Seasonality in Cooking and Buying Produce

Running a food based business using fresh produce presents a challenge in the fact that you are tied to a living, dynamic, nature based system. The laws of nature meet the laws of supply and demand, transportation and handling methods and how farm production is managed and regulated in various ares of the world.

As a buyer of fresh produce you are faced with sometimes wild fluctuations in prices and quality of the items you are purchasing. The produce comes with hidden components such as pesticide and other 'cides' that have been used in the production of the crop. In some countries there is relatively strict guidelines for the use and handling of the chemicals used. In other countries there are slack guidelines or unenforced rules of use and application. Without a measurement there is really no way to know what is present in any given product. A basic guideline would be to assume that product grown in the USA especially CA is under relatively more stringent guidelines with stronger penalties for abuse. Products coming from outside the US could have lower standards and less regulation on pesticide use, so the risks of residue and environmental contamination in the growing region could be higher.

When a crop is season in your area it should be of good quality at reasonable prices. Your bottom line is that you can offer a product to your customer with better flavor at a more profitable food cost without raising the price. An example of this is the summer items that compose ratatouille. Tomatoes, summer squashes, eggplant, peppers are all summer fruiting items. The ideal time for southern CA would be starting in late spring with the desert grown areas and maturing to a full production in summer into fall all over the state. Offering this dish to customers at this time of year is ideal. Costs of good quality ingredients is reasonable and flavor is at a peak.

Compare the application of the same type of recipe February or March. This past winter was a prime example of what Mother Nature can do to our plans. Florida froze and the tomato crop was erased from an entire region. Prices became extremely high and quality was average at best. To serve the ratatouille at this time would to mean expensive ingredients and only average to lower quality. Customer satisfaction would be lower and the dish would be less profitable.

The question arises, 'What would be a better choice?'

By knowing what is in season you can plan ahead. Writing menus that will typically have seasonal ingredients will keep you on track to avoid the pitfalls of buying out of season.

Also using language such as "seasonal fruit" or "local vegetables" to describe the dishes component avoids a commitment to an item that might have gone through the roof in price, saving your food costs.

Talk with your produce supplier about the seasons that apply to you and your menu creation. A supplier aims to get you what you want and can find products out of season such as an heirloom tomato in January. The question becomes, 'how will this effect my end product and bottom line' and in these times of economic stress the survival of the business.

By thinking in these terms we can predispose ourselves to offering better products with a good ratio of food costs to price. Survival has much to do with working with the laws of nature and economy in a constructive, creative way.

The rambutan (pronounced /ræmˈbuːtən/, Nephelium lappaceum) is a medium-sized tropical tree in the family Sapindaceae, and the fruit of this tree. It is native to Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, although its precise natural distribution is unknown. It is closely related to several other edible tropical fruits including the Lychee, Longan, and Mamoncillo. It is believed to be native to the Malay Archipelago. Rambutan in Indonesian, Filipino and Malay literally means hairy caused by the 'hair' that covers this fruit. There is a second species regularly for sale at Malay markets which is known as 'wild' rambutan. It is a little smaller than the usual red variety and is colored yellow. The outer skin is peeled exposing the fleshy fruit inside which is then eaten. It is sweet, sour and slightly grape like to the taste.

Robert Farmer on the First Thing

First post of a lucrative career in blogging must begin with a subject that is the foundation of success.....Rambutans.

What is a Rambutan you ask? Obviously you are outside the 'circle of the successful' if you are asking that question.