Fruits and vegetables are very important parts of our diets. However, they can be easily confused.
What makes a fruit a fruit is that a fruit is the seed-bearing part of a plant. On the other hand, a vegetable is any edible part of a plant that is not a flower.
What vegetable is actually a fruit?
When faced with a question like this, it is always good to first understand the difference between a fruit and a vegetable. There are quite a few ways to look at it. We have the consumer perspective, the grower’s perspective, and also the scientist’s perspective. Let’s look at them in detail.
Consumer perspective: To a consumer, he or she is more interested in how it is consumed. Fruits are foods that are consumed by themselves as a snack or dessert. On the other hand, vegetables are meant to complement other food items in a dish. Another thing is that, generally, fruits are sweet, while vegetables are savory.
Grower perspective: Farmers or those who cultivate both usually refer to fruits as perennial crops, while they refer to vegetables as annuals.
Scientist/Botanist perspective: Botanically, vegetables refer to any edible part of the plant that does not contain the ovary or seed, just like the leaves, roots, or stems. The fruit, on the other hand, refers specifically to a mature ovary of a plant containing seeds. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines fruit as anything by which a plant gets its seeds into the world. You will find that this is actually the most reliable way to define a fruit or vegetable. I am going to list some “vegetables” that are actually fruits.
- Tomatoes: They’re from the family Solanaceae. Tomatoes are one common fruit that is on the forefront of being confused as vegetables. To a botanist, it fits every definition of a fruit, but everyone calls it a vegetable. In the 19th century, issues rose around whether tomatoes should be taxed as vegetables. So, in 1893, the Supreme Court ruled that they would be taxed as vegetables.
- Olives: Olives belong to the category of fruits that are called drupes. They are elated by peaches and mangoes. These drupes are also called stone fruits.
- Peppers: They are also from the family of Solanaceae. No matter how hot they might be, from jalapenos to cayennes and all the other species of peppers out there. They are still classified botanically as fruits. They are still the fruit of the vine, much like cucumbers.
- Avocados: Despite their “greenness,” avocados are fruits. It has a seed for one. Avocados also comprise a three-layer pericarp that covers their seeds. This pericarp is made up of the exocarp, mesocarp, and endocarp. The category of fruit it falls under is berries. Another surprise, right?
- Cucumbers: This one might be a little hard to believe, but they are fruits. Your pickles are actually fruits. Cucumbers are members of the gourd family, and their means of propagation happen to be their seeds.
- Pumpkins: Just like cucumbers above, pumpkins are members of the gourd family. This makes them fit into the description of fruits. With their fleshy interior and numerous seeds, pumpkins are also fruits.
- Zucchini: Zucchini is also from the Cucurbitaceae family. This family has other members, such as squash and cucumber. They all feel like vegetables, but they are all, in fact, fruits.
- Corn: I am very sure that you didn’t expect to find corn here, but it is in fact a fruit. Or more accurately, a collection of fruits on a cob. Each kernel of corn is an ovary containing a single seed. However, the ovary wall and seed are almost indistinguishable. They are fused together as one. Corn is found in the class of fruits called caryopses.
- Eggplants: Though eggplants belong to the potato family. The difference is that potatoes are actually tubers, while eggplants are actually seed-bearing. This qualifies them as fruits.
- Green beans: Haha, one of America’s favorite veggies is actually a fruit. Our definition of fruit still stands true here. A green bean is essentially a pod carrying seeds. This makes it a fruit.
- Okra: Also called ladyfingers. Don’t let their green nature fool you, these are actually fruits. They are seed-bearing fruits going by the botanical name Abelmoschus esculentus.
What is considered both a fruit and a vegetable?
A very common one is tomatoes. As already mentioned above, tomatoes have always been confused as vegetables. It is a fruit, botanically. However, a Supreme Court injunction ruled that it should be taxed as a vegetable.
For the purposes of the Tariff of 1883 on imported produce, the court unanimously ruled that a tomato is correctly identified as, and will be taxed as, a vegetable. The court, however, did concede that, scientifically speaking, a tomato is actually a fruit.
There are so many other common examples of food items that are considered both fruit and vegetables. They include: okra, pepper, bottle gourd, French beans, eggplants, cucumbers, peas, etc.
Is a strawberry a fruit or a veggie?
Strawberries are another food item that comes up with quite a few surprises. Based on our definition of fruits, they might not seem to fit, but they are actually fruits. They are an aggregate of fruits. Strawberries are a multiple fruit made up of tiny fruits that are embedded within a receptacle.
The flower has many carpels embedded on the flower base. When we eat strawberries, the fleshy part that we consume is made entirely from receptacle tissue. This is why they fall comfortably into the category that botanists like to call “false fruits.”
Another interesting fact about strawberries is that they are actually not berries. Berries, botanically, are simple fruits with seeds and pulp developed from a single ovary. They also have their whole walls fleshy. The members of the berry category might even shock you. Avocadoes, tomatoes, watermelons, and bananas are all berries. This is because they fit all the above criteria.
What is a fruit that everyone thinks is a vegetable?
Cucumbers are another fruit mistakenly assumed to be vegetables. Tomatoes, peppers, aubergines or eggplants, okra, green beans, and peas all fall into this category.
What fruit is not actually a fruit?
There are some fruits which are called “false fruits.” I have already mentioned one earlier in this article. That is strawberry.
Some of these false fruits include aggregate fruits and multiple fruits. Though they sound similar, they are quite different.
Aggregate fruits are fruits derived from multiple ovaries of a single flower. An example of this is strawberries and blackberries.
On the other hand, multiple fruits are fruits derived from several ovaries of different flowers which are then fused together. A great example of this is pineapple.
Is a tomato a fruit or vegetable?
A tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable. It is, in fact, in the family of berries. A berry, as earlier defined, is a fleshy fruit derived from the ovary of a single flower. They are also characterized as having many seeds. However, another distinguishing feature of berries is that the middle and inner layers of the fruit have no clear line distinction. This means the endocarp and mesocarp are fused together.
Why are tomatoes and avocados considered fruits?
The definition of fruit comfortably fits tomatoes and avocados. In botanical terms, fruits refer to the part of the plant that is seed-bearing. This usually refers to the ovary, which is the reproductive part of a plant. Another way of saying this is that fruits are the parts of plants by which a plant gives its seeds to the world. Tomatoes and avocados are both fruits, and they even happen to fall into the same category – berries.
Is corn a vegetable?
No, it isn’t. Generally, corn is usually referred to as a vegetable, but that is not scientifically true. The corn kernels come from the flowery part of the plant. Vegetables, by definition, include any other edible part like leaves, stems, and roots that is not a flower.
Each corn kernel is technically a fruit. This is because it’s made up of an ovary containing the seed fused with it. This means that when you are consuming an ear of corn, you are actually consuming a lot of fruit.
Is a cucumber a fruit or a vegetable?
Cucumbers are fruits. This is because they contain a whole lot of seeds. They belong to the Cucurbitaceae family. Cucumbers grow from the fertilized flowers of the plant, and this is what makes them fruits.