BUYER'S GUIDE: 11th Apr - 16th Apr
After better weather over the past few weeks the markets are looking brighter!! Only items still heavily affected are melons (price and quality) and tomatoes (more quality than price). Supply is up on demand, which has levelled the market and eased prices across the board
Fruit:
Farewell to Peaches and Nectarines, followed by Mangoes and Plums, over the next week or so. Best buying is still Apples, Pears and Bananas.
Plenty of variety on offer: Figs, Grapes (Red, Black & White), Lemons & Limes, New season Mandarins, Papaya, Passionfruit, Pineapples, Dragonfruit, Quinces, Strawberries and Tamarillo’s- all good quality with prices to suit.
Vegetables:
The trucks are full!! The cool, drier weather has brought on the staples and lifted quality. Think... Artichokes, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Carrots, Cauliflowers, Celeriac, Cabbage, Asian Bunch Veg, Eggplant, Horseradish, Leeks, Cos & Iceberg lettuce, Mushrooms, Salads Mix’s, Swedes, Turnips, Sweet Corn, Spuds & Onions, all Pumpkins varieties and Zucchini.
BEST BUYS:
Fruit:
Corella Pears (VIC) * Delicious Apples - med (VIC) * Fig Tray (NSW) * Pineapple (QLD) * Strawberries - extra large (VIC)
Vegetables:
Bean - green (QLD) * Butternut Pumpkin (NSW) * Celeriac (QLD) * Brussel Sprouts (VIC) * Leek - large (VIC) * Mushroom - cup (NSW)
SOMETHING DIFFERENT:
Chestnuts (VIC)
Fruit:
Mandarins (QLD) * New Season Quince (QLD) * Tamarillo -red (NSW) *
Vegetables:
Fennel Bulb - large (VIC) * Galangal (QLD) * Globe Artichoke (NSW) * Horseradish (SA) * Jicama aka Water Yam (QLD) * Wild Pine Mushrooms (NSW)
NOT THIS WEEK:
Short Supply:
Honeydew Melon * Bella Rossa Tomatoes
End of Season:
Nectarines * Peaches
Not Available:
Green Peas (fresh)
BUYER'S GUIDE: 20th March - 26th March
Fruit:
New Season Apples and Pears are in full swing, excellent quality, great eating and priced extremely well. Also holding well are Bananas, Dragonfruit, Figs, Grapes, Lemons & Limes, Passionfruit, Persimmons & Fuyu, Pineapples, Pomegranates, Quinces and Rockmelons.
Ones to keep an eye on are, Berries, Watermelons, Honeydews, Papaw and Stonefruit as the season is coming to a end, some late season Plums varieties still good buying and eating well.
Vegetables:
Clear sailing on Asparagus, Carrots, Capsicums Green, Leeks, Mushrooms, Sweet Corn, All Spuds (Sweet Potatoes included) Zucchini, Onions and Pumpkins.
The rest of the lines holding quality, up slightly in price but still in the buying range. Iceberg & Cos lettuce, Cauliflowers and Tomatoes one to watch re quality and price and as are some Asian leaf lines suffering from the heavy rains.
The overall view of the markets is still positive as supply and demand is balanced- looking ahead Tomatoes and the leaf lines are the one to watch.
BEST BUYS:
Fruit:
New Season Apples- Red Delicious (VIC)
Beurre Bosc Pears (VIC)
Grapes - red seedless (VIC)
Rambutan (QLD)
Strawberries - medium (VIC)
Vegetables:
Brussel Sprouts (SA)
Fennel Bulb - large (VIC)
Spanish Onion - red (SA)
Sweet Potato - large (QLD)
Zucchini - green (ACT)
SOMETHING DIFFERENT:
New Season Chestnuts (VIC)
Fruit:
Blood Oranges (Imp- USA)
Guava - cooking (QLD)
Pomello (QLD)
New Season Quince (QLD)
Vegetables:
Horseradish (SA)
Kohlrabi bunch (NSW)
Lotus Root (QLD)
Pontiac Potato (SA)
Wild Pine Mushrooms (NSW)
NOT THIS WEEK:
Poor Quality:
Blueberries
End of Season:
Lychees
Not Available:
Green Mangoes
Purple Asparagus
Tuscan Cabbage
PACKED TO THE GILLS
Q: What is the largest living organism in the world?
A key sign that local mushrooms are at their peak season, is the arrival of the wild mushrooms at the markets. Mushrooms traditionally flourish following the onset of Autumn rains in Australia and after a wet summer in NSW they are already at the markets and great eating.
AGARICUS BISPORUS:
The most common mushroom variety in Oz, Agaricus mushrooms are commonly sold by developmental stage rather than variety and are available all year round.
