TOMATOES: Fruit or Vegetable?

Botanically speaking, a tomato is a fruit. A fruit is defined as the ripened, fleshy ovary of any plant that produces seeds. A vegetable, on the other hand, is any edible part of a plant that's harvested for eating, whether it's the leaves, stems, roots or seed pods. It's a sort of "square/rectangle" relationship; a fruit could be a vegetable, but a vegetable isn't a fruit.

Tomatoes are a fruit. They're the ripened ovaries of the tomato plant. Compare this to, say, spinach which is a leaf, or peas, which aren't a fruit but are the seeds of the fruit, in this case, the pod.

People easily confuse the distinction between fruit and vegetable because the lines aren't so cleanly drawn in cooking. Take rhubarb: we only eat the stalk of the rhubarb plant, so it's a vegetable by definition. But because it's most often used to make sweet pies, many people will list it among fruit flavorings.

On the other hand, cucumbers, as others have mentioned, are fruits. They're fleshy seed carriers. But they're not very sweet and don't go well in pastries. They're mostly fried , eaten raw, or turned into pickles. So people regard them as veggies.

FUN TOMATO-THEMED TRIVIA: During Ronald Reagan's presidency, the nutritional value of school lunches came under scrutiny. Many expert dieticians felt students were being fed junk and that school lunches often failed to provide the four basic food groups.

Addressing growing concerns, Reagan spoke at a press conference, testifying his certainty that school lunches met every child's nutritional needs. The address was going fine until he informed the public that the daily fruits and vegetables recommendation was met by ketchup. Because tomatoes are fruits, Reagan felt that ketchup was nutritionally sound.

This outraged parents and educators for two reasons: ketchup is clearly not an adequate source of nutrition; Reagan insisted that ketchup was a vegetable. I'm not even joking. This is true, I was alive to hear it. The media mocked Reagan for several months and he was forced to accept that students needed better variety in their meals.

Originally Posted by Ozma

ADDITIONAL SPAM: Why do threads about tomatoes mushroom rapidly?

Mushrooms are a fungus, you moron.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Crash Landon

Mushrooms are a fungus, you moron.

You're the moron.

What I mean is that out of nowhere, topics about tomatoes appear like mushrooms growing in rainy season, doorknob.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Ozma

You're the moron.

What I mean is that out of nowhere, topics about tomatoes appear like mushrooms growing in rainy season, doorknob.

Do we seriously have to start appending humorous statements with THIS IS A JOKE, YOU HAVE PERMISSION TO MAKE LAUGHTER?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

When Ozma's involved, it often helps, yes.

How ya doing, buddy?

Why is there an opinion poll about a subject with a factual answer. It's not even a debatable subject, your country is a an idiot for classifying as something it's not, but it doesn't change anything. This thread baffles me.

Originally Posted by Crash Landon

People easily confuse the distinction between fruit and vegetable because the lines aren't so cleanly drawn in cooking. Take rhubarb: we only eat the stalk of the rhubarb plant, so it's a vegetable by definition. But because it's most often used to make sweet pies, many people will list it among fruit flavorings.

I don't think I have met anyone, anywhere that considers rhubarb a fruit.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by NovaX

Why is there an opinion poll about a subject with a factual answer. It's not even a debatable subject, your country is a an idiot for classifying as something it's not, but it doesn't change anything. This thread baffles me.I don't think I have met anyone, anywhere that considers rhubarb a fruit.

First off, and I've said it earlier, EVERY fruit is a vegetable. Had you read Crash's post a bit more closely (or the rest of the thread for that matter) you would have seen that. So no, their country isn't an 'idiot' for defining the tomato as a vegetable for certain purposes.

Are green beans a fruit or a vegetable??? What about squash??? You'll find that they fit the definition for both, but you'll rarely hear someone speak of green beans as fruits.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Rychord

First off, and I've said it earlier, EVERY fruit is a vegetable. Had you read Crash's post a bit more closely (or the rest of the thread for that matter) you would have seen that. So no, their country isn't an 'idiot' for defining the tomato as a vegetable for certain purposes.

