Some things taste best only at the right moment: a ripe cát mango at the start of summer, a juicy bunch of lychees in the June sun, or a soft, sweet persimmon when early winter arrives. Our grandparents summed it up in a familiar saying, "each season has its own food." Today Nhà An looks at why this way of eating still suits modern life, and how to start in your own kitchen.
What does seasonal eating mean
Seasonal eating means favoring the fruit and vegetables that are at their peak where you live or nearby, instead of expecting everything to be available all year round. It is not just about eating local, and it does not mean giving up out-of-season foods. It is simply a conscious way of choosing: eat more of what is abundant, and eat less of what is rare, with a little more appreciation.
Vietnam stretches from north to south, so every region has its own seasons. The North has four fairly distinct seasons, so vegetables and fruit change noticeably with the weather. The South is usually divided into a rainy season (roughly May to November) and a dry season, while the Central Highlands and Central Vietnam have their own rhythms of rain and sun, such as the heavy rains in Central Vietnam toward the end of the year. So a fruit might ripen early in one region and a few weeks later in another, and shift a little from year to year with the weather.
Why seasonal eating is worth trying
You do not need any fancy research to notice a few benefits right at the market and at the dinner table.
- Tastier: fruit that ripens naturally and vegetables picked at the right time are usually more fragrant, crisper and richer in flavor than produce that has been stored for a long time or ripened artificially.
- Easier on your wallet: at peak season there is plenty of supply, so market prices tend to be lower. On the flip side, anything unusually expensive may be out of season or simply rare.
- Greener: produce that is in season and grown nearby usually needs less long cold storage or long-distance transport. Of course this is not absolute, since every product is grown and shipped differently.
- More variety: a different flavor every season keeps your menu fresh without you having to think up unusual dishes.
- Connected to the calendar: eating cốm (young green sticky rice) in autumn, drinking lotus tea in summer and enjoying persimmons in early winter makes the passing of time feel wonderfully real.
You do not have to be perfect, either. Seasonal eating is a direction to lean toward, not a rule to follow to the day. Craving something out of season now and then is perfectly fine, as long as most of your meals lean toward what is in season.
A typical Vietnam seasonal calendar
Here are some familiar products and their usual peak periods, based on the solar calendar. The actual timing can be a few weeks earlier or later depending on the year and the region, so please treat this as a rough guide.
- Early year, January to March: oranges, and late-season pomelos for the Tết fruit tray, plus winter vegetables from the North such as kohlrabi, cabbage and cauliflower that are still sweet and crisp. Da Lat is in its dry season, so strawberries look their best.
- Early summer, April to June: Hoa Loc cát mangoes from orchards in the South peak around March to May, sometimes running into June, while Moc Chau plums are abundant around May and early June.
- Midsummer, June to August: Luc Ngan lychees are at their best in June and linger into July. West Lake lotus blooms around June, which is also the season for scenting lotus tea. Hung Yen longans ripen around July and August, alongside rambutan, mangosteen and durian from orchards in the South.
- Autumn, September to October: cốm from Vong village is in full season, pomelos come into season around Mid-Autumn Festival, and rice fields turn golden across the northern plains.
- Late year, October to December: Da Lat persimmons ripen and it is time for hồng treo gió (wind-dried persimmons), while Cao Phong oranges appear from early autumn and peak around November, and winter vegetables start arriving at the market.
Vegetables change with the weather more than with the month. In hot weather, sun-loving leafy greens such as water spinach, Malabar spinach and jute leaves, along with gourds, squash and luffa, are plentiful and cooling. In the cold season in the North, cruciferous greens, kohlrabi, cabbage and white radish are noticeably sweeter and crisper.
If you want to look at each month in detail, Nhà An has a twelve-month seasonal calendar page with the weather in all three regions, produce and the holidays of each month.
Read moreSee Nhà An's 12-month seasonal calendarTips for buying in season at the market and supermarket
You do not have to be a market expert to pick what is in season. Try a few of these steps.
- Ask the seller: "What's in season today?" Longtime vendors usually know exactly what is at its peak and what has just finished.
- Look at quantity and price: whatever is piled high and priced low is probably in season. Anything scarce, pricey and unusually uniform in looks is worth asking about where it came from.
- Use your nose and hands: naturally ripe fruit usually smells sweet near the stem and feels heavy for its size. Fresh vegetables have firm stems and leaves that are not bruised or wilted.
- Buy only what you will use in a few days so everything stays fresh and nothing is wasted. Some fruit, like lychees, loses its flavor very quickly, so do not buy too much at once.
- Try one new thing a week: a vegetable you have never cooked, a fruit you have never tasted.
Keeping the taste of a season after it has passed
Vietnamese cooks have long known how to hold on to a season's flavor for the days when fruit is scarce. You can learn a few simple ways.
- Make jam, soft candied fruit or sauces from fruit that is very ripe.
- Dry or lightly dehydrate it, like hồng treo gió, dried mango or dried banana.
- Steep it in syrup, pickle it in a sweet and sour brine, or salt-pickle surplus vegetables.
- Freeze peeled, cut-up fruit to use in smoothies or fruit tea.
- Scent tea: lotus, jasmine or other flowers are how people of old wrapped the fragrance of a season into tea leaves.
By doing this you waste less when you buy too much, and you gain a few small homemade treats for chilly or drizzly days. Remember to keep things clean, use jars rinsed with boiling water, and write the date on each one so you eat it within a sensible time.
Seasonal eating at Nhà An
The idea of seasonal eating is built into how Nhà An chooses ingredients. Wood-fired roasted oolong, jasmine tea and house-made milk tea are available all year, while the fruit teas and a few vegetarian dishes change with whichever fruit and vegetables are in season at each branch. Nhà An favors Da Lat strawberries, Luc Ngan lychees and Hoa Loc mangoes when they are in season, along with organic vegetables and silken tofu made fresh every morning.
Seasonal dishes are suggestions, not a fixed menu, because the freshest supply at each branch can differ from week to week. When we open, just ask the counter staff what is seasonal this week, or message Nhà An on Zalo. Every drink can be set anywhere from 0 to 100 percent sugar, so when the fruit is at its best, it is worth lowering the sugar to taste the true flavor of the fruit.
Read moreSee the ingredients Nhà An choosesNhà An has not opened yet, so we have no figures or achievements to share. What we can promise is the thinking we start from: ingredients that are in season, close to the source, and working directly with farming families to understand the places where the fruit and leaves grow. We invite you to begin with us in the smallest way, by asking your local market what is in season today.