BUTTON (aka Champignon):
Youngest stage, it is tightly closed at stem, very firm and has a mild flavour which intensifies with cooking. Picked for stage of development, not size and can outsize cups
Best Use: Firm and hold shape well when cooked, great fresh in salads
CUP:
Most versatile, slightly open at stem to show a little gill, rich flavour and colour
Best use: Very versatile, stuff, slice, dice into soups, casseroles and sauces
FLAT:
Mature mushroom with flat cup and highly visible gills. These have a more intense flavour, meaty texture and rich colour
Best use: Best cooked. Think tempura, tapenades and roasting
There are two strains of Agaricus Bisporus commonly available:
WHITE:
Preferred by supermarkets. White mushrooms are a mutant strain (identified in 1926) that gained popularity due to their clean, fresh look and light mushroom flavour
SWISS BROWN (aka Honey Brown, Roman Brown, Italian Brown, Crimini):
PORTABELLA: aka Portobello, Portabello
The Portabella is a ‘Swiss Brown’ that has matured to the ‘flat’ stage of development. They are large, meaty, earthy and a fantastic substitute for meat on the BBQ
Best use: Grill, roast, BBQ
WILD PINE MUSHROOMS: aka Saffron Milk Caps, Orange Fly Caps
A fleeting Autumn crop, fresh Wild Pine Mushrooms are highly valued by food lovers. Locally produced in pine plantations, these are identifiable by their saffron-light brown cap, gills and short stem. They have a firm texture and a lovely spicy, nut flavour. Be sure to remove stems before use
Best use: When young and tender they are great in fresh pasta and omelettes. As they get older they get tougher, and are best suited to slow cooking in sauces and casseroles
SLIPPERY JACKS:
A late Autumn crop the Slippery Jack is hard to come by but valued for their delicate texture and strong flavour. They have a chestnut-brown cap characterised by its slimy wet appearance and a yellow spongy underside. It is best to peel Slippery Jacks as the slimy cap can cause gastric upset
Best use: Cooked when very fresh. Good for soups, frying or stewing
To get the most of the mushroom season we can only hope the rain eases. For while mushrooms need a good rain to get going, excessive rain can affect quality and in the case of wild varieties prevent access to crops and therefore limit supply.
A: It’s not the blue whale, but rather a Honey Mushroom colony that covers a staggering 8.9km² area of Malheur National Forest in Oregon, USA. Proven to be the same organism through DNA testing, the colony is believed to be over 2,400 years old and still growing. The organism is a parasitic fungus that grows on tree roots and spreads via shoestring like tendrils, it is identifiable by its yellow capped mushrooms and the swathe of dead trees it leaves in its wake.
BUYER'S GUIDE: 6th Mar - 12th Mar
As your eyes at the markets, here’s this week’s seasonal update from our buyers:
The wet weather has finally hit home. While demand is the same, quality is the big issue. In particular, poor quality and supply of local ground grown crops has pushed market prices higher. As in the past few weeks, it is 90% against the vegetables.
Fruit:
All good across the range. New Season Avocados are in full swing as is Kiwifruit and a good supply of tropicals from QLD.
Stonefruits are just about on their last legs, with most now well past their prime. New season apples and grapes in good supply.
Only berries and the melon range showing signs of the weather- quality, supply and price are the things to watch here.
Vegetables:
A much different story here. Some of the main lines are still ok (just up slightly in price) but the local NSW crops, Tomatoes, Asian Vegs, Herbs, Baby Veg etc have been hit hard in both quality and price.
There are only a few items on the short list (as we bring supply in from further afield) but we will see no real change until we get a clear run of dry weather. Still supplies are holding but pending the weather, quality will be the main issue.
BEST BUYS:
Fruit:
Delicious Apples - medium (NSW)
Red Grapes - seedless (VIC)
Mango - Kett's (QLD)
Passionfruit (QLD)
Plum (NSW)
Vegetables:
Broccoli (VIC)
Butternut Pumpkin (NSW)
Chinese Wombok (QLD)
Desiree Potato- large (SA)
Sweetcorn (NSW)
SOMETHING DIFFERENT:
Fruit:
Drinking coconut (Imported)
Fuji Fruit (QLD)
Kiwiberries (NZ)
Pomello (Imported)
New Season Quince (QLD)
Vegetables:
New Season Chestnuts (VIC)
Heirloom Tomatoes (NSW)
Tuscan Cabbage (NSW)
Wild Pine Mushrooms (NSW)
Winter Melon (QLD)
NOT THIS WEEK:
Short Supply:
Borlotti Beans
Not Available:
Baby Gold Beetroot
Baby White Carrot
Bella Rossa Tomatoes
Blood Orange