One of these things is not like the others

Produce in disguise: 10 fruits and vegetables that are not what they seem

Credit: Alexandr Podvalny

The classification of food can be challenging because it often relies on subjective criteria. Not everyone utilizes ingredients in the same way or for the same purposes, so how we see these items is influenced by cultural and social factors.

An example of this is what produce we consider to be a fruit, a vegetable, or a nut, which doesn’t always align with its botanical classification. Let’s look at some fruits and vegetables that are not what they seem to be.

Tomato

Credit: Dan Gold

Let’s start with a classic. Most people know that tomatoes are a fruit commonly used as a vegetable (The U.S. Supreme Court once had to rule on this due to customs regulations). They have seeds surrounded by a fleshy pulp. But did you know that tomatoes are actually berries? Botanically, ‘berry’ is used for all fruit without a pit or stone where each flower develops into a single fruit.

Tomatoes are part of the Nightshade family, meaning they are related to chillies, potatoes, and the tobacco plant.

Avocado

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This one is for all the avocado toast lovers: Avocados are a fruit. A berry, more specifically. While in Western countries avocados are used in savoury preparations, many cultures around the world use them in desserts and sweet drinks.

But aren’t berries fruits without a stone? One would think that the stone is hard to miss in this case. Botanists are still arguing on this one, but the general consensus is that the avocado seed does not fulfill the requirements to be considered a stone. Some common plants that you might not know were related to the avocado are the bay laurel and the cinnamon tree.

Peanut

Credit: Ashes Sitoula

A staple in the nut/dried fruit category, peanuts are neither fruits nor nuts in a botanical sense. They are actually the seed of a legume, but even then, they are unique because they are the only legume that develops underground.

Peanuts are classified and treated as nuts for culinary purposes, so people often think that a peanut allergy is the same as a nut allergy, but these are two very distinct (although dangerous) reactions. As part of the Fabaceae family, peanuts are related to soybeans, chickpeas, lentils, and peas.

Zucchini

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Zucchinis are used as a vegetable, but they are multiseeded, fleshy, and have an edible outer layer. Rings any bells? That’s right, zucchinis are a type of berry. A member of the Cucurbitaceae family, they are relatives of cucumber, squash, watermelon, and the luffa (yes, the one used in the shower).

As an ingredient, zucchinis are usually harvested before they mature, because ripe zucchinis have tougher skin, harder seeds, and are bitter.

Corn

Credit: Andre Ouellet

Also known as maize, corn is used in savoury and sweet preparations alike. Classified as a grain for culinary purposes, it is actually a grass that bears fruit. So, technically, corn is a fruit.

But where are the seeds and the skin? In the grass (Poaceae) family, each flower has a seed that fuses with the skin and forms a kernel. Other relatives that behave in the same way are wheat, rice, sugarcane, and barley.

Mushroom

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Mushrooms are vegetables in a culinary sense, and a "fruit" body in a botanical sense, but they are neither vegetables nor fruits, because they are not plants. Culinary mushrooms are edible fungi, and as such, they have a totally different classification.

Mushrooms are not the only fungi that have culinary uses: other cases include yeast used for leavening or alcoholic beverages, fermented foods, or the mold used for blue cheese.

Rhubarb

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Rhubarb is a vegetable, but is traditionally used for tarts, jams, and other sweet desserts. The only edible part of the plant is the stalk, as the leaves can be toxic.

Edible rhubarb is a hybrid, and it’s not closely related to other edible plants, although it is a distant relative of buckwheat.

Bell Pepper

Credit: Nick Fewings

Also called capsicum or sweet pepper, bell peppers are a berry of the Nightshade family (which makes them a relative of tomatoes and potatoes). Although they are classified as berries, they lack one of their main characteristics: instead of having seeds surrounded by fleshy pulp, plants in the capsicum species are hollow.

Fun fact: plants in the capsicum species have no relation whatsoever to the pepper spice, but they were given that name because Europeans used the word ‘pepper’ for all plants and spices that were pungent.

