{"id":582334,"date":"2026-04-03T06:42:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T06:42:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/582334\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T06:42:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T06:42:15","slug":"fresh-autumn-produce-to-make-the-most-of-in-april","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/582334\/","title":{"rendered":"Fresh autumn produce to make the most of in April"},"content":{"rendered":"

“A lot of people have fruit trees and you can literally see the seasons changing on the street,” says Helly Raichura.<\/p>\n

The chef and owner of Indian restaurant Enter Via Laundry says she can spot pomegranates, persimmons, quince and some citrus on fruit trees around Naarm\/Melbourne.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

New season apples and imperial mandarins mark the seasonal shift. (ABC News: Anna Chisholm)<\/p>\n

At Preston Market, Camuglia and Sons’ Oriana Camuglia is excited by the first mandarins of the season and the expanding varieties of new-season apples and pears on the shelves.<\/p>\n

“You can tell winter is coming,” she says.<\/p>\n

Patrick Capuano works at MnM Fruit \u2014 also at Preston Market \u2014 and says it’s difficult to predict whether certain fresh produce prices may drop<\/a>, given the fuel crisis.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Despite some uncertainty around prices, there’s still plenty of quality produce to look out for, he says.<\/p>\n

So, what can you look for?\u00a0Brussels sproutsLeeksRoot vegetables, such as sweet potato and parsnips\u00a0CabbagesLeafy greens, such as silverbeet, cavelo nero and endive\u00a0Pomegranates\u00a0Persimmons\u00a0MandarinsPears and applesChestnuts\u00a0Brussels sprouts, cabbage and leafy greens<\/p>\n

Brussels sprouts are “back”, according to Mr Capuano.<\/p>\n

This is good news for sprout lovers, including Ms Raichura.<\/p>\n

She looks forward to them coming into season and enjoys roasting them.<\/p>\n

She has also found some more inventive ways to prepare them, such as cutting into them just enough to stuff them with a mixture of fresh coriander, coriander powder, chilli, garlic, ginger, crushed peanuts and oil.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She also fries them off before adding some water to the heavy-bottom pan, covering it with foil and finishing it in the oven.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“It kind of gets nice and crusty at the bottom once it’s cooked.”<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

The first brussels sprouts are coming into season. (ABC News: Anna Chisholm)<\/p>\n

Staying with cruciferous vegetables, Mr Capuano says cabbages lend themselves well to winter cooking.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The main varieties you\u2019ll see are savoy, green, purple and wombok, he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To distinguish the plain cabbage from the savoy cabbage, Mr Capuano recommends looking out for the curly or wrinkled leaves of the savoy.<\/p>\n

Shaved brussels sprouts salad<\/a><\/p>\n

This wintertime salad is fresh and vibrant with crunchy brussels sprouts, a quick creamy dressing and a dusting of finely grated parmesan cheese. \u00a0
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n

He says a plain cabbage can be a better option for coleslaws, while the savoy cabbage can be a better option for some cooked preparations, such as cabbage rolls.<\/p>\n

Ms Camuglia says leafy greens such as endive and rape are in season now and versatile.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cavelo nero\u00a0(or\u00a0Tuscan kale), kale and silverbeet (or Swiss chard) will be more tender as winter arrives, Ms Camuglia says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While the price often stays the same, she says the quality is better during the colder months.<\/p>\n

Sweet potato and leek\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Shoppers are beginning to seek out “starchy foods” such as sweet potato at this time of year, Mr Capuano says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ms Camuglia says she expects more root vegetables to come through as April continues.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“You are going to get your soup vegetables \u2026 your turnips, your parsnips, your celeriacs.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when they typically become more affordable too, she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Capuano says leeks are “starting to pick up” ahead of their peak season.<\/p>\n

Ms Raichura says they can be easily substituted for onion and are very fresh at the moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“They cook very well [and] taste better than onion in certain dishes.”<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Patrick Capuano\u00a0says sweet potatoes are a popular autumn pick. (ABC News: Anna Chisholm)<\/p>\n

Pomegranates, persimmons and mandarins\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are beautiful pomegranates\u00a0that are coming out now, says Ms Raichura.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Ripe pomegranate arils \u2014 the fleshy covering around their seeds \u2014 are colourful and juicy. (ABC News: Anna Chisholm)<\/p>\n

She enjoys serving fresh pomegranate with a breakfast dish called poha, which she makes on Sunday mornings.<\/p>\n

Poha is a type of flattened rice \u2013 “a product we get at Indian grocery stores” \u2013 that she prepares by stir-frying it with potatoes and peas and adding curry leaf.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ms Raichura says fresh pomegranate, yoghurt, coriander and toasted cumin complete the meal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Persimmons are also in season throughout autumn and Ms Raichura likes macerating diced persimmon with a little yuzu and sugar.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Ms Camuglia says persimmons haven’t made it to the shelves at Camuglia and sons quite yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, winter citrus has arrived.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Mandarins have just started for our winter season, so that’s exciting,” she says.<\/p>\n

More new-season apple and pear varieties, plus chestnuts<\/p>\n

Ms Camuglia says “all our new-season apples have started”. \u00a0<\/p>\n

This includes fuji, red delicious, golden and missile apples.<\/p>\n

New-season pear varieties \u2014 such as corella and nashi \u2014 are also on display.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Australian chestnuts are usually available from mid-March to July. (ABC News: Anna Chisholm)<\/p>\n

While they’re not something she grew up eating, Ms Raichura says chestnuts are another part of the autumn offering she looks forward to.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She enjoys eating them roasted. At the restaurant, a dessert involving a chocolate chestnut husk mould and chestnut puree even made the menu.<\/p>\n

But you don\u2019t have to do all that to enjoy chestnuts, Ms Raichura says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If you have no idea how to prepare and cook chestnuts<\/a> at home, the good news is that you can pop them in the oven or air fryer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"“A lot of people have fruit trees and you can literally see the seasons changing on the street,”…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":582335,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[285243,64,63,285239,285240,285241,99,285242,250321,285238],"class_list":["post-582334","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-april-fruit-and-veg","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-autumn-fruits-and-veggies","tag-autumn-seasonal-produce","tag-brussel-sprouts","tag-business","tag-cheap-fruit-and-veg-to-buy","tag-citrus","tag-seasonal-produce-april-australia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/582334","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=582334"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/582334\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/582335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=582334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=582334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=582334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}