Is broccoli a vegetable or a fruit?

The head, or flower, vegetables include artichokes, broccoli, and cauliflower. The fruits commonly considered vegetables by virtue of their use include cucumbers, eggplant, okra, sweet corn, squash, peppers, and tomatoes. Seed vegetables are usually legumes, such as peas and beans.

What is broccoli technically?

Vegetables are usually grouped according to the portion of the plant that is eaten such as leaves (lettuce), stem (celery), roots (carrot), tubers (potato), bulbs (onion) and flowers (broccoli). A fruit is the mature ovary of a plant. So a tomato is botanically a fruit but is commonly considered a vegetable.

Is broccoli technically a flower?

When you grow broccoli (Brassica oleracea italica) in your garden, you have a flower that does not look like other flowers. Botanically, it grows as a biennial, but gardeners grow it as an annual and harvest it before the flower buds fully open.

Which vegetables are actually fruits?

Here are 11 so-called “vegetables” that are technically fruit.

• Avocados. An avocado is a fruit comprising a three-layer pericarp that surrounds its single seed.
• Olives. Olives, meanwhile, are drupes—and therefore, fruit.
• Corn. Fruit on the cob.
• Cucumbers.
• Zucchini.
• Pumpkins.
• Okra.
• String Beans.

Which fruit is broccoli?

Broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus Brassica) whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is classified in the Italica cultivar group of the species Brassica oleracea.

What type of fruit is broccoli?

By those standards, seedy outgrowths such as apples, squash and, yes, tomatoes are all fruits, while roots such as beets, potatoes and turnips, leaves such as spinach, kale and lettuce, and stems such as celery and broccoli are all vegetables.

Is broccoli a leafy vegetable?

Kale, mustard greens, collard greens, cabbage and broccoli are cruciferous leafy greens. Cruciferous vegetables are high in nutrients and contain glucosinolates, which inhibit the growth of certain cancers.

What fruits are not really fruits?

Avocadoes, string beans, squash, eggplant, green pepper and okra are all technically fruits, Litt says. On the other hand, rhubarb is not a fruit. Let’s not even start with strawberries just yet.

What type of vegetable is broccoli?

Cruciferous veggies
Cruciferous veggies are a diverse group that includes broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, bok choy, arugula, Brussels sprouts, collards, watercress and radishes.

Does broccoli count as greens?

Kale, mustard greens, collard greens, cabbage and broccoli are cruciferous leafy greens. Magnesium and tryptophan are also abundant in these greens; these minerals enhance heart health and brain function. Cook these greens separately, or combine them to create a flavorful blend.

Is broccoli considered a dark leafy green?

The USDA also includes broccoli in the dark green vegetable subgroup. A cruciferous vegetable, broccoli is related to cauliflower and cabbage, including kale and bok choy. Like other dark green vegetables, broccoli is a nutrient-dense food.

Is broccoli a flower or a vegetable?

Broccoli is a vegetable that comes from the plant of the same name. The vegetable is usually green and resembles a tree with a large stalk and large flower heads. The plant is a part of the cabbage family and the vegetable is actually the flower of the plant.

Is broccoli the healthiest food?

Broccoli provides the most health benefits if you eat it raw because some of the nutrients in broccoli are sensitive to heat or may leach out into cooking water, including vitamin C, folate and some of the phytochemicals. Steaming broccoli instead of boiling or stir-frying it will help minimize any nutrient losses.

What is good substitute for Broccoli?

Broccolini, broccoflower, or cauliflower may be substituted for broccoli in most dishes. Broccolini is sometimes referred to as “baby broccoli” and is a cross between broccoli and gai-lan, which is a Chinese broccoli .

What part of broccoli is edible?

Broccoli has two main edible parts, the florets — the dark green forest-y tops which are actually undeveloped flower buds — and the stalk — the pale green undercarriage like the trunk of a tree.