Strawberry

Credit: Oliver Hale

Despite their name, strawberries are not berries in the botanical sense of the word, because they develop multiple fruits from each flower, and they don’t have seeds (even if they look like they do). Historically, the English language has used the word ‘berry’ for any small, brightly colored, and juicy edible fruit.

So, where do strawberries come from? They are a hybrid, and they belong to the Rosaceae family, which makes them a relative of apples, cherries, peaches, almonds, and roses.

Cashew

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From a culinary point of view, cashews are classified as nuts. But nuts, in their botanical sense, are fruits protected by a hard shell that doesn’t open on their own. Cashews are actually drupes, or stone fruits.

In this case, what we eat is the seed of the cashew fruit. As a member of the Anacardiaceae family, cashews are related to mangoes, sumac, and (by a more recent classification) to pistachios.

Worth a thousand words

10 uncommon adjectives you should reintroduce into your vocabulary

Credit: Pearse O'Halloran

Languages are a wonderful thing, not only because they are a means of communication and thought development, but also because they showcase the human mind’s ability for description. Sadly, many words that were once considered common have slowly become obsolete, and the English language has lost unique ways of expressing specific realities. Here are some fancy adjectives that you should consider reintroducing into your daily vocabulary.

Credit: Håkon Helberg

Meaning: related to ducks.

From the Latin anas, ‘duck’, this adjective can be used for anything pertaining to that particular animal. It might seem an unnecessary adjective, but it is nonetheless useful because you never know when you will have to discuss something duck-related.

Credit: Melissa Chabot

Meaning: pleasant to look at.

We can describe things and people as lovely, beautiful, charming, and more. But sometimes, these things and people are just simply pleasant to the eye. For times like that, we have the adjective ‘comely’.

Credit: Jakub Kriz

Meaning: lacking life or spirit, languid.

Some might think that the word languid is fancy enough for expressing a lack of energy, but don’t you think that ‘lackadaisical’ is a good conversation starter? It comes from the phrase ‘alack the day’, where ‘alack’ was used to express sorrow or regret.

Credit: Sunguk Kim

Meaning: showy, falsely attractive, pretentious.

The origins of this word are not exactly pleasant. From the Latin meretrix, a word used for women of questionable morals, its meaning shifted to refer to things that appear attractive but lack integrity or value.

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Meaning: dull, without significance or interest.

This adjective comes from a Latin word, jejunus, that meant ‘empty of food, hungry, meager’. Once adopted into English, it began being used for things that lack substance. Additionally, ‘jejune’ also means ‘juvenile’, a meaning created by its confusion with the French jeune (‘young’).

Credit: Glen Carrie

Meaning: fluent but insincere and shallow.

From glibberig, an Old German word meaning ‘slippery’, the term ‘glib’ was initially incorporated into English to describe things that were physically smooth or slippery. Over time, it came to describe someone who speaks easily and fluently, but does not convey sincerity.

Credit: Cherry Laithang

Meaning: threatening, of pernicious influence.

Of Old English origin, ‘baleful’ comes from the word bealu, ‘evil’. Sometimes confused with ‘baneful’ (from Old English bana, ‘slayer’ or ‘murderer’), these two words have close meanings. However, while ‘baneful’ is used for things that cause evil, ‘baleful’ usually refers to a threat or sign of evilness.

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Meaning: skilled, clever, resourceful.

Originally a French word meaning both ‘handsome’ and ‘skilled in combat’, it is no longer used solely for physical skills, but also to denote intellectual capacities.

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Meaning: intemperate or excessive in eating and drinking.

Totally unrelated to a certain swear word quite common in English, the term ‘crapulous’ comes from the Latin crapula, meaning ‘intoxication’, derived in turn from the Greek term for a hangover headache.

Credit: Grace Kelly

Meaning: whiny, with a tendency to complain.

Related through its origins to ‘quarrel,’ the adjective ‘querulous’ comes from the Latin queri, ‘to complain’. But beware: this word applies only to whiny people who complain for fun, not to justified or occasional complaints.