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Healthy Veggies That You Are Avoiding

By Pooja Kaushal

Vegetables are and should always be an integral part of our everyday meal. In the past, there were days when seasonal vegetables meant something and a number of them would only be available at a particular time of the year.

The charm of each vegetable came for sometime and when the season got over there would be a wait for it to return.

This helped maintain the importance of each vegetable. Sadly, today, the “seasonal” word holds no good, as all the vegetables are available all year round.

With lifestyle changing, and year-round availability of all vegetables, the choice is always to go in for the ones that are easiest to prepare.

This means a vegetable that takes less time to cut, wash and cook. In making such choices, do you even realise that there are a number of healthy veggies you are avoiding?

Living in joint families had the additional advantage of never missing out on important vegetables. The old generation was so used to and fond of certain vegetables that it was necessary to prepare them.

Going nuclear has hit the veggie eating habit as well. Plus, the invasion of foreign vegetables has also overshadowed our native ones. There are also a number of healthy veggies that you may think are bad, but they happen to be the contrary.

It is not surprising that the young generation is not familiar with many vegetables. So, have a look at some of the ignored vegetables in today's world:

Turnip:

Turnip:

When I mentioned turnip to a friend of mine she was confused and flustered. She thought she had heard the name but forgot what it looked like. On describing the veggie, she recalled her mother cooking it.

This is the extent to which our vegetables have lost their ground. This white-coloured root is high in fibre content and is very beneficial for those suffering from diabetes.

Pumpkin:

Pumpkin:

Peter Peter Pumpkin eater, had a wife and couldn't keep her. He put her in a pumpkin shell and there he kept her well. Nowadays, children will not be able to recognise a pumpkin in its cut form. Thanks to Halloween, they know what this vitamin A-rich vegetable looks like when uncut.

Flat Beans:

Flat Beans:

French beans are consumed by many but its other cousin, the flat beans, is losing popularity. Not many people buy it, and hence many families do not know the presence of these vitamin and mineral rich vegetable.

Cauliflower Leaves:

Cauliflower Leaves:

Cauliflower is pretty popular, but what about its leaves? This is one of the very healthy veggies you think is bad and hence discard it. In fact, the vegetable vendors themselves discard the leaves.

Had I not seen my mother preparing pickle of cauliflower leaves, I too would have been throwing away these leaves. Just like any leafy green, these veggies too are rich in calcium and iron, and deserve every bit to make it to our dinner tables.

Bottle Gourd:

Bottle Gourd:

A humble vegetable that does not have great looks, but is rather healthy for the digestive system. It has a very light property, which makes it easy to digest. There are multiple ways of preparing the bottle gourd; however, since children are not favourable towards it, the bottle gourd hardly finds its way into many homes.

Bitter Gourd:

Bitter Gourd:

The bitter gourd, or karela, as we call it, is a bitter-tasting vegetable that has multiple properties. It's bitter quality makes it very beneficial for people with diabetes. The very same quality of bitterness is considered to be an effective way of keeping our taste buds active.

These are just a handful of vegetables that are losing ground in the flood of international cuisines. In the process of trying out new dishes, there are healthy veggies that you are avoiding and in turn are depriving the body of many nutrients. Glance across the vegetable stands and give everything a try. It would be worth an effort.

Story first published: Thursday, December 17, 2015, 15:00 [IST]
Read more about: nutrition