What are fruits and vegetables?

Fruits and vegetables are both plant-based foods, but they have some key differences:

Fruits:

* Develop from the flower of a plant: Fruits are essentially the mature ovary of a flowering plant, containing seeds.

* Usually sweet: They contain sugars (fructose) which give them a sweet taste.

* Examples: Apples, oranges, bananas, berries, melons, avocados

Vegetables:

* Come from other parts of the plant: They can be roots (carrots), stems (celery), leaves (spinach), bulbs (onions), or flowers (broccoli).

* Can be sweet, savory, or bitter: They can have a wide range of flavors, not just sweet.

* Examples: Carrots, broccoli, spinach, potatoes, onions, mushrooms, peppers

Here's a helpful table:

| Feature | Fruits | Vegetables |

|---|---|---|

| Origin | Mature ovary of a flower | Other parts of the plant |

| Taste | Typically sweet | Wide range of flavors |

| Examples | Apples, oranges, bananas, berries, melons | Carrots, broccoli, spinach, potatoes, onions, mushrooms |

It's important to note that there are some exceptions and overlaps:

* Tomatoes and cucumbers are technically fruits, but they're usually consumed as vegetables.

* Avocados are technically fruits, but they have a savory flavor and are often used in savory dishes.

* Rhubarb is often treated as a fruit, but it's actually a vegetable.

Ultimately, how we classify something as a fruit or a vegetable depends on how we use it in our cooking and eating habits.