Bargain prices on seasonal produce -
Opting for cheaper cuts of beef , learning how to spot a value wine and swapping an energy-efficient air fryer in for your oven are just a few strategies to help pad your pockets. And when it comes to buying fruits and vegetables, as a general rule, the closer to home your produce is grown and the more in season, the less expensive it is, according to produce expert Robert Schueller, director of public relations for produce wholesaler Melissa's.
While this may be common sense, the seasonality also greatly affects the price and pedigree of your produce, especially in a market culture that tends to make most things available most of the year.
Bananas are a notable expectation to this, as they somehow manage to be always available, and always inexpensive, seemingly in defiance of the laws of physics and of supply chain logistics note for future journalism: have bananas won evolution?
In actuality, it's Americans' high demand for bananas, and the volume in which they are imported, that keeps them cheap. Read more: Best Produce Delivery Services in While it's tempting to believe that all produce is at its most abundant and lowest price during the summer, not everything hits its stride in July and August.
Asparagus and peas, for example, are decidedly late spring or early summer crops; apples, pears, and root vegetables are best purchased in fall; and winter is peak time for a variety of citrus fruits and even some leafy greens. Beyond that strategy, what are the best buys right now from your local grocer or farmer's market, besides those tried-and-true bananas?
Here are some of Schueller's picks for the cheapest fruits and vegetables to buy right now. And if you're curious about having your roots and fruits delivered, we did some math and it turns out buying groceries online is no more expensive than shopping in person.
You can also find out whether or not meal kits actually save money compared to grocery shopping. Melons have long been a summer mascot, but not only because they are naturally refreshing and easy to feed a crowd with at a picnic or cookout.
That's when prices drop, and you also get more available variety in your melon selection. Now is when you should start to see large boxes of different types of cantaloupes, watermelon and honeydews in abundant display at your market, with peak season prices dropping as low as 30 cents to 40 cents per pound.
Stone fruits are those with a hard inner seed similar to a stone, such as cherries, peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots and pluots.
These fruits make for great additions to summer salads or can even stand alone as simple, grilled desserts. If you live in an orchard fruit-producing state, Schueller recommends checking out farmers markets, or you can see if local farms in your area offer U-Pick operations, which can be a great way to save money by stocking up and canning or freezing these summer fruits for later on.
Having probably traveled from South America to make their way to your fridge, what you are paying for in this case is transportation rather than high-quality fruit.
June and July are prime berry season in the Northern Hemisphere, however, and these fruits also make for great candidates for freezing. Berry season starts to fizzle out by mid-August.
Whether tomatoes are a fruit or a vegetable isn't really our concern when they are in as abundant supply as they are in July and August. Our concern is how to get the most out of prime tomato season when stunning heirloom varieties are available to grace our Caprese salads, and dense Roma and plum varieties are begging to be canned.
Rich in antioxidants, berries are an indulgence that are just as healthy for you as they are delicious. It's hard to beat a bowl of fresh berries, on their own or as a topping for yogurt, ice cream, or oatmeal.
Baking them into muffins and pies is another popular way to use a surplus. Supermarkets frequently carry fresh berries in the winter months, but they tend to be expensive and less flavorful. So take advantage of the summer bounty by freezing any leftover berries.
Corn is a high-yielding plant, creating a surge of product that lowers prices dramatically at harvest time. Ears of sweetcorn can be cooked several ways, including grilling , boiling, roasting, or even microwaving.
Loading up summer meals with corn is a cheap way to provide nutrition and flavorful seasonal meals to any size group. Ripe persimmons barely resemble the hard, vaguely red fruit that is sometimes on offer in the exotic fruit section of the grocery store.
Soft, almost mushy, and brightly hued, ripe persimmons are nature's candy, lusciously sweet with unique aromas. Aside from being enjoyed as a delicacy on their own, they can be used in baked goods or dried into homemade fruit snacks.
Loaded with iron and vitamins, beets add a healthy dose of sweetness to fall meals. Adding roasted or boiled beets to salads is an inexpensive way to make them heartier and increase the number of servings.
Also, thick and tender slices of beet can be used as the filling for a burger type of sandwich, which is a fun veggie twist that dramatically cuts costs.
The beginning of fall is apple season , when prices are lowest. Eaten as a grab-and-go snack, apples provide a boost of healthy natural sugar and energy, plus a range of other vitamins. But fall's abundance also makes apples an economical choice for pies, homemade apple sauce, and a variety of other homemade treats.
Grapes are harvested in early to mid-fall and used for snacking as well as winemaking. Because they are so perishable, the season is short, offering good deals and low prices on grapes for just a few weeks.
This underrated winter root vegetable has been a cheap staple of the American diet for well over a century. The starchy and slightly sweet bulb is similar to a potato when cooked, though with a slightly firmer texture.
Cheaper than potatoes , turnips can be prepared in the same way — baked, roasted, fried, or even mashed. The neutral flavor makes them an welcome filler for soups and stews. Once underrated, these morsels that look like mini cabbages are winter's trendiest vegetable.
It's hard to imagine a holiday table without a dish of roasted Brussels sprouts, or shaved Brussels sprout salad, or Brussels sprouts broken into leaves and sautéed with bacon and onions. More recipes than ever offer a variety of ways to turn these cheap globes into the star of the meal, leaving the days of insipid, boiled and mushy Brussels sprouts to the dust heap of history.
The many varieties of hard squash ensure freshness throughout the year. One of the cheapest and most nutritious vegetables, squash has been an important staple for populations of Northern America for millennia.
Their versatility allows the possibility to feed large groups for bottom dollar with soup, roasted squash, stuffed squash, or a hearty pie. This large white radish looks like a giant albino carrot and can be found at farmers markets for most of the season.
Low price and versatility make daikon a popular seasonal vegetable to enjoy raw, including in salads and crudite platters. Generally served shredded or spiralized into noodles, daikon retains its crunch and mild flavor in any form, adding freshness to otherwise heavy dishes.
It can also be made into impressively shaped garnishes to spruce up holiday platters. Artichokes are plentiful and inexpensive in spring but often hard to find and overpriced at other times of the year. The short season and laborious preparation, along with their unique earthy flavor and supple texture, have earned them a loyal following.
In season, artichokes can serve as an inexpensive main dish that impresses every time. The long, green tendrils that shoot up from the underground garlic bulb are known as garlic scapes. In late spring they are abundant, and sold for pennies at the markets.
Their mild garlic flavor makes them ideal for pesto and other blended sauces, or to add bulk to stir-fries, soups, and taco filling. They are hearty and keep in the fridge for up to two weeks. Their season lasts a few weeks, and the ones harvested later have a slightly tougher texture.
When asparagus hits markets each spring, it's at its freshest and most flavorful. And prices are low, too.
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