As the warmer months begin handing over the reins to autumn and winter, we sit down with the chefs and review all the produce we’ve planted and harvested over the past few months – and start planning for the season ahead.
Each Head Kitchen Gardener at THE PIGs creates a week-by-week plan of the calendar year, so we can plot with the kitchen teams what produce we want more of and which new varieties we would like to try, to introduce new ingredients to our menus.
In early autumn, we start getting garlic and onions in the ground so they will be ready to harvest next June and July, and we start to sow broad beans to plant out in November. One of my absolute favourite crops, winter squash, can be harvested from mid-autumn – the trick is to let it cure for a few months, so the flavour is really enhanced to its full potential.
Squash is so versatile, and our chefs love working it into soups, stews, gratins and tarts, mixing it with grains and salads, or even serving it on its own as a simple side dish.
Aside from my soft spot for squash, right now we’re harvesting hearty root veggies like kale, parsnips, celeriac, Jerusalem artichokes, Chinese artichokes, brussels sprouts and sprouting broccoli.
And we’re planting garlic, onions, broad beans, winter salads, cabbages, leeks, tomatoes and aubergines in our veg beds – as well as salads in our polytunnels, as the heating, lighting and protective covers help to nurture these tender crops over the colder months.
All our kitchens love to make the most of wild, seasonal produce in autumn and, over the years, we’ve built relationships with a network of brilliant foragers who bring us the best goodies hiding on our doorstep – these are just a handful of our favourite pickings you can find between September and December:
- Sloe berries for sloe gin, jams and jellies.
- Rosehips are rich in vitamin C and traditionally used to make rosehip syrup.
- Beefsteak fungus is a beautiful, bright red edible mushroom. Crab apples are small, tart apples perfect for jellies, jams and butters.
- Ceps are among the most highly regarded wild mushrooms.
- Hen of the woods is a large, wild mushroom that appears at the base of oak trees.
- Winter chanterelles are frost-resistant wild mushrooms.
- Hedgehog fungi have “spines” – hence the name! It’s absolutely fantastic in sauces.
- Pennywort is a crunchy and succulent wild green leaf.
- Horseradish root can be used in the same way as cultivated horseradish.
- Hairy bittercress is not hairy or bitter! Fresh and peppery, it tastes a little like watercress.
Come rain or shine, our teams will be out every day in the Kitchen Gardens to pick the freshest produce for our menus – and we’re always more than happy to show you what’s growing. Enjoy a free guided tour of our Kitchen Gardens across THE PIGs (excluding THE PIG-in the wall and The Village Pub), every day at 11am. We can even lend you a pair of wellies! See you by the veg beds.
