Budget broccoli and low-price pears: Australia’s best-value fruit and veg for July

‘Per kilo, pears are often cheaper than apples this July,’ says Sydney fruiterer Ash Fooladi, so don’t overlook them in your weekly shop this winter. Photograph: Sasha Bell/Getty Images

Citrus and apples may dominate our fruit bowls in winter, but in July, don’t forget to take advantage of pear prices.

“Per kilo, pears are often cheaper than apples this July,” says Ash Fooladi, owner of Mayfair Fresh in Petersham, Sydney.

“Brown pears and packham pears are about $3 a kilo, whereas apples are about $5 to $6 a kilo.”

In supermarkets, packham pears can be found on special for about $2.80 a kilo and brown pears (also known as beurre bosc) are about $3.50 a kilo. The latter variety is best suited for Felicity Cloake’s perfect poached pears, while warm honeyed pears will level up your morning porridge – that is, if you’re willing to deviate from the traditional recipe.

An elegant dessert: Felicity Cloake’s perfect poached pears. Photograph: Felicity Cloake/The Guardian

At about $6 a kilo in supermarkets, kanzis are the most expensive apples on the market, while pink ladies remain the cheapest at about $3.50.

According to Fooladi, July is going to be the best time for persimmons, thanks to more plentiful supply. Currently, they can be found on special in supermarkets for about $2.90 each, so give persimmons a chance. The firmer fuyu variety pairs particularly well with prosciutto or serrano ham.

Is this the month you make ‘meat fruit’?

Navel oranges remain affordable at about $2.50 a kilo on special in supermarkets – and you should continue to make the most of mandarins as prices remain steady at $3.50 a kilo.

If you’re keen to do more than eat the segments straight away, turn them into Anna Jones’s quick mandarin compote (just make sure to remove any pips). For those with lots of mandarins, time and ambition, try Heston Blumenthal’s “meat fruit”.

Is it meat? Is it fruit? It’s meat fruit. Heston Blumenthal’s creation is filled with chicken liver parfait and mandarin jelly. Photograph: Sarah Lee/The Guardian

Quinces too are in season and plentiful, says Carmel Dawson, owner of Geelong Fresh Foods in Victoria.

“They are big [in season] at the moment … They’re about $5 a kilo and very good quality,” she says.

In supermarkets, you can find quinces for $6 to $7 a kilo. Roast them, poach them, turn them into jelly for future cheese sandwiches, or make membrillo (Sicilian quince paste), which will keep for months.

For those on avocado price watch, the alligator pears are cheap and are getting cheaper. You can find them for about $1.50 each in grocers and supermarkets.

At Willoughby Fresh in Sydney, owner Charles Scala says the choice of winter fruit is “a bit boring”, but shoppers can add variety – for a price.

Strawberries remain expensive – Scala sells two punnets for $10 – as cold weather in May has affected the Queensland crop. Australian grapes, currently about $4 a kilo, are on their way out and will almost double in price when US imports arrive.

‘Eat more soup’

Pumpkin once again leads the pack in affordable winter vegetables. They are about $2.50 a kilo in supermarkets, followed closely by potatoes at $3.50 to $4.50 a kilo.

Celery is good value in supermarkets at about $2.99 a bunch and carrots are a few dollars for a bag. Fooladi says this is the month to “eat more soup”, so caldo verde, ribollita and adas bil hamoud it is. And if you have beetroot – about $6 a kilo in supermarkets – of course, you make borscht.

Ribollita, a thick Tuscan soup that makes the most of leftover bread and vegetables. Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian

If you’ll prefer to exit the soup chat, try Yotam Ottolenghi’s vibrant butternut squash polenta, or his jacket potatoes, with a twist (spoiler alert: there’s tonnato).

Rootin’ tootin’ veg and budget broccoli

To maximise winter’s root vegetable season, grab one kilogram of your favourite underground friends – swedes, parsnips, carrots, radish – and layer them in Alice Zaslavsky’s cheesy root vegetable bake.

Dawson says aside from root vegetables, cauliflower and broccoli are headliners in July.

Cheap and colourful (and gluten-free): Becky Excell’s sticky broccoli fried rice. Photograph: Yuki Sugiura/The Guardian

“A whole cauliflower is $3.99 and broccoli is $4.99” a kilo, she says of her stock in Geelong. In supermarkets, you can find a cauliflower for $3.50 or less – find a big one and turn it into this Suya-spiced, peanutty roast cauliflower.

To make use of budget-friendly broccoli (about $3 a kilo in supermarkets), make sticky broccoli fried rice or Alice Zaslavsky’s green-as-you-can-get box grater broccoli pasta.

To add some freshness to your winter meals, leafy greens remain cheap and in good supply, and Fooladi says red and green capsicums are cheaper than usual at about $4.90 a kilo.

But avoid cabbage, says Dawson.

“Cabbage is a bit expensive because it is a summer line,” she says.

“We sell it for $4 for a half or $8 for a whole. We only have it available year round because growers still grow it.”

And the worst vegetable pick for July is asparagus. You’ll find them in supermarkets for about $3.50 a bunch, but they are mostly imported, according to Dawson, and of a lesser quality than usual.

But brussels sprouts are looking good and remain stable at about $9 to $10 a kilo. Pan-fry them with soy sauce and hazelnuts for sweet, sticky and crunchy results.
Buy
Apples
Avocado
Beetroot
Broccoli
Broccolini
Brussels sprouts
Capsicums
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Leeks
Mandarins
Oranges
Parsnips
Pears
Persimmons
Potatoes
Pumpkin
Quinces
Rhubarb
Spinach

Avoid
Asparagus
Cabbage
Grapes
Strawberries