Archive for the ‘Real Food Vs. The Supermarket’ Category

Lemons are an absolute kitchen essential and that’s why it’s so important to us to sell only the very best. We just love our Amalfi lemons – they taste fantastic, are larger than many supermarket varieties and have an aromatic unwaxed zest which makes them superb for cakes. Not only are they superb quality, they are extremely good value! Read on to find out more…

Taste: Gorgeously juicy and fragrant smelling, our Amalfi Lemons are extremely popular with chefs. Their bright, sunshine yellow zest is aromatic and unwaxed so it’s perfect for cakes and grating over fish. The pulp is sweetly bitter, with moderate acidity and very few pips.

Region: Our lemons are grown along the sun-drenched Amalfi coast in the Campania region of Southern Italy, in particular around the towns of Ravello, Positano and Amalfi of course. This fantastic citrus fruit was firstly introduced there by the Arabs, who found in the Amalfi coast the best conditions for growing these beautifully scented lemons, now renowned world-wide.

Quality: We only select the best quality lemons at the market, and we have sourced this variety in particular as it is one of the best lemons around with its sweet pulp, unwaxed skin and abundance of essential oils.

You’ll struggle to find lemons of this size and quality in any supermarket!

For more information and to buy, click here.

Taste: These versatile and aromatic bulbs have a refreshing taste with a hint of licorice and aniseed.  Crisp, hardy and crunchy when raw, they become soft when cooked, with a more subtle and delicate flavour.

Region: Our fabulous fennels come from the Italian region of Campania, famous for its fist class vegetables and fertile soil.

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market. Our fennels are proudly white and compact, much bigger than the ones you usually find in supermarkets.  Our buyers only select what is looking and tasting best!

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. This superb fennel is not only better quality, but also cheaper than what is found in the supermarket.

Natoora “Fennel” £1.49.*

Abel & Cole “Fennel” £1.65*

Buy fennel online now

*Prices checked on 04/01/2012

The citrus season has well and truly started and now is the perfect time to enjoy a stocking-filler favourite – clementines. Ours are something a bit special as we source them from Calabria where the best clementines are grown. It is still early in the season and they are arriving with their luscious green leaves, making them not only supremely delicious but also a beautiful addition to any fruit bowl.

Taste: Juicy, sweet and less acidic than mandarins, clementines are a favourite amongst kids for their easy peeling skin and seedless segments.

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market. Our buyers only select what is looking and tasting best!

Growing: Citrus fruits have found their ideal environment in southern Italy, which is one of the major European producers, and certainly where the finest quality fruits come from. We get our clementines from Calabria, where they are in peak season at the moment.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. Our clementines are not only superior in quality, but they are also better value than what is usually found in the supermarket:

Natoora “Leafy clementines” £3.51/kg
Waitrose “Essential Clementines” £4.15/kg

Our beautiful pumpkins and squashes are tasting great at the moment – the perfect warming meal in this cold weather. Find out why our Delica pumpkin is such a star…

Taste: Flavourful and sweet, the Delica is a round, medium sized pumpkin with dark green skin. The orange flesh caramelises when cooked in the oven and is a perfect starting point for superb risottos and delicious cakes. Delica pumpkins have a firm texture with less water than other varieties of pumpkin, their flesh is sweeter with a lovely nutty taste which makes them unique.

Region: Our Delica pumpkins come from the rich fields of the Padana plains surrounding Rovigo, in the Northen part of Italy.

Quality: We only choose the best Delica Pumpkins, so that we can make sure to deliver to your table all the precious minerals, vitamins and antioxidants that they contain.

Season: A typically autumn fruit, Delica Pumpkins are at their best in this period of the year and are usually available until mid winter.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices, but bear in mind you’ll struggle to find such a high quality Delica Pumpkin anywhere else!

Buy Delica pumpkin online today!

Taste: Mandarins are a variety of the orange family. They are small, sweet and the shape of a slightly flattened sphere. Although very similar in appearance, they are not to be confused with clementines, tangerines, miagawa and other similar fruits. These are usually a cross between a mandarin and another citrus fruit. A pure mandarin is sweet and mellow, and they are usually enjoyed as they are or used to make jams or sorbets.

Region: Mandarins and all citrus fruits have proven well suited to the flanks of Mount Etna, where they ripen in early Autumn, and are therefore among the first citrus fruit to arrive in the markets in the autumn.

Quality: Our buyers in Milan only select what’s looking and tasting best every week. At the moment we are stocking the “Primo Fiore” variety, an early season cultivar. Its skin is green and orange and the taste is slightly tart but with the typical mandarin sweetness in the background – deliciously refreshing!

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. These beauties are so special you will struggle to find them anywhere else!

