After months of soups and slow cooked stews, spring arrives at the greengrocer with a burst of colour. Eating with the seasons is one of the oldest ideas in food, and it remains one of the best: produce at its peak tastes better, often costs less, and gives your meals a natural variety through the year. Here is how to make the most of the spring harvest.
Why eating with the seasons makes sense
Fruit and vegetables in season are picked closer to their best, which usually means better flavour and better value, since abundant produce is cheaper produce. Variety matters for health as well as interest; nutrition guidance from Australian dietary authorities encourages a wide range of colourful vegetables and fruit, and following the seasons builds that variety in without any effort of will. There is also a quiet pleasure in eating this way, a sense of the year turning on your plate.
What is at its best in spring
Australian spring brings asparagus, peas, broad beans, spinach, lettuce and spring onions, along with beetroot, carrots and new season potatoes. On the fruit side, strawberries hit their stride, citrus is still lovely early in the season, and bananas and papaya from the north fill the bowl. Later in spring, mangoes begin arriving as a promise of summer. Availability varies by region, so the best guide of all is simply what looks fresh and plentiful at your local shop or market.
Simple ways to enjoy it
Spring produce needs very little done to it. Asparagus wants nothing more than a quick steam or a turn on the grill with a squeeze of lemon. Peas and broad beans brighten a risotto, a pasta or a simple mash. A salad of new season leaves, some tinned tuna or a boiled egg, and good bread makes an easy lunch. Strawberries with a dollop of yoghurt finish a meal nicely. If chopping is becoming harder on the hands, remember that frozen peas, spinach and berries are picked in season and snap frozen, so they are a genuinely good stand in.
Lighter meals as the days warm
Appetites often shift as the weather warms, and spring is a natural time to move from heavier winter fare towards lighter meals, without losing the protein that supports muscle strength after 60. Eggs, fish, chicken, legumes, dairy and lean meat all still deserve their place at the table. A frittata full of spring vegetables, grilled fish with salad, or a chicken and vegetable soup that is more broth than stew are all meals that suit the season and serve your strength.
Sharing the season
Food is better with company, and spring makes sharing easy. A visit to a local farmers market is a pleasant outing with a friend, and a chance to chat with growers about what is coming. A few pots of herbs on a sunny windowsill, parsley, mint, chives, give you a small harvest of your own and a reason to potter. And a simple spring lunch, shared with a neighbour in the fresh air, is as good for the spirit as anything on the plate.
A few storage habits help the harvest last. Leafy greens keep best washed, dried and wrapped loosely in the crisper, while tomatoes prefer the bench to the fridge for flavour. Berries are happiest unwashed until the moment you eat them. Buying only what the week truly needs, and giving the freezer the surplus, keeps both waste and the grocery bill down, which matters when you are shopping for one or two. If your appetite is smaller than it used to be, aim for colour and protein first on the plate and let the rest follow.
Spring rewards the simplest cooking of the year. Follow the colour at the market, keep it fresh and easy, and let the season do the seasoning.
Important Note
This article is general information only and is not a substitute for personal medical advice. Please speak with your GP or another qualified health professional about your own situation.