British seasonal food in March

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If you’re looking for British seasonal food in March, it’s often thin on the ground so you need to know what to look for. We’re now at the start of the ‘hungry gap’ in the UK, that awkward time when many seasonal foods have finished and other crops are yet to start growing. However, you can find the first few green shoots of the Spring bursting through such as wild garlic, and many types of fish and shellfish are coming into season too.

As the home grown list is relatively small in March, this country also relies heavily on imported fresh ingredients for volume and variety. In the last few days the UK has experienced shortages of several of these foods, with some types of fruit and vegetables being rationed to one per customer at supermarkets. The causes are complex, but it’s down to far more than ‘bad weather in Morocco’ so I’ll do my best to keep this information updated as the situation unfolds.

What’s good to buy, pick, cook and eat this month? Here it is, as long as you can find it in the shops…

Fruit in season in March

March seasonal fruit UK and imported — Clockwise from top left: apples from store, passion fruit, forced rhubarb, blood oranges

British-grown seasonal fruit

apples (from store)
rhubarb (mostly forced)

Best imported seasonal fruit

blood oranges
clementines
passion fruit

Recommended seasonal fruit inspiration:

Seasonal fruit inspiration book recommendations

Vegetables in season in March

March vegetables veg UK in season — Clockwise from top left: parsnips, purple sprouting broccoli, chicory, silver beet chard

cabbage (green, Spring greens)
celeriac
chard
chicory
kale
leeks
parsnips
purple sprouting broccoli
seakale
spring onions

You can also find leafy crops grown under cover (leaf beet, oriental greens, winter salad leaves), plus stored vegetables like beetroot.

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

Herbs in season in March

chives
coriander
parsley

[Older leaves of hardy perennials like bay, rosemary, sage, and thyme are available too.]

Recommended seasonal veg inspiration:

Wild / foraged food in March

March wild foraged food uk — From left to right: nettle tops, wild garlic

nettle tops
wild garlic (aka ramsons)

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

Foraged & wild food inspiration:

Fish in season in March 2023

March fish shellfish seafood UK — Clockwise from top left: spider crab, turbot, red gurnard, pollock

Fish stocks change from one year to the next, influenced by marine stewardship, local environmental conditions, and fluctuations in weather conditions. Here’s a rough guide to what’s available now.

Sustainable British fish

brill
clams (farmed Manila)
dab
gurnard (red & grey)
halibut (farmed)
herring / sild
lobster (European)
monkfish
mussels
oysters
pollock
prawns (Northern)
scallops
sole (lemon)
spider crab
sprat / whitebait
trout (rainbow)
wild turbot

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

Fish in season in March, less sustainable

You may still be able to source some of the fish below via a responsible fishmonger.

brown shrimp
elvers (endangered, avoid completely)
langoustine / scampi
wild salmon
whelks

[In good condition almost all year: herring/sild, farmed salmon, farmed sea bream and turbot, common/Dover/megrim sole, sustainably-fished monkfish, rope-grown mussels, prawns, rainbow trout.]

Recommended fish & shellfish inspiration:

Meat, poultry and game in season in March

As you can see, there’s only one thing in season this month.

venison (wild red deer)

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

Recommended meat, poultry & game inspiration:

Cheese in season in March

Seasonal cheese in March UK and imported — Clockwise from top left: Valençay, Cotherstone, Coulommiers, Stilton

British-made seasonal cheese

Cotherstone (crumbly, fresh cows’ milk cheese)
ewe’s milk cheeses
Stilton

Imported March cheese

Coulommiers (young/fresh)
Morbier
Valençay

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

Recommended cheese & wine inspiration:

Favourite British seasonal food in March

It’s been a cabbagey few days here, with spring greens and pointed cabbage on the menu. Some’s been steamed and served alongside a Sunday roast, some’s been shredded and thrown in a stir fry, and the rest has been chargrilled with oil and chilli. I fancy a change now, and will be picking some kale out of the kitchen garden soon and buying some celeriac to make mash.

On the sweeter side of things, we’re making the most of the seasonal apples and rhubarb, with a pie and a crumble in our near future

What are you going to be buying or cooking from this list of UK seasonal foods in March? Leave a comment in the box below and let us know.

Recommended general seasonal inspiration:

British seasonal food in March