Natoora “Mandarins (Primo Fiore)” £3.96/kg

Avocados are a real summer treat – perfect in salads and for refreshing dips. Quality really matters when selecting your avocado as they are really best enjoyed as they are, perhaps with a dash of lemon juice and pepper. We only select the Haas variety for this very reason! It is simply the best. We’ve not only chosen the best variety, but we make sure to buy the best of the best at market so from the first bite you’ll know you’re eating something really special. What’s more, we’ve done a price comparison this week and we’re even cheaper than those sold in some of the supermarkets. Read on to find out more…

Taste: These beautiful Haas avocadoes are wonderfully creamy. They are great in salads and the perfect variety for your Guacamole, but are extremely versatile when paired both with chicken and fish (particularly raw fish) as their oily flesh and delicate flavour will enhance the subtle aromas and taste of your tartare or maki.

Region: Haas avocadoes have been grown successfully in Spain for many years, as there they find the perfect conditions the plant requires: a temperate climate, saline and well aerated soils.

Quality: Our Haas avocadoes are wonderfully rich in flavour, with a distinctive nutty aroma and dark, pebbled skin.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. Our avocadoes are not only superior in quality but also cheaper than so called “premium varieties” found in the supermarkets:

Natoora “Haas Avocado“ from £0.75 each
Abel and Cole “Avocado” £1.25 each
Ocado/Waitrose “Perfectly Ripe Avocadoes“ £0.99 each

(prices checked on 23/8/2011)

So what are you waiting for? Buy online today and see what all the fuss is about.

Taste: Tiny and extra sweet, these are by far (together with the Reine Claude plums) the best eating plum variety in our opinion. When fully ripe they carry no tart edge whatsoever, boasting the sweetness of 10 regular plums in one tiny golden drop. Their incredible mellowness makes them perfect for tarts and jams, or simply enjoyed on their own.

Region: The best eating Mirabelles come from the Lorraine region in France, where they find the perfect weather and the richest soil in which to grow.

Quality: Getting at their peak now, they will be at their best in a couple of weeks. We get them twice a week from the market in Paris, where our buyer only selects the best available. For this reason, when you buy our Mirabelles, you can be sure they will be at the right maturation point and that they will not have been sitting on a shelf for weeks.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. You will struggle to find this variety for sale anywhere else!

Natoora “Mirabelle plums“ £7.80/kg

Taste: Yellow nectarines have the intense flavour of a peach but a firmer texture and just the right amount of juice. Very sweet, but with a tart edge that makes them great enjoyed on their own, tossed in salads or baked in cakes and crumbles.

Region: Our nectarines are from Emilia Romagna in Italy, a region renowned for its production of beautiful summer fruits.

Quality: We buy our nectarines twice a week from the market in Milan. As opposed to the supermarket varieties, you can rest assured these nectarines will get to you at the perfect point of ripeness. Nectarines are at their peak now, so take advantage!

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. Our nectarines are not only superior in quality, but they are also better value than what is usually found in the supermarket:

Natoora “Nectarines“ 90p each, £6/kg

Abel & Cole “Nectarines” £7.98/kg

(prices checked on 28/7/2011)

Taste: Meaty and slightly piquant, aubergines are so versatile and appealing it’s no surprise that they are one of the most renowned vegetables in the world, featured in every country’s cuisine. They can be stuffed, fried, stewed, baked and combined with all sorts of ingredients to create unique dishes. These Italian aubergines are so flavoursome you will taste the difference from the supermarket variety straight away.

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market. Our buyers only select what is looking and tasting best twice a week! It’s the peak of the season for aubergines, so take advantage while they’re so good.

Growing: There are many varieties of aubergine according to the area they’re grown. The white variety gives the American name for aubergine, “eggplant”. Green or red types are grown in Asia and India. Long, thin cultivars are found in China. The most common variety in Europe is the deep purple, elongated one, but also the lightly coloured round aubergine, with a slightly less “spongy” pulp is quite common.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. Our aubergines are not only superior in quality, but they are also better value than what is usually found in the supermarket:

Natoora “Aubergines” £1.02 each, £2.90/kg

Waitrose “Aubergines Essential“ £1.03 each (price per kg not given)

Abel & Cole “Aubergines” £1.24 each (price per kg not given)

(prices checked on 21/7/2011)

TASTE: San Marzano Tomatoes are the most sought after tomato for sauces. Their meaty texture, sweet and intense flavour, lack of excess water and seeds, and a particular skin (very easy to peel), are the reasons that make any sauce made with these tomatoes a success.

REGION: These tomatoes are said to have originated in Peru, but donated to the Naples kingdom in the 18th century, they found a rich soil and the perfect weather on the volcanic slopes of Mount Vesuvio.

QUALITY: The best time of the year to enjoy this beautiful tomato is definitely the summer, and at the moment our buyers in Italy are recommending this variety as particularly good.

COST: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. You will struggle to find this variety for sale anywhere else!

Natoora“ San Marzano Tomatoes“ £6.72/1kg