Local is definitely best!

At the moment the fruit and vegetables in the markets here are just mouth-watering and so colourful. Pretty much all of it is local or at least from within the Indre et Loire region. So it's not had to travel far.  

Our regular weekly market is in Chinon, on a Thursday. As you'd expect during the summer season, it's packed with stallholders, as well as locals and visitors.

Chinon has a mixed market. So there are clothes and household goods, alongside the edibles of fish, meat and vegetables. The vegetable stalls are mostly family businesses, but include producers as well as retailers.


The producers usually offer a complete range of
fruit and veg, and like everywhere else, it will be seasonal produce. Not a 'Kenyan fine bean' amongst them. Others specialise in one item. So for example Madame Champignon, otherwise known as Chantelle sells mushrooms. She usually has about six varieties. Madame Oignon or Nicole sells onions - probably about a dozen varieties. There's also a bio stall in the market which has wonderful things at the moment, including one of my favourites -beetroot (betterave). I have a recipe for Betterave Tsatsiki if anyone's interested. Very good and very pink!  As with all the traders, you say what you're buying something for, and they'll suggest what's best and how much you need. What is good to see are the local restauranteurs buying from the market. The seal of approval if you like!