Produce Department

Fresh Produce

Culinaria means FRESH produce. From crisp, green lettuce to vibrant red strawberries, you will always find the highest-quality fresh produce each and every time you walk through our front door. The quality of produce at our stores is simply second to none. Our produce buyers maintain relationships with our growers both local and around the world to offer the highest quality fruits and vegetables year-round guaranteeing the best of the best.

Culineria offers your favorite fruits and vegetables with more than 400 items to choose from, including organics. We are sure you will find just what you are looking for.. And more!

Stop in today to see what a difference “fresh” makes.

Mmmm…
Strawberries, the perfect summer comfort food.

Open my refrigerator door on any given day and you’ll see at least one container of these ruby-red, heart-shaped favorites. In fact, “strawberries” was one of my daughter’s first words (though at the time, it sounded more like “tawbears”). Thanks to Driscoll’s, a third-generation family farm founded in 1944 in California, our strawberries are available year round, so she will never be deprived of these delectable, sweet ripe berries.

Where did these berries, a member of the rose family, get their odd name? Perhaps it derives from the straw used to this day to cover and protect strawberry beds. Another theory comes from the fact that in earlier times, farmers brought berries to market threaded on straws. Throughout history, strawberries have been reputed to hold therapeutic qualities from kidney stones to halitosis. Researchers have noted that strawberries have a tranquilizing effect. Perhaps that is why a prominent woman in Napoleon’s court was known to add 22 pounds worth of fresh strawberry juice to her bath.

Strawberries are an integral mainstay to my family’s diet. Naturally fat-free, cholesterol-free, and sodium-free and very low in calories, 1 cup of strawberries packs more vitamin C than an orange! Strawberries are also rich in folate (for the production of red blood cells and especially important for pregnant women), plus a good source of potassium (for maintaining blood pressure, digestion, heart and kidney function), and antioxidants (which are believed to play a role in preventing the development of chronic diseases).

Strawberries, though fairly hardy compared to other berries, are perishable and will not ripen once picked. Be sure to refrigerate unwashed strawberries in their original container up to 5 days. Before enjoying, gently rinse berries with the green caps still intact under cool water. After washing, remove green caps with small paring knife. For best flavor, allow strawberries to reach room temperature.

While they are on sale as they are this week, I stock up and freeze a batch by spreading a single layer of washed and dried strawberries in a jelly-roll pan. After about 2 hours in the freezer, I transfer the strawberries to a zip-tight freezer bag. Sometimes I add strawberries instead of ice cubes to lemonade, iced tea, smoothies, or sangria. For a quick dessert with sophistication, sprinkle berries with a tablespoon or so sugar, then soak in white or red wine and serve over ice cream in a wine glass. Of course, what could be more classic and decadent than pouring heavy cream over whole berries? But ask my daughter and she’ll tell you our exquisite strawberries, sweet, fragrant, and juicy, taste perfect just the way they are.

Vidalia Onions

Juicy and sweet, Vidalia onions are the namesake of Vidalia, a town located in a southeast Georgia county about an hour outside Savannah. Nearby, over 75 years ago, a local farmer realized his onions tasted sweet, not hot, and soon garnered top dollar for his crops. When the Depression hit, other local farmers, seeing their neighbor’s good fortune, planted the yellow Granex seeds and finally received fair prices for their produce.

Within 10 years, these unique onions were sold in Vidalia’s farmers market and eventually Piggly Wiggly, which help spread the onion’s reputation. Today Vidalia onions are prized around the world for their mild flavor without the pungency or bite. When you think of sweet onions, Vidalia’s are usually the first to come to mind.

Thanks to the region’s climate and soil’s lower level of sulfur, only 20 counties in Georgia are permitted to grow and sell onions with the Vidalia label. Today growers plant over 14,000 acres of Vidalia onions annually yielding about 20,000 pounds of onions. To earn Vidalia status, they must undergo strict inspections to check for taste, physical characteristics and chemical composition.

Onions are harvested from mid to late-April through June. Because of their delicate nature, Vidalias are usually harvested by hand and then held in a controlled environment which allows them to be stored and sold into fall or winter.

Very low in cholesterol and low in sodium, Vidalias are a good source of dietary fiber and vitamin C. Choose onions that feel heavy for their size with a dry, papery skin. Avoid any onion that has sprouted or feels spongy. Store uncut onions in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place, or, to preserve onions for a longer period of time, wrap each onion in a paper towel and refrigerate until ready to use.