28. SUCCULENT VEGETABLES are those which are generally eaten for their appetizing effect and their value as a source of mineral salts and bulk. These vegetables, which get their name from the fact that they are juicy in texture, include the greens, such as spinach, Swiss chard, dandelion, lettuce, etc., also celery, asparagus, cabbage, and all other plants whose green leaves and stems are edible. Succulent vegetables may be cooked, but they are often used as cold relishes or in the making of salads.
29. ROOT, TUBER, and BULB VEGETABLES form another class. Examples of several well-known roots are shown in Fig. 1, which from left to right are salsify, carrots, turnips, and parsnips. The varieties included in this class are closely related as to food value, and on the whole average much higher in this characteristic than do the succulent vegetables. Irish potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes are examples of tubers; sweet potatoes, beets, radishes, etc., in addition to the vegetables shown in Fig. 1, belong to the roots; and onions and all the vegetables related to the onion, such as garlic, shallots, and leeks, are illustrations of bulbs or enlarged underground stems.
30. FRUIT and FLOWER VEGETABLES form a third class. They present great variety in appearance, structure, and composition. To this class belong cucumbers, eggplant, winter and summer squash, vegetable marrow, tomatoes, peppers, and okra, which are in reality fruits but are used as vegetables. Flower vegetables include California, or French, artichokes, and cauliflower, all of which are in reality the buds of flowers or plants and are eaten for food.
31. LEGUMES form a fourth class of vegetables, and they include all the varieties of beans, peas, and lentils. When these foods are mature and dried, they have the highest food value of all the vegetables. Among the beans are Lima beans, kidney beans, navy, or soup, beans, soy beans, and many others. The peas include the various garden varieties that have been allowed to mature, cow-peas, and many others, some of which are not suitable for human consumption. The lentils occur in numerous varieties, too, but those commonly used are the red, yellow, and black ones. To legumes also belong peanuts, but as they are seldom used as vegetables in cookery, no further mention is made of them in this Section.
VARIETIES OF VEGETABLES AND THEIR PREPARATION
GENERAL METHODS OF PREPARATION AND COOKING
32. PREPARING VEGETABLES FOR COOKING.--Before many vegetables can be cooked, they require a certain amount of preparation, such as washing, soaking, peeling, cutting up into suitable sizes, etc. When they must be peeled, great care should be taken not to remove too much of the vegetable with the skin. Whenever it is possible to do so, vegetables should be cooked in their skins, as there is much less waste of edible material if the skins are removed after cooking. Potatoes that are to be fried, hashed brown, or used for salad and other similar dishes may be boiled in their skins and peeled afterwards just as conveniently as to be peeled first and then boiled. Indeed, this plan is strongly recommended, for it not only saves material that is removed in the peeling but also conserves the mineral salts and the soluble food material, much of which is lost in the water during the cooking.
33. If it is desired to remove the peeling before cooking, it will be found more economical to put the vegetables in water and then scrape off the skins than to cut them off with a knife. This method is especially satisfactory with new potatoes and with such vegetables as carrots, parsnips, salsify, and turnips. The scraping can be accomplished more easily if the vegetables are first plunged into boiling water for a few minutes and then dipped into cold water.