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

Jerusalem artichokes are tasting amazing at the moment. These knobbly roots may share a name with the artichoke, but are a completely different vegetable. They are actually the edible tubers of a plant similar in appearance to sunflowers. They are a favourite amongst chefs for the sweet flavour. Our Jerusalem artichokes are fantastic value – read on to find out why…

Taste: These sweet and nutty tubers belong to the sunflower family but look a bit like pink-skinned ginger roots. With their mushroomy, earthy flavour and crisp white flesh, Jerusalem artichokes are delicious roasted, sautéed, braised, or simply eaten raw in salads. They make a beautiful complement to meat and fish but are also enjoyable on their own.

Region: Our Jerusalem artichokes come from Lusia, in the province of Rovigo in the Italian region of Veneto. Lying in the Po valley, this exceptional land is crossed by a dense network of canals and lands that determined farmers have been reclaiming from the water throughout centuries, creating beautifully geometric plantations.

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market and our Jerusalem artichokes are firm and fresh. 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!
Our Jerusalem artichokes are not only superior in quality, but they are also better value than what is usually found in the supermarket…

Natoora “Jerusalem Artichokes”: £0.84 per 250gr, £3.35/kg
Abel & Cole “Jerusalem Artichokes”: £1.45 per 400gr, £3.63/kg
Waitrose “Jerusalem Artichokes”: £1.60 per 500gr, £3.38/kg
Fine food specialist “Jerusalem Artichokes”: £8.20/kg

Prices checked on 27/01/2012

Striking and delicious, purple carrots will make a wonderful change, not only for their glorious colour but also their incredible flavour. Find out why our purple carrots aren’t such a novelty food…

Taste: These refreshingly sweet and juicy purple carrots are famous for their striking colour and high nutritional value. They are full of vitamins and fibre, and beautiful too with an orange heart gradually fading into deep purple.

Region: Long before the 17th century, when Dutch growers selected the orange carrot line to celebrate their national colour, the purple carrot existed across Asia and the eastern Mediterranean. Ours come from France, where the fertile soil conveys all its nutrients to this amazing carrot.

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market. Our purple carrots are fresh and juicy. 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. You will struggle to find this variety anywhere else!

Natoora “Purple Carrots” £2.75/500g or save 10% when you buy 1kg

Buy purple carrots online today

Prices checked on 19/01/2012

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)