Spring has really started now! Do you already eat according to the seasons? Then you will be happy to know that from this month onwards, more and more vegetables and fruits from Dutch soil are available. If you do not yet eat according to the seasons, May is a great month to start. The list of seasonal fruit and vegetables in May is still nice and clear, but it will get longer and longer in the coming months. In this article, we list all May's seasonal fruit and vegetables for you.
Enjoying fresh seasonal vegetables in May
Thanks to Crisp for the seasonal produce
Are you also so happy that winter is over? If you eat according to the seasons, this month you can have fun with new vegetables such as kohlrabi, cabbage lettuce and pointed cabbage. Dutch strawberries also taste extra good this month. Or how about fresh asparagus? Just enjoy them extra this month, because asparagus can only grow in May or June in full Dutch soil or in unheated greenhouses in the Netherlands. If you want to enjoy asparagus for longer, I have some tips for you later on on how to store asparagus.
Meet May's seasonal vegetables.
The benefits of seasonal vegetables and seasonal fruit
Supermarkets are full of fruit and vegetables. Why bother to pay attention to which fruit or vegetables are currently in season in the Netherlands? For one thing, it is better for the environment. Fruit or vegetables that have a longer transport route or are grown in heated greenhouses generally have a greater environmental impact. But did you also know that seasonal vegetables and seasonal fruit are better for your health? Because the transport route is shorter, the vegetables or fruits are riper before they are harvested. As a result, fewer nutrients are lost. Seasonal vegetables and fruits also contain more nutrients because they are stored for less time. Moreover, fewer pesticides are often used as they are less susceptible to diseases. Finally, it is usually a lot cheaper to buy fruit and vegetables from the season.
Fruit or vegetables from the Netherlands are not always the most sustainable choice
Now that you are convinced of the benefits of seasonal vegetables and seasonal fruit, you can pay attention to them when you go shopping. Because the country of origin is shown on the packaging, you may choose to buy fruit or vegetables from the Netherlands. Unfortunately, this is not always the most sustainable choice. After all, you can't tell in the supermarket whether the fruit or vegetable was grown in a heated greenhouse. For example, a head of lettuce from the Netherlands in July may be the most sustainable choice; while in January the head of lettuce from Spain is more sustainable because it grows in the open air. Pretty confusing isn't it? To make it easier for you, we have picked out for you which vegetables and fruits grow in full Dutch soil or in unheated greenhouses in the Netherlands. For May, these are the following fruit and vegetables:
Dutch seasonal vegetables May:
The fruit and vegetables in bold can currently be harvested in the Netherlands. The remaining fruit and vegetables, although from the Netherlands, are from earlier months. Vegetables are often stored for months after harvest and thus sold (which is fine).
- potato (inspiration recipe: green beans and potato curry)
- endive
- asparagus (inspiration recipe: green asparagus from the vegetarian barbecue)
- cauliflower (inspiration recipe: whole roasted cauliflower from the oven)
- pea
- green celery
- kohlrabi
- head lettuce
- mushrooms (inspiration recipe: Thick vegan Udon noodles with mushrooms)
- pak choi
- mangetout
- leeks (inspiration recipe: vegan pea soup: snert with spice)
- turnip
- turnip greens - (I explain the difference between turnip and turnip greens in the article seasonal fruits and vegetables April)
- radish
- red beet
- red leave
- spinach (inspiration recipe: spicy spinach Indian style)
- pointed cabbage (inspiration recipe: vegan rendang with pointed cabbage)
- onion
- warmoes
- watercress
- carrot (inspiration recipe: Moroccan-style carrots)
- sweet potato
Dutch seasonal fruit May:
- strawberry
- rhubarb
Want to know which fruit from abroad is good to eat year-round as a sustainable choice? You can find the list in January's article on seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Herbs such as basil, chives, dill, coriander, mint, parsley, rosemary and thyme are also available from Dutch soil again this month.
Why storage vegetables and fruits are also on the list
The fruits and vegetables listed above are the varieties that are normally, this month available from full Dutch soil or unheated Dutch greenhouses. This will only not saying that these fruits and vegetables are also this month harvested are. Some varieties such as apple, pear, carrot, potato, pumpkin and onion, for example, can be stored by producers for longer periods of time. This makes these types of fruits and vegetables available even during the winter months, increasing the choice of fruits and vegetables produced locally. Thegreenlist.nl chose to include these storage vegetables and fruits in the list of seasonal vegetables and fruits as well, because they are a sustainable choice of the Dutch country. Omitting these varieties would mean, for example, that there would be no fruit on the list at all during the winter months. So these storage vegetables and fruits are not quite of the season, but they do offer an eco-friendly way to eat varied and healthy food during the colder months.
Want to know more about how Dutch producers store fruit and vegetables? You can read all about it in this article.
In May, we have a few newcomers that you can only enjoy for a short time such as rhubarb and asparagus.
Enjoy Dutch asparagus extra long in season
Asparagus are often in the shops as early as March, only they come from abroad or a heated greenhouse. It is more sustainable and healthier to buy asparagus when they are in season in the Netherlands: in May and June. You can only keep asparagus in the fridge for a few days. They stay fresh longer if you wrap them in a damp tea towel and store them in the vegetable drawer of the fridge. Do you love this white gold and want to enjoy it for longer? Then try freezing asparagus. This way, they will keep for four to six months. You will have to peel the asparagus first and cut away the tough part at the bottom. Then pat them dry and put them in a bag in the freezer. Note: when you want to eat the asparagus, put them straight into boiling water and do not let them thaw first. This will prevent them from becoming limp. Cook the asparagus for five to 10 minutes.
Sweet potato now also from Dutch soil
Sweet potatoes originally grew only in (sub)tropical climates. But new cultivation methods now make it possible to grow sweet potatoes in the Dutch open ground. For instance, some growers in the Netherlands grow sweet potatoes under black film made of biodegradable maize starch. This way, the plant has the right temperature to grow well. Thanks to innovative growing and storage techniques, less fruit needs to be imported and we can eat more fruit and vegetables from Dutch soil.
Source: Albert Heijn
Seasonal vegetables and seasonal fruit in May: sustainable, healthy and cheap
We hope you can now more easily make conscious and healthy choices. And with a bit of luck, you'll also notice it in your wallet. Another little tip: bookmark this page. That way you'll always have it to hand when you're in the shop and can quickly find May's seasonal vegetables or seasonal fruit.
More sustainable tips from thegreenlist.nl
- If you were a little too enthusiastic and bought too many seasonal vegetables, be sure to check out these tips for meal prepping so you don't have to throw anything away.
- Also tasty: this waste-me-not-pizza with homemade pizza dough.
- Are you already curious about June's seasonal vegetables? You can find them here.
Sources: Outdoor Living Feeling about the benefits of seasonal eating, Albert Heijn on the benefits of seasonal fruit and vegetables, VegetableGroente.nl on seasonal vegetables by country, Velt's seasonal calendar for the list of seasonal vegetables and seasonal fruit, Libelle on freezing asparagus. Photo credits: thegreenlist.nl.
