Exotic vegetables: names
Most of Europeans use a standard set of vegetables for cooking: carrots, beets, cucumbers, tomatoes, potatoes, and so on. Not many people know that there are exotic vegetables that are not exported to our country, but surpass the usual crops in their taste.
Looking at the photos of exotic vegetables, it is not immediately possible to understand what they are and whether they can be eaten at all.
Some exotic vegetables give dishes a special taste and an unusual aroma for us.
- Akebia quinata – “climbing cucumber”, more like lilac sausages, tastes like raspberries. It grows in South America.
- Watermelon radish is a fairly large root vegetable, a close relative of ordinary cabbage with a bitter taste. Above, the vegetable is white, like a baseball, inside is bright red. The sliced radish resembles watermelon slices.
- Blue corn has an unusual dark blue color, grown in India, very sweet, with a nutty flavor.
- Romanescu (coral cabbage) resembles coral in appearance, a real natural wonder with an unusual, delicate taste similar to cauliflower.
- The canister has an oval shape, similar to yellow or orange hearts, and tastes like sweet potatoes.
- Goat beard is very popular in the United States for its oyster-like tangy taste. Mashed potatoes are made from the vegetable, and also used as an additive to various dishes.
There are many exotic vegetables, but unfortunately, you can only taste and enjoy their unusual taste in distant countries.
Exotic vegetables in the garden
It is impossible to grow some of these vegetables in our regions, but some gardeners use foreign cultures as decoration for garden plots, which have perfectly taken root in our climatic conditions.
- Red cucumber. It belongs to the pumpkin family, has an unusual taste and shape of a bright red cucumber.
- Chard is very similar to beetroot, tastes like spinach, and is also rich in vitamins.
- Chayote resembles sweet peppers in shape, and the inflorescences perfectly complement the flower beds. The vegetable tastes like horseradish.
Not so long ago, such interesting hybrids as lilac potatoes, black tomatoes, lilac carrots were bred, they have already gained popularity.
The cuisine of many countries is unusual, but it is very tasty, nutritious and healthy. It is quite possible that in the future these unusual vegetables with exotic names will appear on our table and take their rightful place among the beloved overseas cultures.