By Christine Salins.
Now is the time to be buying strawberries, folks. Punnets were selling in my local Coles supermarket for $1 this week. I can’t recall when I last saw them so cheap.
The extraordinarily low prices are a combination of lower demand – online shoppers apparently don’t buy strawberries – and excellent growing conditions.
The current glorious weather in Queensland, where the strawberry season is at its peak, means that there’s a huge abundance of strawberries hitting the shelves.
The Queensland Strawberry Growers Association says many farms have increased their output by 30-50% in the last week alone, and the trend is set to continue for the next six weeks.
Such low prices are clearly unsustainable – the association says farmers are losing around 50c for every sale and if demand doesn’t increase, they won’t be able to cover the most basic of costs.
We all know what that would lead to – no strawberries at all. So, the message is … take advantage of the low prices and buy up big. I put punnets straight into the freezer so that I always have some on hand to blend into drinks and smoothies, or to turn into easy desserts.
They also dehydrate well, or you can turn them into jams, sauces and salsa, as in the recipe here.
If you live in south-east Queensland, it’s a good time to go strawberry picking. Queensland has more than 100 strawberry growers and some allow you to pick your own.
In the Moreton Bay region, you can find them at www.visitmoretonbayregion.com.au/blog/fresh-strawberry-trail? At the Sunshine Coast recently, we visited McMartin’s Farm which is open every day for strawberry picking and which has a café and farm shop selling homemade strawberry icecream, smoothies etc.
Ashbern Farms in Stanthorpe is open for picking from October to May, as the higher altitude allows them to produce strawberries in summer when elsewhere in Queensland it is generally too hot for strawberries.
For more strawberry recipes, visit www.qldstrawberries.com.au.
Chicken Schnitzel With Strawberry Salsa
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1/3 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 tbsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tsp garlic powder
½ cup plain flour
1 egg
1 tbsp milk
550g chicken breast schnitzel (uncrumbed)
Vegetable oil, for shallow-frying
Combine breadcrumbs, parmesan, lemon rind and garlic powder on a plate. Season with salt and pepper. Place flour on a plate. Whisk egg and milk together in a shallow bowl.
Coat 1 piece of chicken in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in egg mixture. Coat in breadcrumb mixture. Place on a plate. Repeat with remaining chicken, flour, egg mixture and breadcrumb mixture.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken, in batches, for 4 to 5 minutes each side or until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel to drain. Serve with chunky chips and salsa.
Strawberry Salsa
200g chopped strawberries
Red, yellow & green capsicum
1 large avocado
1 medium red onion
Fresh chilli
Fresh coriander
Olive oil
Lime juice
Salt & pepper to taste
Add a handful of finely chopped strawberries to a chopped avocado, finely diced red, green or yellow capsicum, finely diced red onion, chopped coriander, chopped chilli, a generous squeeze of lime, a splash of extra virgin olive oil and a good pinch of sea salt.
Recipe and image courtesy of Queensland Strawberry Growers Association.
