Sometimes it can be hard to know which fruits, vegetables and fish are in season because there is so much that is available for most of the year. Which can leave me asking the question “what’s in season in July?” So, I put together these monthly seasonal food guides to help me use the ingredients that are in season in the Bon App recipes and meal plans. Feel free to download and print the infographic or you can pin it to Pinterest.
Free infographic to download! Eating in season - July
Vegetables in season in June
Artichoke – I cook whole artichokes in a pressure cooker for 10-15 mins. Then eat the soft part one leaf at a time, dipped in olive oil and vinegar. I then remove the choke and stalk to reveal the heart.
Aubergine – cooked aubergine has such a rich and complex flavour. It can absorb large amounts of cooking fat which can make dishes really rich and sometimes too rich. Sprinkling with salt reduces the amount of oil absorbed.
Beetroot – can be boiled or steamed, peeled and then eaten warm with or without butter as a delicacy; cooked, pickled, and then eaten cold as a condiment; or peeled, shredded raw, and then eaten as a salad.
Broccoli – a lot of people find that broccoli has a bitterness to it, whilst others find it bland. The bitterness can be reduced by roasting or stir frying rather than boiling or blanching.
Cauliflower – the heads can be roasted, boiled, fried, steamed, pickled, or eaten raw. After eight minutes of steaming, or five minutes of boiling, the florets should be soft, but not mushy.
Celery – the belief that you burn more calories by eating celery than you consume is unfortunately not true. In fact, eating celery does provide net calories.
Corn – the most common methods for cooking corn on the cob are frying, boiling, roasting and grilling. It is the perfect vegetable to cook on the barbecue but not so easy to eat it gracefully.
Courgette – has a delicate flavour and requires little more than quick cooking making it a perfect vegetable for making quick weeknight meals.
Cucumber – cucumbers have a lovely mild melon aroma and flavour and a slightly bitter taste to the rind. The reason they are so refreshing is because they are 95% water!
Fennel – I love to eat raw fennel because of its flavour that it is similar to liquorice or star anise.
Green beans – a French classic accompaniment for roasted meats. Simply stir fry with butter and fresh parsley until soft.
Lettuce – there are several types of lettuce that are in season in May including romaine, Batavia and oak leaf lettuce.
Mange tout – the French for “eat all” is the name for both snow peas and snap peas. Snow peas are flatter than snap peas but both are varieties of peas that are eaten whole in the pods while still unripe.
Mesculun – a salad mix of assorted small, young salad green leaves that originated in Provence, France. The traditional mix includes chervil, arugula, leafy lettuces and endive.
Peas – boiled or steamed, there is nothing quite like the taste of fresh green peas as an accompaniment to meat or even a pie.
Pepper – sometimes called bell or sweet peppers but mainly referred to by colour. Green peppers are less sweet and slightly more bitter than yellow or orange peppers, with red bell peppers being the sweetest.
Radishes – my favourite way to eat radishes is as a starter with a slice of buttered French bread and a pinch of salt. It’s the best way to enjoy the peppery flavour.
Spinach – the best ways to cook spinach in order to preserve the nutrients is to steam, sauté or microwave it. Or even better is to eat it raw like a salad.
Tomato – technically a fruit but we all use it as a vegetable in our savoury dishes. There are so many delicious varieties of tomato some more acidic and others sweeter. It’s actually recommended to store tomatoes at room temperature to maintain their flavour.
Turnip – can be enjoyed in a variety of ways, both raw and cooked. They can be chopped, sliced, diced and can be cooked in different ways like baking, boiling, sautéing or steaming. Try not to overcook them in order to retain their crunchy texture.
Fruits in season in July
The fruits that are in season in July are; Apricot, Banana, Blackcurrant, Blueberry, Cherry, Fig, Lemon, Mango, Melon, Peach, Plum, Raspberry, Redcurrant, Strawberry, Watermelon.