# What "standard" food/ingredient is only available seasonally? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [December 13, 2024, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615 "2024-12-13T18:30:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Quondam\_Mechanic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quondam_mechanic/32/3404_2.png) [@Quondam\_Mechanic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quondam_Mechanic)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/21 "2024-12-13T21:14:51Z")
> [@MagicEyes](#): > > > [@Quondam\_Mechanic](#): > > > > BTW, I think that Mallormars are seasonal, at least in part, because the thin chocolate coating melts on grocery store shelves. You pretty much only find them in New York City, AFAIK. > > Maybe they’re expanding. I’m in North Carolina, and I’ve found them in several stores this year. I’ll keep an eye out for them! I have found them here in the past, but they’re rather rare here. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/22 "2024-12-13T21:20:06Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I asked if canned pumpkin was available all year round. I don’t think it used to be a while ago. But we used pumpkin as a supplement in one of our former dog’s diet, and we could buy canned pumpkin year round. We _did_ have to stock up before the holidays, because they would often sell out then. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/23 "2024-12-13T21:30:51Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Italian plums That’s one I thought of. The oblong pinched plums (prune, Italian, Empress) have a narrow window but apple-shaped black or red are always around. Fiddleheads aren’t worth the fuss but they scream spring. I’ve seen but haven’t yet bought/tried whole fresh sunflowers in the fall. Corn, pomegranates, lychees, chayote are easy to find year round. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/24 "2024-12-13T21:59:06Z")
Lefse and lutefisk. Well, they’re “standard” in parts of Minnesota. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/25 "2024-12-13T22:20:50Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > > [@kayaker](#): > > > > Pomegranates? > > We can get pomegranates here most months, shipped up from, say, South Africa in the off months. But they’re pretty crappy. The really, really good Italian ones are available only from October to December. I think that’s true for many produce items where the local ones are only available for a limited time but the imported ones available at other times of the year. I like peaches and in the summer, I get excellent ones grown in the United States. In the winter, peaches are available from Chile and elsewhere but are usually disappointing. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/26 "2024-12-13T22:30:18Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Ms. D (our household’s food procurement officer) was baking a pumpkin pie this morning, and I asked if canned pumpkin was available all year round. We give our dog plain canned pumpkin along with his kibble. A can lasts about six days, so every year we buy 60 cans between Thanksgiving and Christmas. After that, it’s either limited to one space on the lowest supermarket shelf at double the in-season price, or it completely vanishes. Pumpkin pie filling is available year-round, but it has too much sweetening and spices for dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/27 "2024-12-13T22:49:22Z")
Cranberry sauce is available year round, but you often have to hunt for it and I suspect it’s not carried in a lot of stores. Eggnog is typically only available for a time in December. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/28 "2024-12-13T22:52:38Z")
Fresh cherries. You can get almost any other fruit year-round these days but fresh cherries are still seasonal. Of course, you can get frozen cherries (or most anything) any time. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/29 "2024-12-13T22:59:11Z")
Fresh cherries are one of the “stone fruits” like peaches, plums and nectarines that are seasonal. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/30 "2024-12-13T23:45:32Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > Corn, pomegranates, lychees, chayote are easy to find year round. Just curious, where do you live that you can find fresh lychees in the winter? ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/31 "2024-12-13T23:57:04Z")
Pomegranates and persimmons are one of the autumnal seasonal joys. They do not keep, they travel poorly. Like apricots, in July. Here in New England, local apples varieties start appearing in September but by January they are gone. My co-op has about twenty varieties of apples right now. And then cranberries. Available frozen perhaps, but fresh only in fall and early winter. Ditto chestnuts. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/32 "2024-12-14T04:50:05Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > Just curious, where do you live that you can find fresh lychees in the winter? I visited two groceries near Chicago tonight and confirmed lychees as well as the following: Chestnuts, longans, rambutans, passionfruit, figs, mamey sapote, mangosteens. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/33 "2024-12-14T08:34:17Z")
We _done_ the passionfruit! 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/34 "2024-12-14T08:40:17Z")
Is the old saying true - oysters “r” in season? (Pretty big season) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/35 "2024-12-14T11:15:17Z")
Fresh: table grapes Preserves:fruit mince ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/36 "2024-12-14T13:44:01Z")
Pawpaws! A friend has trees and gave me some. They aren’t sold in stores because they need to be picked ripe then eaten within a few days. But they sure are cool. They are the largest edible fruit native to North America. They taste like a combination of banana, pineapple, and mango. I’m currently stratifying some of their seeds. Assuming I get them to germinate, I’ll be planting them around our house and they should have fruit a few years after I’m gone. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/37 "2024-12-14T13:53:37Z")
It depends on where you’re looking. Almost anything, you can get somewhere, but maybe not from your usual grocery store. Aldi, in particular, considers a lot of things to be seasonal: For instance, most baking supplies can only be found there in the winter. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/38 "2024-12-14T18:48:17Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > I visited two groceries near Chicago tonight and confirmed lychees as well as the following: > Chestnuts, longans, rambutans, passionfruit, figs, mamey sapote, mangosteens. Interesting, I don’t see much stone fruit in Toronto in the winter. (Chestnuts are pretty common in the winter, of course.) ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/39 "2024-12-14T18:56:58Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I don’t think I’ve ever seen lychees (or longans) available far out of season. Maybe they’re possible to find at a specialized fruiterer. The Asian markets have them whenever they can get them but they definitely have a season (or two). Right now it is the end of the rambutans. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2024, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615/40 "2024-12-14T18:59:49Z")
Red Haven peaches. Only available for a short time in NE Ohio. I always get them right from the farm. The ones in the store are seldom as good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-standard-food-ingredient-is-only-available-seasonally/1011615.md?page=3)