Broccoli is a member of the Brassicaceae family. Other members of this family are mustard, kale, cauliflower and so on. It is an edible plant with high nutrition values. In this post, we will discuss the characterization of broccoli as a fruit, flower or vegetable. These are the century-old questions that always make us confused.
Broccoli belongs to the cruciferous family of vegetables. The term cruciferous is given to vegetables that resemble the structure of a cross. The name cruciferous is merely due to the appearance of the plant as a symbolic cross nothing else. Just like broccoli, cauliflower and other members of the Brassicaceae family are also termed as cruciferous. Most of them are edible as well.
Broccoli is a green edible vegetable plant. Event the florets i.e. the crown of the broccoli is also green. The confusion about fruit, flower, and vegetable is caused mostly due to this color specialization. So what do you think about it? let us start the discussion.
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Is Broccoli a Fruit?
No Broccoli is not a fruit. The part of the broccoli plant that we eat is usually its stem and flowers. Though Broccoli does have fruits but of no culinary use. The fruits of broccoli are important only to obtain seeds.
The green color is significant for broccoli. Almost the entire plant is green, from leaves to stems and even the flowers of broccoli are entirely green.
According to the definition, the fruit is a part of a plant that bears the seeds. The existence of fruit is dependent on the availability of seeds. Only the seed-bearing part of the plant can be considered as fruits. So Broccoli is not a fruit.
The part of broccoli that we eat doesn’t contain any traces of seeds. Therefore, it is proved that Broccoli can not be considered as fruits.
Is Broccoli a Flower or a Vegetable?
A Broccoli is both flower and vegetable.
Broccoli is an edible plant, so it is easy to say it is a vegetable. Vegetables are the edible parts of plant origin. In fact, In the culinary world, everything we cook using plant products is a vegetable. So we can say that Broccoli is a vegetable.
On the other hand, the edible part of broccoli is mostly stem and flower. Also, it does not contain any seed so we can not consider it a fruit.
Though on maturity broccoli plants do produce some seeds but they are of no culinary use. We don’t use these seeds for any cooking purposes. The only use of these seeds is for plantation of new broccoli.
In broccoli, the stem and its crown flower is the only part with significant use in cooking. The flower head of broccoli is the most used edible part of this plant. So it is good to say that broccoli is a flower Vegetable.
Also read: Is lavender a herb, shrub or a flower?
Is broccoli a flower or fruit?
Broccoli is a Flower.
In biology, Vegetable is not a valid characterization for any plant product. Only the fruit and flowers are of significant use in the terminology of science. So discarding the concept of vegetables, let us see the true characterization of broccoli.
As we have discussed that the edible part of broccoli does not contain any seed so we can not consider it as a true fruit. Whereas what we eat is more likely related to a flower than a fruit. The crown head of a broccoli plant is a flower. Therefore, We can consider broccoli as a flower rather than a fruit.
Broccoli plant as a whole is neither a fruit nor a flower. It is a green edible plant of the mustard family.
The concept of flower or fruit is mostly related to the parts of plants according to their appearance and use. The part that bears the seed is considered fruit whereas flower is the part that eventually develops into a fruit.
Therefore we can distinguish that the entire edible part of the broccoli is either a stem or a flower but never fruit.
Why is Broccoli not considered Fruit?
It is a well-known fact that broccoli is not a fruit. If it is true then why is broccoli not considered a fruit? The valid justification for this statement is that broccoli does not contain any seed. There are many ways to prove this factual statement.
- First and the simplest way to prove that broccoli is not a fruit is- It is not sweet. Yes, it may seem ridiculous to most but it is true, we think of fruit as something most likely to have a sweet taste. In general, concept, if it is not sweet it is not a fruit. It may seem idiotic but it is true.
- Second, Generally, we don’t eat it raw. Fruits are considered to be eaten raw like with salads. Whereas broccoli is generally cooked and prepared accordingly to be consumed. It is another belief, just an assumption that what needs to be cooked is not a fruit, though technically it can be a fruit.
- Third, Broccoli does not contain any seed. It is the best way to consider whether it is a fruit or not. According to its biological definition, The part of the plant that contains the seed is termed as fruit. Sometimes it is fleshy, sometimes it is not, but it is always considered as a fruit. If we observe broccoli even by cutting it into pieces then we will see that no seeds exist anywhere in it. It does not have any relation to fruit or seeds. So the absence of seeds makes it clear that Broccoli is not a Fruit.
Final Words
Broccoli is not a Fruit. It is a Flower vegetable. Now it is up to you, what you think is important, not what it is now. If you like it then the only important thing is the nutritional value of the broccoli.
The consideration for its appearance and classification is always the least important part of eating. SO- feeling hungry, get up take a break and start eating. Write your comments and views about is broccoli fruit or not?
Next time we will see another fact directly from your plate and your kitchen garden. Till then enjoy reading and keep gardening.
Live the Green!
