Seasonal
Sections

July

Keep the meal. Change the season.

Tomatoes deserve the center of the plate. Cucumbers make everything cooler. Peaches need almost nothing. And wild salmon is in season — the one month to buy it, and to cook it gently.

The July basket

This is what I'd bring home.

Feeds one big appetite for a week: every dinner, and lunch from the leftovers most days.

Ripe tomatoes 6–8 The week revolves around these. The tomato plate, toast, both jars, the weekend Persian cucumbers 1 bag They'll last all week. The tomato plate, rice bowls, cucumber yogurt Peaches 3–4 Buy the ones that smell ready. The hot-pan dinner, tacos, after dinner Sweet corn 3–4 ears Frozen works if that's what's there. Tacos, the hot-pan dinner, rice bowls Basil 1 bunch A potted plant lasts longer. The tomato plate, toast, the vinaigrette Mint 1 small bunch For the drink and the cucumbers. Cucumber yogurt, the spritz, rice bowls Cherries 1 lb Skip if expensive. The window comes back. After dinner, breakfast, the drink Blackberries 1 pint Eat within two days of buying. Breakfast, after dinner

Proteins

Wild salmon 1½ lbs Rich, oily fish wants something cool and sharp against it — cucumber, mint, a raw tomato — not something heavier. The weekend meal, the tomato plate, a rice bowl
Skirt steak 1½ lbs Beefy, charred meat wants acid and freshness at the end. Charred salsa and a squeeze of lime do what a steak sauce would, lighter. Tacos, the hot-pan dinner, lunches
Shrimp 1 lb, frozen is fine Shrimp is sweet and cooks in two minutes, so it wants something sweeter and something sharp beside it — corn and peach, with lime. The hot-pan dinner, tacos, the tomato plate

Also buy 3 limes, 1 white onion, 1 jalapeño, corn tortillas, 1 ball burrata, sherry vinegar, tart cherry juice, sparkling water

From your kitchen rice, black beans, sourdough, Greek yogurt, eggs, olive oil, garlic, honey, flaky salt, black pepper

Around $30–45 for the produce and $55–70 for the three proteins, all from one well-stocked supermarket. Everything in this edition is on these lines — nothing else to buy.

→ All 9 ingredients, in full
The meals

What do you feel like tonight?

Start with the protein, pick a way to cook it, then a flavor. Every combination comes out of the same shopping list.

Wild salmon Slow-roasted, with burrata · Tomato plate · Rice bowl Best Cool · Bright
Skirt steak Tacos · Hot-pan dinner · Rice bowl Best Smoky · Bright
Shrimp Hot-pan dinner · Tacos · Tomato plate Best Sweet and sharp · Smoky
No meat tonight Tomato toast · Tomato plate with burrata · Bean tacos Best Bright · Cool
July's four flavors
  • Bright Tomato vinaigrette + basil Spoon the jar over, tear basil on top, flaky salt last.
  • Smoky Charred tomato salsa + lime A spoonful of the salsa, lime squeezed over.
  • Cool Greek yogurt + cucumber + mint Grated cucumber stirred into salted yogurt, mint torn in.
  • Sweet and sharp Peach + lime + flaky salt Sliced ripe peach, lime, salt. A few rings of jalapeño if you want heat.
House Flavor

July gives tomatoes two lives. One stays raw. One gets charred.

Charred Tomato Salsa

Same tomato. Different life.

  • Spoon it over tacos.
  • Stir into black beans.
  • Put it next to steak.
  • Scramble it into eggs.
→ Make the charred tomato salsa

Tomato Herb Vinaigrette

One jar. A week of flavor.

  • Spoon it over the tomato plate.
  • Thin it for salmon.
  • Spread it on tomato toast.
  • Let white beans sit in it.
→ Make the tomato herb vinaigrette
The drink

Hillcrest Spritz

One drink. Make it on repeat.

Tart cherry, mint, lime, sparkling water

→ Make the drink
The weekend meal

Slow-roasted salmon, tomatoes, and burrata.

One meal should feel like the reason you went shopping. In July, it's wild salmon cooked so gently it turns silky, next to the best tomatoes of the year — the one cooking lesson this month is built around.

Wild salmon, ripe tomatoes, burrata, basil, sourdough

→ Make the weekend meal