Bare Seasons: January in the Southern Hemisphere

Spring and summer has meant that January is a month with an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables. While the sea provides us with a great variety of fish and shellfish. Meat is also on the agenda, with a greater volume of local lamb resulting in lower prices.

Seafood

The sea brings us an amazing selection of seafood perfect for holiday cooking. Australian Rock Lobster are similar in appearance and taste to the North Atlantic lobster, but belong to different families. The major culinary difference is that North Atlantic lobsters have front claws full of succulent flesh and the rock lobster doesn't, but their flesh is far firmer than the North Atlantic lobster.

Rock lobsters are expensive due to their popularity and the majority is exported. Purchase live or freshly cooked lobster from a reliable fishmonger and should be eaten on the day of purchase. If buying live make sure that the lobster is active, not sluggish. Excellent poached, barbecued, grilled, steamed or sliced raw for sashimi, rock lobsters make a great summer dish. Be careful not to over cook as the flesh will become tough and rubbery. They are delicious served simply with a herb flavoured butter or with a lemon wedge. Blue Swimmer and Mud Crab are both good now and make a great alternative to lobster. Be sure to purchase freshly caught crabs and eat them that day.

Sydney Rock Oysters are at the peak of their season until March. While smaller than their relative, the pacific oyster, they are often a unique flavour and their relatively long shelf life. Sydney rock oysters can survive for 2 weeks in their shell after harvesting, in comparison to the Pacific's 3-4 days refrigerated shelf life. Unfortunately in Australia many fishmongers shuck, wash and sell the oysters on their halve shells. Order oysters from your fishmonger unopened, either get the fishmonger to shuck them for you without cutting the muscle or shuck them yourself just before serving (easy with a little practice).

Store opened oysters covered with cling film in the refrigerator and use within 24 hours. Unopened oysters will keep for a couple of days, covered with damp newspaper in a mild section of the fridge eg. vegetable cabinet (you don't want to kill them by freezing them). Eat oysters freshly shucked with their liquor to appreciate their full taste and texture. To shuck an oyster place it cup side down in the palm of your left hand (right if left handed) wrapped in a thick tea towel and insert an oyster knife or small sharp knife in the hinge of the shell and twist it to open, then work your knife around the edge to pry it open.

Tasmanian Salmon makes for great summer dining. Try wrapping whole in foil coated with a olive oil, with a few slices of lemons, fresh herbs and a couple of chillies. Serve with tabouleh or a simple rocket salad and boiled new potatoes tossed in butter. A great dish to serve on Australia Day.

Sand whiting, garfish, bugs, yabbies and Queensland saucer scallops are all seasonally available.

Vegetables

Beans are now available in all shapes and sizes from peas and broad beans, to runner beans and sugar snaps. Fresh broad beans and peas have a fabulous sweet flavor. Its worth taking the time to peel broad beans out of their rubbery grey skins to bring out the lovely green bean. This is time consuming, but gratifying; a great job for a sunny Sunday afternoon in the garden. The best way to do this is to pour boiling water over the beans leave them for a couple of minutes and then refresh them in cold water and proceed to peel them. When buying peas and broad beans in their pods buy peas at double the weight you need and broad beans at 4 times the weight needed depodded and skinned. Runner beans are also good, serve them with lamb and seafood, or try them in stir-fries or tempura. String beans are always good in a salad niscoise. Beans also marry well with mint, a puree of peas or broad beans with a little mint and creme fraiche and yoghurt makes a great accompaniment to lamb, scallops and prawns.

Just right for light summer eating are Augusts selection of salad leaves. Rocket makes an excellent salad, simply serve with a few shaving of parmesan, dressed with Balsamic vinegar and extra virgin alive oil. Watercress is great in a salad, try a salad of watercress, crumbled blue cheese, walnuts and slices of pears. Watercress also makes a good accompaniment to char grilled steaks, lamb and poached salmon.

Tomatoes are now full of flavour and perfect for eating in the warm weather. There is an abundant selection of tomatoes to choose from including green and yellow ones. The best way to choose tomatoes is by smelling them, the aroma should be strong of tomatoes not chemicals. To enjoy them at there best eat them when they are ripe and full of flavour, at room temperature. Ripe plum tomatoes appear in countless Italian recipes accompanied with basil. Why not try our seasonal recipe for "Fried Green Tomatoes".

Fresh Herbs from the garden should still be growing well in August with marjoram, basil and coriander seeing their peak for the year. Try experimenting with different mixtures of herbs, remember in a couple of months there will be little choice.

Vegetables that are also good in January includecucumber, capsicum, zucchini, eggplant, lettuces, chokoes, celery, corn and okra.

Summer Fruits

January is the best month for stone fruits these include plums, apricots, nectarines and peaches. These fruits all have a thin skin, soft flesh and a woody stone in their centre. Stone fruits need to be handled with care as they will easily bruise. Once ripened at room temperature store in the fridge for up to a week. The stone is discarded in most cases, accept peach stones are sometimes used in cooking. To remove the stone in plums, peaches and nectarines, slice them in half around the indentation, twist them with both hands, pull apart and remove the stone by scooping it out with a knife. My favourite stone fruit is red fleshed plums that my mother used to purchase by the tray full during my summer holidays. They are messy to eat and have a slightly bitter sweet flavour that I love. Red fleshed plums also make the most spectacular sorbet (see our recipe index).

Berries should still be plentiful. A selection of ripe berries make an excellent jelly or simply serve them with a mascarpone and a drizzle of crem de casis. "Raspberry Shortcake" brings out the best of the season raspberries.

August is the month for melons with all types hitting our supermarkets and grocers. Slices of watermelon make a refreshing treat on hot summer days or make our watermelon daiquiri or serve wedges of rock or honeydew melon wrapped in prosciutto.

Figs, lychees, pineapples (smooth and rough leaf), grapes, Valencia oranges, mangoes, cherries, papaya, and passion fruit are all in season. Accompany a cheese platter with black muscat grapes, prepare an enticing Coconut and Mango Sorbet with seasonal mangoes.