But the confusion arises because "vegetable" isn't a botanical classification so much as it is a culinary one. And "fruit" can be a culinary term, too — described as "having a sweet pulp associated with the seed" and "used chiefly in a dessert or sweet course," according to Merriam-Webster.
So scientifically, fruits don't have to be sweet, but in the kitchen, most people would classify the fruits that fall on the savory side, like tomatoes, as vegetables. Nutritionists recognize the terms as they are commonly used, and tomatoes are listed as a vegetable under USDA guidelines.
Even the Supreme Court has weighed in on the issue. In , the high court was forced to rule on whether imported tomatoes should be taxed under the Tariff Act of , which only applied to vegetables and not fruits. Although both sides cited dictionary definitions of the two words, the court sided unanimously with TeamVegetable.
That idea was channeled more than years later in a quote attributed to journalist Miles Kington, who may have settled the debate once and for all:. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad," he said.
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A leading-edge research firm focused on digital transformation. Cucumbers, peppers, pumpkins, and avocados are all fruits too, according to science. Vegetables, on the other hand, have a slightly murkier definition. It's a word we use to group together a wide range of plants whose parts are edible and herbaceous, like roots, stems, and leaves.
The critical distinction is that, according to the dictionary, a vegetable must be part of a plant or the whole plant itself, while fruits are just the means by which certain plants spread their seeds. But the confusion arises because "vegetable" isn't a botanical classification so much as it is a culinary one.
And "fruit" can be a culinary term, too — described as "having a sweet pulp associated with the seed" and "used chiefly in a dessert or sweet course," according to Merriam-Webster. So scientifically, fruits don't have to be sweet, but in the kitchen, most people would classify the fruits that fall on the savoury side, like tomatoes, as vegetables. For example, cantaloupe melons, watermelons, butternut squash, cucumbers and pumpkins all belong to the same botanical family but have different nutritional compositions.
Other botanical fruit that are culinarily considered vegetables are: avocado, olives, pumpkin, tomato, sweecorn, courgette, cucumber, green peas, chili, aubergine. Figure 2. Botanical fruit that are culinary vegetables. For the 5-a-day recommendations, tomatoes are classified as a vegetable, which is the culinary definition, because that is how most people learn about fruit and vegetables.
One adult portion of a tomato is a medium sized tomato or 7 cherry tomatoes, remember to eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables so you can reach your daily 5-a-day. Figure 3. Portion size of tomatoes. To summarise, tomatoes are usually prepared in savoury dishes despite botanically being a fruit, which is why they are often described as a vegetable from a culinary perspective. Who cares, though, when tomatoes taste as good as they do! We can all agree tomatoes are easy snacks, delicious in stews and are a healthy option in our diets, providing us with fibre, vitamins and minerals.
When do you think the best season for tomatoes is? Want to know the best time to buy fruits and vegetables?
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