Vegetables can be described as any part of a plant that is consumed by humans as food. This is especially true when consumed as part of a savory meal.
Even though it is a loose term in culinary
Culinary art is the art of the preparation, cooking, and presentation of meals. The term culinary means "Related to cooking". People who work in this field are called Culinary artists or Culinarians. In more common terms they are chefs and cooks. The requirements of these workers are people who have knowledge of diet, food science, nutrition and hygiene, design aesthetics,... More uses, vegetables usually exclude other plant foods that are derived from the fruits and nuts and cereal grains. It, however, includes certain seeds such as pulses.
Vegetables as a Source of Food for Humans
Depending on the variety or the part of the plant they come from, they can be eaten either cooked or raw. They are low in calories
A calorie is a unit of energy used in several fields. It is the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius at one atmospheric pressure or the pressure at sea level. When relating to food, Calories with capital "C", also known as the food calorie the same energy as 1000... More, fats, and carbohydrates but come high in vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber
Fiber also referred to as dietary fiber or roughage is the indigestible portion of food derived from plants. It comes either soluble in water or insoluble. They are normally resistant to absorption in the human digestive tract. They are found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. It helps increase bulk in ingested foods, softens stool and shortens the total time... More, and trace elements.
Vegetables can be eaten as part of every course of the dish be it starters, soups, salads
A salad is a mixture of small to medium pieces of ready to eat ingredients mixed together and topped with a sauce or dressing. They are preferred cold with few exceptions served warm. The dressing is usually sweet and sour in nature or can be salted and spiced. Salad ingredients range widely but most commonly they include vegetables, fruits, cooked... More, entrees, and desserts
A dessert is the last course of a meal usually consisting of sweetened foods and beverages like dessert wine and liqueur. It may also include some savory items like coffee, cheese, and nuts. The sweetened food can include those commonly eaten savory such as rice. Foods included usually eaten as dessert courses include cake, cookie, pastry, ice cream, pudding, custard... More. They can also be served processed into juice and as sandwich
A sandwich is a type of food made by placing food ingredients between two or more slices of bread. This type of food is normally eaten as a snack or food-on-the-go. This is because it is easily packed and is less messy making it ideal for portability. Sandwich fillings usually include vegetables, meat, poultry, fish or seafood, vegetables, cheese, and... More fillings. There is no limit as to how vegetables can be prepared in meals.
Nutritional and Health Benefits
They are rich in antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin AVitamin A is a group of unsaturated nutritional organic compounds like retinol, retinoic acid provitamin A carotenoids like beta-carotene and is important for growth, immune system and good vision especially in low-light and color vision. It can be found in several foods including liver, cod liver oil, carrot, green vegetables, butter, milk sweet potato, Cheese and fish among others.... More, vitamin C, and vitamin E. They also contain vitamin B6Pyridoxine is also known as pyridoxol or vitamin B6 and can be gotten from fruit, vegetables, and grains. It helps prevent confusion, ulcerations, conjuctivitis, intertigo and neuropathy among others. Alcoholics and the elderly are usually the demographics that tend to have increased risk of vitamin B6 deficiency.... More, pro-vitamins, minerals, and carbohydrates in varying amounts. Some varieties of vegetables are rich in proteins
They are known to help in reducing the incidences of cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and other chronic ailments.
Hygiene is important when handling these foods as they tend to be eaten raw. This is especially true with the leafy vegetables which can carry infections on them.
Most vegetables are perishable and therefore should not be stored for long periods after harvesting. Others like potatoes and onions have longer storage lives and these can be kept longer after harvest.
Generally, these vegetable food sources can be stored frozen or dried. Commercially they are canned and sold in stores. Salting and curing is also a common method of storing these foods.
Wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetable
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