Produce Guide - G

Garlic

Garlic is an onion, but, oh, such a significant onion. Affectionately known as the "stinking rose," garlic is something no self-respecting cook could live without, as its aromatic - sometimes pungent, sometimes mild and sweet - flavour adds depth and perfume to so many dishes. There's a Frootique customer we call the Garlic King of Nova Scotia, since he buys (and eats) at least three pounds of garlic each week. He must be one of the lucky few who can consume it without suffering the antisocial after-effects. I find that even a single bite lingers with me for days, but that doesn't stop me from trying to compete with the king!

There are many garlic varieties, including stemmed and non-stemmed bulbs, and the general rule is that the smaller the cloves, the stronger the flavour. Elephant garlic (surprise, surprise) has giant cloves, mild enough to eat raw, but some say it has a peculiar flavour. Mexican garlic has pink or reddish skin and a juicy, powerful flavour. Available year-round, garlic is at its best during late spring and summer, when its flavour is sweet and mild. Keep your eye peeled in the spring for green garlic. This is the stem or shoot of immature bulbs that are just beginning to form. Green garlic is wonderfully delicate and can be used the way you would scallions or green onions, chopped in a salad, used as a garnish, or simmered in a clear soup or broth.

Gooseberries

Growing up in England, "scrumpin'" - raiding apple orchards - was a regular summertime activity among the kids in my neighbourhood. A productive sideline was nicking "gusgogs." The gooseberry is a hardy northern fruit, which is why it's somewhat surprising that this English favourite has never really caught on as a commercial crop in Canada. Perhaps New Worlders favour sweeter fruit; like currants, most gooseberry varieties are really too tart to be eaten out of hand. However, their acidity lends itself beautifully to sauces for fatty fish or meats, such as mackerel and goose. In fact, one theory has it that the name derives from the English habit of pairing the berries with goose, which seems likely enough, considering that the French name is groseillà maquereau (mackerel currant).

We do see some local gooseberries in season, which is generally from late May through August, depending on how early summer arrives. However, the few commercial growers that I know prefer to harvest their gooseberries very late, allowing the berries to ripen to a red, almost sweet, stage. I prefer them very tart and green, when they taste like sour grapes and are best for jam. There's no doubt that, along with black currants (see page 50), gooseberries make the finest jam going. When they do turn up in supermarkets, they tend to be sold by volume rather than by weight, so in order to make jam you'll have to head out to the country markets and roadside stands.

Grapefruit

The grapefruit comes to us by way of its larger, rougher ancestor, the pomelo (see page 135). It is a recent newcomer to the world of fruit, first mentioned by a European writer in the mid-18th century as a "forbidden fruit" grown in Barbados. A hundred years later, a Frenchman described this smaller version of the West Indian pomelo as hanging in clusters, like bunches of giant grapes, which is presumably how its name came into being. The fruit was introduced to Florida citrus growers in 1823, but the fruit didn't really take off until later that century, when sophisticated New Yorkers began to appreciate its tart flavour. It then spread to Texas and California, and further afield to Argentina, Israel and South Africa, which are all now major grapefruit producers.

We import most of our grapefruit from Florida, which in my opinion produces by far the finest fruit. The Florida season starts in September, and although harvesting finishes by March, the fruit is stored and sold right through until late June. The best grapefruit arrives in February, March and April, when the sugar content is highest and the fruit just seems to be at its absolute prime. In the summer we see stored California grapefruit, as well as fruit from Argentina and South Africa.

Grapes

Grapes have featured in human history perhaps more than any other fruit. Egypt's King Tutankhamen was buried with grape juice; Dionysius and Bacchus draped themselves with grapevines; and even Noah planted a vineyard on Mount Ararat, and became drunk on the results. But the story of the grape is primarily the story of wine. Although there are over 8000 varieties, only 40 or 50 of these are cultivated commercially, and most of these are wine grapes.

In Canada we import table grapes primarily from California in the summertime, turning to Chile for our winter supply. The two growing seasons complement each other perfectly; California's season starts in May, when Chile's is pretty much over, and then declines in November, just as South American grape growers get going again. We see only a handful of commercially exported grape varieties, but these have many sub-strains, and texture, flavour, and quality can vary greatly throughout the year. As with many fruits, the early part of the growing season tends to produce grapes that are slightly more acidic. Most North Americans prefer their green grapes to be tart, seedless, and, well, green. However, as Europeans know, it's not until these grapes begin to turn golden or amber, indicating a high sugar content, that they really are at their peak of flavour. Moreover, while seedless grapes are infinitely easy to eat, grapes with seeds generally have a richer, fuller flavour.

Guavas

If you've ever had a tropical fruit drink, it's likely that you've tasted guava. Native to South America and the West Indies, but now cultivated in many tropical and subtropical countries, including India, Australia, and South Africa, the guava is grown for processing as well as eating fresh. Guava paste is a common sweetener south of the equator, and the fruit forms the base of many blended tropical juices.

When I've eaten guavas in the Caribbean, I've been delighted by their complicated acid sweetness, somewhere between a strawberry and a pineapple, with a hint of cloves, vanilla, bay leaf, and wintergreen. But I've got to admit that I'm often a little disappointed by imported guavas. They are usually harvested a little underripe for export, and this can affect their flavour as well as their texture, which at its best is juicy and meaty, like a good pear. However, the guava's fragrance is always spectacular, the most intense of any fruit I know.

Guavas vary in size, shape, and colour. As small as an egg or as large as a good-sized apple, guavas may be round or pear-shaped, with rough or smooth skin. They all start out life with green skins, which gradually turn yellow - in part or in whole - or sometimes red as they ripen. The flesh of the guava also varies from fruit to fruit. It can be white, yellow, blush, or crimson, loaded with seeds or virtually seedless. And the flavour may be very sweet or somewhat sour.

^ top