In Season: Serve good, simple food

Sally Sturley, product manager - fresh produce, Pauleys​: With most people over-indulging at Christ-mas, eating fresh, seasonal produce as part of your diet makes sense.

Vegetables which are in season are hardy winter types such as cauliflower, leeks, parsnips, beetroot, kale, carrots and turnips. Leeks are at their peak during the coldest months of the year and because they are packed with nutrients and crucial anti-oxidants, help stave off winter colds and flu.

Leeks have a milder, sweeter flavour than onions, although they need to be cooked thoroughly to bring out the sweetness and to avoid an overpowering flavour. They can be steamed, sautéed, pan-fried, roasted or baked. Our leeks are grown in the fertile black soil of the Cambridge-shire Fens in partnership with the long-established family farm of Nightlayer's Leek Company.

While the cauliflower is a traditional 'Sunday roast' vegetable, it is extremely versatile and can also be used in stir fries, as a crudité or in salads. Its crunchy, nutty taste adds to the variety of textures and flavours in a mixed salad. When you are boiling cauliflower, add a few drops of vinegar or lemon juice to the water to keep their original white colour. This also applies to potatoes.

Coming from the same species as the cauliflower is another great winter vegetable, kale. It is in abundance at this time of year and is extremely flavourful during the coldest months, making it a great substitute for cabbage or spinach.

Alan Edmeades, marketing product manager, M&J Seafood​: Steaming is the healthiest way to cook fish and is widely used in Thai cuisine.

Place portions or whole fish in a steamer over 2-3cms of boiling water. For extra flavour, the fish can be stuffed with herbs or surrounded by other aromatic ingredients. If you find steaming a little too slow, fish can be steamed in a microwave, as long as the portions are of even thickness.

If you have halibut on the menu then perhaps now is a good time to start looking for a suitable alternative. The wild Pacific halibut season closes early in the year and although farmed halibut will be available, take this opportunity to look at alternatives such as turbot or brill.

Fish from the Indian Ocean region is once again in good supply, including snapper, barramundi, tuna loins, swordfish and other exotic cuts.

Other fish in good supply at this time of year include farmed sea bass, mackerel, and haddock - subject to the weather. The new cod quota season starts in January, so supply should be good, again subject to the weather.

On the minus side, lemon sole will be scarce, and plaice will begin to 'roe up' and become thin.

John Martin, product marketing manager, Prime Meats​: January is a great time for game such as pheasant, duck, partridge, goose, hare and venison served as 'winter warmer' meals such as stews, casseroles and pies.

Shin of beef is a traditional lean cut that needs gentle, slow cooking but produces fantastically rich, fully flavoured stews with relatively low fat content.

Alternatively, game can be diced and turned into great rustic pie fillings. Traditional jugged hare is a wonderfully rich dish, perfect for long winter evenings.

British lamb prices were at rock bottom levels through November and early December - little more than New Zealand lamb. However, the export ban imposed following this summer's foot and mouth outbreaks was lifted in December and prices are likely to be on the rise in January as a result, offering some much-needed relief for our farmers.

For further information, contact: ​

Pauleys: 0870 600 2005

M&J Seafood: 0845 606 9090

Prime Meats: 0845 606 9090