Vegetables

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The term vegetable refers to all parts of plants,which can be eaten raw, coocked or preserved in some form. As a food vegetables play an important role in human diet. They provide vitamins and mineral as well as flavour not available in meats, cereals, diary products and fruits.There are two goals for a chef/cook should work towards using vegetables to produce well balanced nutritional flavourful meals.

  1. Be familiar with the various types of vegetables available and work to develop and understanding of their nutritional, textural,colour and flavour value in cooking.
  2. Learn  the methods of preparation which will project the nutritional ,textural, colour and flavour value of vegetables when cooked.
There is far more to using vegetables as a food than just cleaning and cooking them.One must strive to make the best use of them as a part of the overall meal and diet. The two goals listed above seem very simple -” but are  not “.
 
Based on the culinary use the vegetables are divided into the following categories :
Cabbage Family : This family is a group of crisp, pungent vegetables, which come from different part of the plant species known by Latin name Brassica Aleracea. The variety of this plant include Green Cabbage, Red Cabbage, Savoy Cabbage, Chinese Cabbage, Brussel Sprouts, Cauliflower, Broccoli and Kohhlrabi
Stalk Vegetables : These are plant stem that are high in cellulose fibres.These fibres are the strings tha hold the stalks erect under the weight of the leaves and buds. As the plant ages, the fibre toughen. For use in eating stalk vegetables should be young. Tough fibre will not soften with cooking and should be trimmed away before being used. Stalk vegetables include Asparagus, Celery, Swiss chard and Bok choy.
Leafy Vegetables : These are plants grown specifically for their edible leaves. These vegetables include Spinach, Kale, Collards, Mustard Greens, Turnip, Radish Greens and Sorrel.
Salad Greens :  This  grouping is what are termed the ” Lettuces ” .They are members of the daisy family , salad greens include Endive and Lettuce of all types.
Lettuce , one of the earliest known vegetables,was served at the table of Persian Kings twenty five centuries ago. It is belived to be a native plant of the Mediterranean and Near East. Lettuce is grown all around the world today. The varieties more commonly used are :
  1. Belgian Endive, Red and White.
  2. Butter Head ( Bibb,Boston)
  3. Frisee ( Curly Endive or Chicory)
  4. Lollo Rosso
  5. Mache ( Corn Salad or Lamb’s Lettuce )
  6. Oak Leaf ( Green and Red Baby )
  7. Radiccho Rosso ( Red Chicory )
  8. Romaine / Cos
  9. Iceberg
  10. Little Gem
Seeds Edible Pods and Young Shoots:  This is a broad category of vegetables. It includes Peas, Snow Peas, Beans of all type ( Soyabean, Haricot Fava bean, String beans, Lima, Dragon tongue ,Wax ), Bean sprouts, Corn (there are over 200 varieties) and others.
Vegetable Fruits: Botanically, vegetable fruits are considered fruits; however, they are used in the kitchen as vegetables. Tomatoes, Eggplant, Okra, Peppers, carious types of squash (summer, winter, pumpkin, spaghetti) are prime examples of this group.
Bulbs: These are stems holding a food reserve in the fleshy, overlapping leaves,  which give examples of this group are Onion, Scallion, Shallots, Leeks, Chives and Garlic.
Edible Fungi Mushrooms: Theses are not actually a vegetable. These are an edible fungus. Mushrooms have been cultivated as a food in Europe since the 17th century. There are  over 38,000 kinds of mushrooms. Three quarter of these are edible. The ones more commonly used are:
  1. Chanterelle
  2. Black fungus
  3. Horn of Plenty/ Trompete des Morts
  4. Enokitake
  5. Truffles (Perigordine and piedmontese)
  6. Matsutake
  7. Morel
  8. Oyster
  9. Porcini/ Cep
  10. Portobello
  11. Shitake
  12. Woodear
Speciality Vegetables: There are vegetables, which do not fit in any other category like artichoke and rhubarb.
Guidelines for proper doneness of vegetables
  1. Do not overcook vegetables
  2. Cook vegetables as close to service as possible. Remember that they continue to cook when held in a hot table.
  3. If you do have to cook ahead, undercook the vegetables slightly. This will allow for some holding time or reheating.
  4. When pre-cooking for re-heating, shock the vegetables in ice water to stop the cooking process. 
  5. Always cut uniform-size pieces to ensure even cooking throughout a batch of vegetables.
  6. Vegetables with tough and tender parts need special attention
  • Peel The Stems of Asparagus.
