British seasonal food in August – what to eat now

British seasonal food in August seasonal ingredients by Penny Golightly

The latest guide to the best British seasonal food in August is here, bringing us a whole new crop of heat-loving fruits and vegetables to enjoy. If you’re a meat eater, August is also the month that the game season officially begins, starting from the 12th.

Here’s what to buy from the market, add to your veg box delivery, or pick from your kitchen garden or allotment over the next few weeks:

Fruit in season in August

British seasonal fruit in August
Clockwise from top left: plums, melon, raspberries, peaches

British-grown fruit

  • apples (first)
  • apricots
  • blackberries
  • blackcurrants
  • blueberries
  • cherries
  • damsons
  • figs
  • greengages
  • gooseberries
  • loganberries
  • peaches
  • plums
  • raspberries
  • redcurrants
  • strawberries
  • tayberries
  • whitecurrants

Best imported seasonal fruit

  • apricots
  • Caribbean pineapple
  • figs
  • melon (Charentais, cantaloupe, galia)
  • peaches
  • nectarines

Nuts in season in August

  • Kentish cobnuts

Recommended seasonal fruit & preserves books

Vegetables in season in August

Clockwise from top left: sweetcorn, tomatoes, runner beans, yellow courgettes
  • aubergines
  • beetroot
  • broccoli (summer sprouting and calabrese)
  • broad beans
  • celery
  • chard
  • chicory
  • courgettes
  • cucumbers
  • endive
  • fennel (Florence)
  • green beans (French and runner)
  • kohlrabi
  • leeks (baby)
  • lettuce and other salad leaves
  • maincrop potatoes (first)
  • mangetout
  • marrows
  • new potatoes
  • okra
  • pak choi
  • parsnips
  • peas
  • peppers
  • radishes
  • shallots
  • spinach
  • spring onions
  • summer squash
  • sweetcorn
  • tomatoes
  • turnips
  • watercress

[Available most months in good condition: button mushrooms, carrots, cauliflower, maincrop potatoes, onions, rocket.]

Recommended seasonal veg books & box delivery

Herbs in season in August

  • basil
  • chervil
  • chives
  • coriander
  • dill
  • fennel
  • lovage
  • marjoram
  • mint
  • oregano
  • parsley
  • rosemary
  • sage
  • sorrel
  • summer savory
  • tarragon
  • thyme
  • winter savory

[Always available: chives, coriander and parsley grown under cover; older leaves of hardy perennials like bay, rosemary, sage, thyme.]

Get your FREE printable menu planner!

Wild / foraged food in season in August

Clockwise from top left: crabapples, wild damsons, puffball mushrooms, bilberries/blaeberries
  • bilberries / blaeberries
  • crabapples
  • samphire (marsh and rock)
  • wild damsons
  • wild mushrooms (ceps/penny bun, chanterelles, field, puffball, truffles)

[Take great care when foraging as it’s very easy to confuse edible and poisonous ingredients.]

Recommended foraging & wild food books

Fish in season in August

Clockwise from top left: plaice, hake, brown crab, mackerel

Seasonal fish varies greatly in different fishing grounds around the UK, and also from year to year as stock levels and stewardship recommendations change, but here’s a rough guide to what’s on sale now.

Sustainable UK fish

  • brill
  • brown crab
  • coley / saithe
  • common sole / Dover sole
  • dab
  • flounder
  • haddock
  • hake
  • herring / sild
  • monkfish
  • plaice
  • pollock
  • pouting / bib
  • spider crab
  • sprat / whitebait

[To the best of my knowledge the list above excludes critically endangered fish but the guidelines change regularly. Visit The Good Fish Guide from the Marine Conservation Society for their latest lists.]

Fish in season in August, less sustainable

  • cod
  • crayfish
  • mackerel
  • sardines / pilchard
  • seabass
  • seabream
  • squid
  • whiting
  • wild halibut
  • wild salmon

[In good condition almost all year: herring, farmed sea bream, seabass and turbot, megrim sole, sustainably-fished monkfish, rope-grown mussels, prawns.]

Recommended fish & shellfish books

Meat, poultry and game in season in August

British seasonal food in August meat game and poultry in season
Clockwise from top left: lamb, grouse, snipe, red deer
  • grouse (from the 12th of August)
  • hare
  • lamb
  • snipe
  • venison (wild red deer)

[Always available in good condition: beef, chicken, pork, rabbit, farmed venison, wood pigeon.]

Recommended meat, poultry & game books

Cheese in season in August

Clockwise from top left: UK goat’s cheese, farmhouse Cheddar, Camembert, Reblochon

British made cheese this month

  • Farmhouse Cheddar
  • goat’s cheese

Imported seasonal cheeses

  • Camembert
  • Reblochon

[Many quality mature cheeses are available year-round, especially hard cheeses.]

Recommended cheese & wine books + delivery

Enjoying this guide? You may also like:

Favourite British seasonal food in August

August is always a good month for homegrown fresh fruit and veggies, and I’m looking forward to some chargrilled courgettes and peppers for Mediterranean style dinners .

We’ve also treated ourselves to imported watermelon and nectarines, and I think I’ll be making a cheesemonger trip soon too – maybe a baked new season camembert or a goat cheese tart is in our future…

Recommended seasonal inspiration books

This site may get paid a small amount of commission for purchases made after clicking a link in this post. There’s no extra cost to you & it keeps us going so please support us if you can.

Do you have any favourite August seasonal ingredients or recipes? Leave us a message in the comments box below!

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *