CHAPTER VII
VEGETABLES AND VEGETABLE COOKERY
The distinction between the fruit and the vegetable is purely arbitrary, since both are parts of plants and have the same general composition. Botanically the tomato is as truly a fruit as the apple; but when it is stewed and served with meat, it is classed as a vegetable. Other parts of plants, however, besides the fruit are used as vegetables.
Composition and nutritive value.—Vegetables are much like fruits in composition, being richest usually in carbohydrates and ash, but sometimes containing a large amount of protein. Some have carbohydrates in the form of starch, as the potato, and others in the form of sugar, as the beet; young corn is rich in sugar, old corn in starch. All have more or less cellulose, that in lettuce being very tender, while that in beets is so firm as to be softened only by long cooking. Study carefully Figs. 34 and 35. Notice how the amount of water compares with the amount in fruits. See, too, that beans, both green and dry, are richer in protein than other vegetables. Celery has the highest percentage of water, and is valuable for its ash and the bulk it gives because of the large amount of cellulose.
Fig. 34.—Composition of vegetables.
Fig. 35.—Composition of vegetables.
To explain these facts we must understand something of the physiology of the plant. The stem is the carrier of water and nutritive material to other parts of the plant. The onion bulb, the parsnip root, and the potato tuber are the winter storehouses of food for the next year’s plant when the
leaves first sprout. In the dry bean seed, and also in the pea and lentil, the young plant lies dormant, with a large supply of all the foodstuffs ready for its first growth when warmth and moisture are supplied in the spring. Classified according to their nutritive value, the vegetables rank as follows. Leaves are grouped with stems.
| The seeds | Contain all the foodstuffs. High in protein. |
| Roots and tubers and the bulb | Contain all the foodstuffs. Low in protein and fat. High in starch or some form of sugar. |
| Rinds (squash and pumpkin) | Contain all the foodstuffs in small amounts. Mineral content the chief value. |
| Leaves and stems | Mineral content the chief value. |
Certain substances in some vegetables are supposed to have a physiological effect, but we should be cautious in accepting statements that have not been scientifically proved; for instance, that celery is “good for the nerves.” It is doubtless true that the oils which give onions and the cabbage their strong flavors do not agree with some people, and these vegetables should be eaten with caution.
How to buy.—Much interest is added to the study of vegetables by the examination of a seed catalogue easily obtainable from a firm selling seeds and plants. In this way, one may increase one’s knowledge of varieties for planting in the home garden, even if they are not common on the market. City markets offer an increasing variety of vegetables, and the purchaser should not hesitate to buy a vegetable because it is new to her. An inexpensive Italian vegetable, fenucchi, is now sometimes found on sale, and its characteristic flavor is very agreeable.
Fig. 36.—100-Calorie portions of vegetables. A. Fowler, Photographer.
| KIND | WEIGHT OF PORTION, OUNCES |
| Asparagus | 16 |
| Beets | 10 |
| Cabbage | 13 |
| Carrots | 10 |
| Corn | 9 |
| Cucumbers | 20 |
| Lettuce | 22 |
| Onions | 8 |
| Potatoes | 5 |
| Spinach | 15 |
| Tomatoes | 15 |
The season of vegetables is so extended by canning, by the shipping of vegetables from the South, and by growing under glass that there is always a wide range of choice. There are in winter, however, some tempting delicacies in the way of green vegetables that the buyer with a limited purse should pass by. A cucumber at fifty cents or even at ten cents is not a sensible purchase. Lettuce, grown under glass, at ten cents a head is not an extravagance, if the income allows thirty-five to forty cents per capita per day for food. As a rule, select the less expensive vegetable, provided it is in good condition. The prices are so fluctuating that a definite statement is impossible. (See Chapter XVII.)
Root vegetables should be uniform in size, sound, the skins fair.
Head vegetables should be solid, with but few waste leaves on the outside.
Vegetables with hard rind should be sound and firm.
Asparagus should be even in size, the stalks not bitten by insects.
Cauliflower should be firm and white, not affected by insects or blight.
Celery should be firm and white, free from blemishes, fine in texture.
Peas should have crisp pods well filled, but not too full.
String beans should be crisp and snap easily.
All leaf vegetables should be crisp—not wilted.