What does eating seasonally mean? To some it might represent margarita's during your trip to Mexico, a roasted turkey during your thanksgiving dinner or strawberry rhubarb pie for dessert one hot summer evening. For many it might be drinking 13 Natural lights at a college football tailgate during September. (Guilty as charged) For many, eating seasonally is culture based and signifies what your seasonal taste buds represent during gatherings. For others in tune with growing vegetables and the seasonal circuit of growing them - it represents much more than that. Before I get all "hippy" and tell you that it's an abomination to eat strawberries in the dead of winter, let's talk about the history of food from a seasonal perspective, particularly in this country.
The seasonality of food refers to the times of year when a given type food is at its peak, either in terms of harvest or its flavor. This is also usually the time when the item is the cheapest and the freshest on the market. The food's peak time in terms of harvest usually coincides with when its flavor is at its best. This whole dynamic makes logistical sense when you go back to the years pre-Whole Foods, Wegmans, Costco, Walmart, Sam's Club, etc. Yes, life existed prior to these retailers.
Seasonal food was practiced since ancient civilizations as people ate what nature produced which varied according to seasons. That's the big point here. People ate was nature gave us - it's as simple as that. So, as we've migrated, changed our lifestyles, embraced technology and got impatient, we've come to expect to eat "Anything, anywhere at anytime". With the onset of large food retailers that had dynamic and robust procurement and supply chain methods, we were then able to literally taste the world of flavors all year round. For many, this was food capitalism at it's finest and brought food to your plate in an efficient and cheap way. We've slowly turned to convenience and ignored the true wealth of eating smart and healthy. I don't need to get into the health and social impacts that have pummeled our country in the last 30 years from our disconnect with sustainable and smart eating habits.
I want to take this in a different direction. Enough folks such as Michael Pollan and Mark Bittman have went into micro-detail about what your eating habits can lead to. I want to keep it simple and basic. Let's start with tomatoes. If you've ever picked a fresh, ripe tomato in mid-summer and bit into it and didn't realize the world of taste that fruit represents - you probably shouldn't keep reading. The juicy, and firm taste is one of the best mainstays for summer salads, sauces and mixin's while cooking during the summer. Let's fast forward about 4-5 months and hop on over to your favorite restaurant and you'll probably pull a translucent, rubbery, non-tasteful "disc" off your salad or sub. The flavor attributes compared to this fruit seasonally is incomparable. Granted, technology has granted a lot of regional farmers the ability to create fresh, great tasting tomatoes all year round, but or me it represents something that just doesn't feel the same.
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| Strawberries in the summer, nuttin' better. |
Working in the food industry for almost 20 years has made me start to think about seasonality, something I strive to achieve in most my meals. I am totally spoiled, since I live in Upstate NY; the season of any given food is usually prominent for a few weeks longer than, say, St. Louis, MO, or in the upper Eastern reaches of Canada. I do realize my luck and good fortune in living in such a fertile temperate climate, and I don’t take it for granted. The only region I believe is better suited for my taste is Northern California. But having said that, I still can't get a decent tomato here in winter.So, I've come to realize to change my dietary habits seasonally on both taste and sustainability.
If you think that you’re eating seasonal produce just because you shop at your local grocery store, think again: even the likes of Wegmans and Trader Joe's offers out-of-season produce throughout the year. I completely understand the dynamic, they are a business and they have dialed in on their customer and understand the necessary evils of being a food retailer. I’ve thought about this many times before, and I can’t fault them for selling what people want in their stores. If their customers want strawberries in winter, they are going to sell them and as many as their customers want, period. But, what this confusion does make it more difficult to decipher which fruits and veggies are at their peak and which ones should be avoided. Some grocery stores are getting better at putting this information in front of their customers. The best way to get around this at any store is to educate yourself a little about what’s in season, it's that simple.
So, how do you begin to eat seasonally? First thing to do is just simply check out a seasonality chart here. Next, go visit one of your local farmers markets. You can find one near you here.
To be frank, I'm slowly moving into this realm of eating. I'm trying to be honest with myself about food as I travel all over the country and are tempted by the thousands of options to spend my money at every turn. Like I said earlier, use taste as a factor. Taste the difference of pears and apples in the fall compared to the summer. Enjoy the sweetness of the strawberries in mid July and judge for yourself if they are better than the ones sitting in the parfait cups at Starbucks in January. Approach this way of eating in a fun way so you can appreciate what the flavors of all four seasons give us. Your taste buds will thank you
