According to Melbourne greengrocer John Biviano, the best thing about spring is asparagus, with the local Victorian season in Australia’s largest asparagus-growing district, Koo Wee Rup, off to a good start.
He says growers have already offered him green and white asparagus. “It’s a sign of how good this season is going to be,” says Biviano, who owns Biviano & Sons in Melbourne’s Fairfield.
Local green asparagus is starting at about $3.99 a bunch, but will come down within weeks to under $2 a bunch. For speedy noodles, shave the spears raw into Ravinder Bhogal’s soba salad with miso dressing, or if you have an hour to spare, bake Nigel Slater’s asparagus and asparagus filo rolls.
White asparagus is also in, though the premium product is about $39.99 a kilo and likely to stay much the same price throughout the season.
Cauliflower is currently “very fairly priced”, says Biviano. The white varieties can be found for about $3.50 a head, and keep a look out for purple, green and gold varieties, he says. “It’s all starting to come alive.”
Crunchy cauliflower is the way to go, as in Anna Jones’ cauliflower fritters, where the florets are cooked first in milk to coax out its buttery characteristics; or Alice Zaslavsky’s panko-crumbed cauliflower and chicken rissoles. In other brassica news, broccoli is cheap at $3.50 a kilo and destined for this textural salad with dates, pecans, chilli and snow peas.
‘Stay away from Australian cucumbers’
At Galluzzo Fruiterers in Sydney’s Glebe, owner and buyer Josh Flamminio says leafy vegetables have reduced dramatically in price.
“Celery, iceberg lettuce, English spinach. Now that it’s not so cold, they’ll really come in.”
For TikTok viewers set on eating an entire cucumber, there’s bad news, says Flamminio: “Stay away from Australian cucumbers.”
Bad weather has driven prices to up to $14.99 a kilo.
But sugar snap peas and snow peas are “absolutely beautiful”, he says, and down to $13 a kilo.
Biviano says “tender, young and sweet” broad beans have also begun, at about $10 a kilo. Recently heralded for their health benefits, Ottolenghi’s broad bean burger patties are a good place to start.
Brussels sprouts and fennel are finishing up, but beetroot will only get bigger and better. The leaves can be eaten too – see Tom Hunt’s all-beet hash with chickpeas and chorizo.
Big blueberries are ‘unbelievable’
Mangos are already on their way – just not yet at summer prices.
While you wait for the Queensland mango season to kick off in November, you can find good-quality Northern Territory Kensington prides and R2E2s at about $5 each.
Strawberry and blueberry prices have recovered, and can be found for less than $3 a punnet. Try them in Benjamina Ebuehi’s cold and creamy rice pudding.
Biviano also recommends jumbo blueberries, at around $5.95 a punnet. “They’re actually unbelievable – really good eating and sweet.”
Pineapples, too, are ripe and ready at about $3.99 each.
‘It’s hard to find a nice bright-yellow banana’
Bananas – a usually steady fruit – have suffered from too much rain in Queensland. They’re typically between $1.99 and $2.99 a kilo, says Flamminio, but are now about $5.99 a kilo. “It’s hard to find a nice bright-yellow banana.”
Blood oranges and cara cara oranges remain in good supply, while mandarins are on the way out. Lumpy-skinned sumo mandarins are between $5 and $6 a kilo, and afourers are hanging on at about $3.50 a kilo.
And while avocado supply is consistent year-round, the Queensland season is finishing up. Flamminio recommends reed avocados at $2.50 each as a cheaper alternative to the ever-popular hass.
“They are creamy and beautiful, with a lot of thick flesh. They’re probably half the price and equally delicious.”
Buy:
Asparagus
Avocados
Beetroot
Blood oranges
Blueberries
Broad beans
Broccoli
Cara cara oranges
Cauliflower
Celery
English spinach
Herbs
Iceberg lettuce
Mandarins (afourer and sumo varieties)
Pineapples
Sugar snap peas
Snow peas
Strawberries
Watch:
Bananas
Raspberries
Watermelon
Avoid:
Brussels sprouts (the season is finishing up)
Cucumbers
Fennel
Grapes
