May in the Czech kitchen: asparagus, mushrooms, strawberries
In nature, in the woods and in the fields
Colourful butterflies float in the meadows, the woods are beginning to see the first wild boar piglets, and the Czech countryside sings with all the birds as the magnolias shed their flowers. Gardeners and farmers are busy and fruit growers can finally breathe a sigh of relief that the frosts are gone and the remaining flowers on the trees are no longer in danger.
Which ingredients to enjoy?
The season is in full swing for growers and you can now enjoy the following at the farmers' markets: leeks, chard, radishes, kohlrabi, spinach, chard, the first courgettes, onions and soon to be ripening strawberries and cauliflower. The first asparagus has peeked out of the ground and soon elderflower will be blooming on the edges of the woods. Its flowers and fruits can be picked (but they ripen only in early autumn).
On weekends in May it is worthwhile to take a break and go mushroom picking. In the woods you can look for Summer cep and Dotted stem bolete, Birch bolete, blushers, early morels or wood ears. And if you're unsure about collecting, download an app on your phone - professional mushroom picker Lukáš Vrána reccommends Na houby.
Before you start cooking in season, we recommend reading and recipes:
- Where to go in Prague for fresh vegetables
- Lamb meat in several ways
- Seasonal herbs and their uses
- How to collect and store herbs?
- Meat and herbs - how to combine them correctly?
- Grilled asparagus with brown butter
- How to grow Czech asparagus
- Spring potatoes with labneh by creative chef Jana Jelič
- A trip to the Rašovice farm: How do the chickens live here?
- Strawberry special from Kunratice. When is it harvested and which variety is suitable for jam?
- How to process elderberries in the kitchen?
- Radish salad from Cantina
- Herb of the week: Dandelion
Traditions and folk customs
At the turn of April and May, the villages and smaller towns erected maypoles, which are considered a symbol of protection of the village, but also of love, fertility and youth. Maypole decorations should include green, symbolising vitality, and red, signifying blood and life.
A more or less forgotten folk tradition is the Pentecost, a movable feast celebrated fifty days after Easter to commemorate the Ascension of the Lord. The last day of May then belongs to the opening of the forest wells and their purification. This ritual was quite essential for general health in the days when there were no sewers.
And if you believe in superstitions and old sayings, don't get married in May. There was a practical reason for this: if a newlywed couple had a child nine months after the wedding, it would be born in an unfavourable winter period (frosts, minimum fresh food), which posed a risk to the child and the mother.
