15 groups of plant foods
November 8th, 2009 by Dorota Zuzanna
Many people who consume a plant-based diet often classify food into these categories: 1) nuts 2) seeds 3) fruits 4) vegetables 5) grains 6) legumes
However, this is a rather narrow view of what the plant-based diet has to offer. Personally, I like to divide plant food into the following 15 categories.
1. Sweet Fruits. Fruits contain the seeds of the fruit-bearing plant and serve to nourish and protect the seed.
Includes: orange, apple, kiwi, berries (blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, cranberries), raspberries, mangoes, pear, watermelon, papaya, grapefruit, peach, banana
2. Non-sweet Fruit
Includes: peppers, cucumber, tomato, avocado, zucchini, green pepper, squashes, pumpkin, eggplant
3. Seeds. Reproductive parts of plants.
Includes: Coconut (it really is a seed!), pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seed
4. Stems and leaves. Green leaves contain chlorophyll and are the best source of minerals.
Includes: spinach, artichokes, kale, lettuce, cabbage, chard, collard greens, celery, asparagus, mustard greens, Brussels sprouts,
turnip greens, beet greens, bok choi, arugula, endive, rhubarb.
5. Nuts. The seeds of trees.
Includes: cashews, macadamia, almonds, pine nuts, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, pistachios, walnuts, peanuts (technically a legume, but usually grouped with nuts).
6. Legumes. Peas and beans. Often sprouted before consumption. Usually low in fat and high in fibre.
Includes: chickpeas, snow peas, black beans, black-eyed peas, broad beans (bava beans), chickpeas (garbanzo ceans), kidney beans, lentils, lima beans, mung beans, pinto beans, split peas, white beans
7. Green sprouts. The leaves which grow out of sprouted legumes or seeds.
My favourites: sunflower sprouts
8. Roots. The part of a plant which grows in the ground.
Includes: potatoes (not to be eaten raw), beets, carrots, turnips, onions, garlic, ginger, leeks
9. Water vegetables. Sea vegetables contain a bounty of minerals from the ocean.
Includes: Include nori, dulse, spirulina and algeas.
10. Mushrooms. The fleshy, fruiting body of a fungus.
Includes: field mushrooms, Portobello, shiitake and porcini.
11. Grains. Grains are seeds. Wheat is excluded as it contains gluten which is a common allergen. Grains can be soaked, sprouted, germinated or cooked before consumption.
Wheat-free grains include: quinoa, brown rice, wild rice, buckwheat (contains no wheat – is gluten-free), amaranth and millet.
12. Herbs. Most herbs are leaves. Contain special qualities such as medicinal properties or distinct flavors.
Includes: basil, cilantro, parsley, thyme, dill
13. Spices.
This really is any substance derived from a plant and used to enhance the flavour of food and to create new taste combinations.This includes any leaf, seed, root, tree bark (such as cinnamon) which, when a small proportion of it is added, can transform the taste of the entire meal. The right use of spices is especially useful when starting out on a plant-based diet, if you are coming from a life style where not a lot of vegetables were eaten, because your taste buds are not yet “awake” to the naturally occurring flavours of many plants
Includes: cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin (the most widely use spice on earth).
The most common edible flowers are artichokes and broccoli (these are actually flower buds). However,
nearly 100 different varieties of flowers can be eaten. The pollen contained in many flowers is rich in vitamins and minerals.
For example, dandelion blossoms are high in vitamin A and C. Flowers often taste exactly how they smell. They are a very
decorative addition to a salad.
Includes: artichokes, broccoli, roses, violets, hibiscus, daylilies, nasturtiums and dianthus, pansies, dandelions, bachelor buttons
15. Superfoods. Foods which contain special and powerful properties. May include foods form any of the above groups, but because they are so different and significant, I like to include them in a group all on their own.
As you can see, the plant-based, high-raw diet offers a ridiculous abundance of food choices and a wide variety of flavours and textures.
If you were to eat a new type of fruit every day of your life, you still could
not try all of the different types available on earth. For example, there are close to 500 varieties of avocados!
There are so many foods you can eat on a plant-based diet that you may never have discovered. I myself continue to discover
new varieties of plant foods, which I may have otherwise never had the opportunity to experience.
Just in the past year, I have discovered cactus pear, yam and dandelion leaves and dragon fruit.
Go to a store or market today and try a plant you have never tried. It’s fun!
December 2nd, 2009 at 10:12 PM
Wow…very thorough and informative article Dorota. There was a time when my wife and I were almost vegetarians, prior to having kids (we ate fish occasionally). Your post makes me want to try that lifestyle again.
Thanks for the inspiration.
December 2nd, 2009 at 11:34 PM
You’re welcome Jeb
Feel free to try out some recipes, once I start posting some up.