  • Peel and split the stems of broccoli.
  • Scrore the base or stem end of brussel sprouts
  • Take special care to protect the buds of broccoli and asparagus from extended heat.
     7.  Do not mix batches of cooked vegetables. Each batch is cooked to a slightly different doneness and, if mixed, a variation of color and texture can occur.
     8.  Remember, your goal is to  enhance the fresh crisp, flavour of the vegetabe, Not diminish it.
It is not unusual for vegetables to be rejected by the guest solely on the basis of thier color when presented. Preserving as much of the natural colour as possible is important. A high level of visual quality is a must. 
The color of a vegetable is determined by the pigment it contains. Pigment is the coloring matter within the cells and tissue of the plant. The various types of pigmetns are eeffected differently by heat, acid, alkali and other elements involved in cooking . To maintain as much color as possible in your cooked vegetables, you need to know what these pigments are and how they are affected.
Flavones is the pigment in white vegetables, it is present in potato, onion, cauliflower, white cabbage, cucumber, zucchini and the white of celery. This pigment stays white in an acid medium and turns yellow in an alkaline medim. Overcooking will also turn vegetables containing this pigment yelllow or gray. The reaction is not reversible. Adding acid to yellowed white vegetables will not return them to their original white color.
To retain the white color of the flavones pigment
  1. Cook them uncovered. This allows the acids released by the vegetable during cooking to escape.
  2. Use short cooking times.
  3. Add a small amount of lemon juice, cream of tartar or vinegar to the cooking liquid to create a slightly acid medium.
Anthocyanin pigment gives some red vegetables their colour. It is present in very few vegetables, primarily red cabbage, purple peppers, purple tomatillos, purple potatoes, radishes and  eggplant skins. Anthocyanin is the pigment present in most berries and flowers. It is strongly affected by acid and alkali mediums. An alkali medium will turn them blue or blue-green in colour. An acid medium will give them a brighter red colour. This red pigment is easily dissolved in water. Excessive amounts of water when cooking will leach the color out of the vegetable.
To retain the red color given by the anthocyanin pigment:
  1. Cook red cabbage with a small amount of acid, lemon juice, cream of tartar or vinegar or aparkle with a food acid at the end of the cooking process. An example of this type of preparation is braised red cabbage with the addition of a tart cooking acid.
  2. Use only as much water as necessary.
Chlorophyll Pigment provides gren vegetables with their colour. Present in all green plants, its enemies are heat and acid.
To retain as much of the natural green colour as possible
  1. Cook them uncovered to allow the vegetables ‘ volatile acids to escape . When the vegetables are coocked with a cover , the plants’ nature acid is leeched into the cooking liquid and is trapped there creating an acid in cooking medium. This combined with the heat present destroys the pigment.
  2. Cook them quickly, untiluntil just al dente. Extended exposure to heat will destroy this colour and leach out nutrients.
  3. Cook the vegetables in small batches. This reduces the cooking and holding time
  4. Do not hold for long periods of time. If it is necessary to pre-cook, shock and then reheat them as needed
  5. Steam green vegetables whenever possible. This shortens the cooking time, allow far less acid build-up, and retain more colours
Carotene Pigments give colour to yellow and orange vegetables.  These include Carrots, Corn, Winter squash, Rutabagas, Sweetpotatoes, Tomato and Red peppers.This is the most stable of colour pigments. It is only slightly affected by acids or alkalis ; however , long cooking can dull the colour. As with most vegetables short cooking times help retain flavour and vitamins. This pigment is fat-solubleand will leach out into the fat used to cook the item. This is where the red grease comes from that float to to the surface of stews and meat soups,which contain tomato or carrot
The preparation of vegetables is a cornerstone of cooking. It requires a concern of the nutritional value, texture, flavour and colour of the item. To achieve a balance of these four factors requires knowledge of the affect of heat, acid and other physical actions on the vegetable. When the factors and what affects them are understood, the  results can and hen should be excellent.