Plan · Chapter 07

A calendar of good ingredients.

Eating in season costs less, tastes better, and removes a remarkable number of weekly decisions. The supermarket sells everything year-round — your plan does not have to.

What is on sale is usually what is in season.
01

Spring

Asparagus, peas, ramps, rhubarb, the first strawberries. The pantry steps back; the market steps forward. Cook fast and fresh, with one fat and one acid, and stop overthinking it.

02

Summer

Tomatoes, stone fruit, corn, basil, courgette. The grill earns its place. The plan leans on what does not need an oven. The best meal of August is a tomato, salt, oil, bread.

03

Autumn

Squash, apples, pears, brassicas, the first braising weather. Long Sundays in the kitchen, three meals out of one effort. The freezer starts filling.

04

Winter

Citrus, root vegetables, kale, beans, slow stocks. The freezer carries summer through the dark months. Plan for it now, in summer, when the tomatoes are still cheap.

05

Reading the shop

Ignore the signage. Look at prices. The pile of cheap, beautiful produce is the seasonal pile. The shop tells you what is in season more honestly than any newspaper column does.

Grow what you eat →

Common questions.

How do I shop seasonally without a farmers market?

Most supermarkets quietly stock seasonal produce more cheaply than the imports. Look at the prices — what is on sale is usually what is in season.

What if my season is different from yours?

Northern hemisphere assumptions don't map to southern; coastal don't map to mountain. The principle holds: cheap, abundant, beautiful = in season. Trust the shop, not the calendar.

Other chapters.

01 This Week 02 This Weekend 03 This Month 04 Grocery & Budget 05 Prep 06 Leftovers 08 Household Constraints

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