Tesco tries out in-store avocado scanners to assess ripeness

It is the millennial’s perennial problem: returning home after spending a small fortune on an avocado only to find the green fruit is either too squishy to slice for a salad or too hard to smash on toast.One UK retailer, however, is claiming to have found the tech to solve the textural trouble. Tesco has begun trialling in-store avocado scanners that allow shoppers to asses how ripe the fruit is before they put it in their basket.The UK’s biggest supermarket said the machines, which will be in five stores from this week, uses infrared technology to find out what the fruit looks like inside. The scanners will return one of two ripeness readings when shoppers present it with an avocado: immediately ready for smashing, or better for slicing

Cress to impress: the peppery, unsung hero ingredient | Kitchen aide

Growing cress with my daughter is a fun activity, but she’s intolerant to eggs so can’t have the classic sandwich I grew up with. What else can we make with cress? Sophie, via emailThis is also a pressing matter for Rosie Birkett, author of the A Lot on her Plate Substack, because her daughter recently returned home from nursery with a yoghurt tub containing cress: “It might be tiny, but cress is mighty – peppery punchy, and full of character, almost like a mini rocket leaf.” And if eggs are off the menu, Birkett’s first port of call would be to harness the young seedlings’ ability to accessorise: “Do your usual mashed avocado with a little lemon and olive oil, spread that over bread or toast, then top with a scattering of cress. It will add brilliant bite, freshness and pepperiness.”The same goes for bruschetta, or toasts with hummus, olive oil and gentle spices such as cumin, says Anna Jones, author of Easy Wins

José Pizarro’s recipe for chilled cherry and tempranillo soup

Cherries are a big deal in Extremadura, where I’m from, especially in the Valle del Jerte to the north, where the picotas are some of the best in all of Spain: sweet, dark, no stalk and full of flavour. At home, we usually just eat them by the handful, fresh and cold, so when I started cooking with them, my family looked at me as if I’d gone mad. But they always end up saying yes after the first spoonful. This chilled cherry and tempranillo soup is one of those dishes: a bit unexpected, but it always gets a smile.Fresh cherries are one of the joys of late summer, but this soup can also be made using frozen cherries at any time of year

The plant-based problem: why vegan restaurants are closing – or adding meat to the menu

Veganism is still on the rise, but many popular venues and chains are shutting down. Are they victims of a terrible era for hospitality or part of a growing shift in cultural values?When London’s Unity Diner wrapped up 2024 with the announcement that it would soon be shutting its doors for good, it expected some sadness from its customers. After all, the not-for-profit restaurant had been an innovator in the city’s vegan scene, serving up 3D-printed “vegan steak” (made of plant protein with the fibrous feel of the real thing) and disarmingly realistic “tofish” (tofu fish) alongside the classic burgers and chips. Throw in its animal sanctuary fundraising, and the restaurant had been faithfully embraced by vegans.But, from the reaction it received, you would think its supporters were genuinely grieving

Pouring cold water on H₂O sommeliers | Letters

Water at £19 a bottle (‘You’re either going to be a pioneer or a joke’, 28 August)(Meet the water sommeliers: they believe H₂O can rival wine – but would you pay £19 a bottle?, 28 August)? What a load of rubbish. Far better to order a free glass of tap water. At an Open University summer school some years ago, students were invited to take part in a trial. All were given 10 lots of two samples, Nottingham tap water and Highland Spring. There were enough participants over the weeks for a statistical sample

Rosheen Kaul’s cheesy, spicy tuna sambal melt – recipe

Tuna melts are arguably my favourite sandwich, all melty, pickley and delicious. A general gripe I have is when there isn’t enough mayonnaise in the tuna mixture and it ends up tasting canned and metallic – so use lots and don’t be shy.But tuna sambal is so packed with flavour already, you run very little risk of metallic canned fish flavours spoiling your toastie. The cheese does a marvellous job of tempering the spice from the sambal, leaving you with a far gentler meal.First make the sambal, which is a mixture inspired by a dish from Manado in Indonesia that I have fond memories of – called cakalang rica-rica