so a Nettle Soup can’t be too far away, either.

Fruits: The most enticing this month is surely Rhubarb – which you should be able to find fresh if you’re lucky as well as forced.� A lot of imported citrus fruits (such as Oranges) are just reaching the end of their season – so you might want to grab some zing while you can.

Meat and Fish: Not much going on with meat right now since the game season finished except Hare – which is good to the end of the month, but we’re onto a winner with fish – both�Sardines and Lobster are fresh right now.� You might even scrape some fresh Salmon if you’re lucky – so it’s a good month all round!

This one’s certainly been a warm Winter (hottest in last 150ish years, apparantly), so let’s look forward to a great Spring and Summer – with plenty of fresh food for us to eat!

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http://nami-nami.blogspot.com Pille

Scott, I wish this was helpful to me here in Estonia, but sadly not. Temperatures were -20C just last week, so it’ll be still a few more months before we get seasonal local leeks and beetroots!
I love the daffodils and crocuses in Edinburgh in March – too bad I’m missing them this year:(
http://www.theperfectpantry.com Lydia

You’re a bit ahead of our climate here in Rhode Island (US) — but in a month or so we’ll be finding fiddleheads and ramps, which are lovely introductions to the spring produce season. Then asparagus will be next, around the end of April.
http://www.wherestherevolution.blogspot.com bazu

I love this post! Even though I’m still buried in snow, I can’t help but see the beginning of March as the beginning of warmth. I will keep my eyes out for rhubarb- I’ve never cooked with it before, but this will be the year. I love the stuff.
http://welcometovoluntarysimplicity.wordpress.com/ dibnah

I’ve found that this year alot of my herbs never went away. Parsley borage rocket all growing away happily. I wonder if this summer will be hotter than last year?

It would be interesting to find out what changes people are finding around the world. It never really snows here but I would like to know for the people who do get it if there is less this year than in the past.
http://aidanbrooks.blogspot.com/ Trig

I’ve just put up a link on purple sprouting broccoli as the seasonal product of the week, but to be honest I’ve been struggling a bit with the whole seasonal food bit. For a start what’s seasonal here isn’t seasonal elsewhere.

The point is that the world is now very small. Years ago it made so much sense to promote local, seasonal food because you couldn’t get non-seasonal food without importing it dried, salted, etc. Nowadays we can get what’s seasonal somewhere in the world delivered pretty much while it’s still fresh.

So as a world citizen and someone dedicated to fusion, but at the same time someone who wants to support local producers and oppose globalisation by the big multinationals, I’m really caught between two stools. I support diversity of culture and hence the importance of regional produce and food, but I’m not a narrow minded nationalist because this is both racist and contrary to where I think the world should go. It’s not an easy issue, is it?
http://www.realepicurean.com scott

Pille: Wow – very cold! My wife’s country (Poland) was cold last year, but this year is not so bad. And you’re even further north!

Lydia: Maybe you should always read my seasonal guides 1 month behind :p I love asparagus though…so I’m waiting for that, too.

bazu: something simple like pork served on sweated and softened rhubarb would be a great intro.

dibnah: True for mine in most cases, but – the chives slowed right down and the rocket / parsley are dead (probably never to be seen again). I’ll give the parsley a few more weeks in case it’s just trying to trick me.

Trig: Ah – you’ve given me the idea for my next poll! More on that later…
http://foodblogga.blogspot.com Susan from Food “Blogga”

Ooh, I just love sorrel. It has just debuted at the farmers’ market, and I find it especially lovely in salads or paired with seafood or tofu. And rhubarb? You know, in CA it’s not that popular, but it certainly is on the East Coast where I grew up. I just love it’s sweet-tart flavor so much! Do you prefer to eat it raw or cook it? Thanks for the fun post!
http://www.wherestherevolution.blogspot.com bazu

I think I’ll stick with strawberry rhubarb pie or rhubarb jam!
http://www.realepicurean.com scott

Susan from Food “Blogga”: I prefer it cooked. Sweating it down a little really releases the flavours…yummy…

bazu: Hehe, rhubarb jam is a fine way to use it anyway.
http://londonfood.typepad.com Ben

Trig, the word is only small because we willfully shrink it. Just because we can get certain veg all year round, do we really want to? I know, for instance, that we grow some of the best asparagus in the world in the UK and I celebrate its short season by tucking in with gusto (and butter) when local stuff is available. I almost never buy it any other time of year, not so much because of the food miles (although it’s convenient to add that to the argument in the current “climate” climate) but because a) I really don’t know whether asparagus from Chile is any good and b) I also worry we’re in danger of missing out on some of the glorious rhythms that have evolved in this (and every other) country to match nature’s changing bounty.

Incidentally, Scott, I am a bit confused about the poll. Are you implying eating seasonal ingredients is more expensive? I’m not sure this is true (unless, of course, you buy Jersey Royals as soon as you see them – I can’t resist them either).
http://www.realepicurean.com scott

Ben: I’ve updated the answers in the poll (changed the wording a little) to take on board your comments there. I was jumping the gun a little.
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http://winterskieskitchenaglow.blogspot.com/ Shaun

Scott – I thought that I would have the easiest of times finding seasonal produce in Auckland – after all, New Zealand is heavily reputed for being clean and green. Farmers’ markets, though, are not really the done thing here. There is one that occurs once a month (!) in Devonport, but this is hardly sufficient. A recent trip to the local greengrocer’s had me balking at the notion of paying NZ$2.50 per fig. These must have been imported from Australia or some other warm clime…I miss my Long Beach home and having the great farmers’ market every week to go to. Seasonal produce makes for a more engaging time in the kitchen, allowing one to really expand his or her repertoire, for the produce constantly changes.
http://www.realepicurean.com scott

Shaun: Unfortunately, despite me living in semi-rural England farmer’s market’s aren’t really the “done thing” here either. Ours is once a month too
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