I've read the thread and you've been flailing abount with a barely sensical argument. You seem to keep bringing in the term vegetable out of context in which it is normally used and which it is being used in the opening post of this thread. If the OP was written on the same wavelength as you are it would make even less sense.

To the matter of the court settlement, they're idiotic for classifying the tomato as a vegetable and NOT a fruit. That doesn't make sense.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by NovaX

I've read the thread and you've been flailing abount with a barely sensical argument. You seem to keep bringing in the term vegetable out of context in which it is normally used and which it is being used in the opening post of this thread. If the OP was written on the same wavelength as you are it would make even less sense.

To the matter of the court settlement, they're idiotic for classifying the tomato as a vegetable and NOT a fruit. That doesn't make sense.

I'll admit that as far as the court settlement goes, you've got a point, defining it as not being a fruit is a bit ludicrous.

However, your saying that my argument doesn't have a sense as to the definition of the term vegetable I don't agree with. Get a dictionnary. Look it up. Any comestible part of a plant can be called a vegetable. Alternatively, any plant or part of it can be considered a vegetable. Fruits fall into both of these categories. How does bringing this to light not make any sense?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I'm not talking about definition, I'm talking about context. Get a dictionary. Look it up.

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Oh come off it.

The poll is asking whether people perceive the tomato as a fruit or a vegetable. Though it doesn't explicitly state this, the implication is rather obvious to anyone who isn't hell-bent on going by verbatim. The overlying factuality of the matter is beside the point of the poll.

Though the tomato is indeed a fruit, it is commonly treated as a vegetable because it is savory, not sweet. It's a matter of perceptions. The rest of the argument is just belaboring fact and is nothing but pedantry.

Sprinkle some sugar on a tomato wedge sometime. You'll find that the tomato tastes much better. That's about the only thing that can be offered upon the discussion by now.

(Conversely, putting salt on cantaloupe is an equal improvement in flavor.)

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I'm still baffled at how you guys have never had a good sweet tomato in your entire lives.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Not only is the tomato a fruit, but it's a berry. So are cucumbers and squashes.

Strawberries are not true berries (the seeds are on the outside) and neither are raspberries (they're cluster fruits).

This is why context is important. No one cares what botanists think, that's why people still get poison ivy all the time.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Diss

I'm still baffled at how you guys have never had a good sweet tomato in your entire lives.

I actually have, Diss.

Thing is, I'm actually not fond of tomatoes at all. I don't mind the cherry tomatoes because those tend to be quite sweet. But the big, drippy, squishy ones aren't to my liking.

I find that I can only tolerate them when sprinkled with sugar.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Just drink ketchup then you tomato-hating faggotface.

FELIPE NO

I'm not a fan of ketchup either. Not even those fancy dijon ketchups.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Crash: Not even with a Kraft Dinner? I guess you wouldn't want to get it on your new Chesterfield.

...or ottoman.

Anyone who doesn't get the reference is a jerk

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by a lurker

This is why context is important. No one cares what botanists think, that's why people still get poison ivy all the time.

Can't agree more. That's what I've been dying to tell anyone around me, but hell, they just don't give shit to botany ^^

But seriously, to fight over a silly thing as a tomato

I'm impressed.

How ya doing, buddy?

I call tomatoes vegetables and pretty much everyone in Sweden does, but I guess it is true that it is a fruit. I won't stop calling it a vegetable though!

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Kraft dinner is another matter entirely, Mo0. Would you put dijon ketchup on your prewrapped sausages, though? OR prewrapped bacon, if it existed, which it doesn't, but can you blame them?

I suppose I should clarify my previous statements about fruits and vegetables. To me, a fruit is something you enjoy by itself. Sure, you can toss it into a fruit salad, or sometimes put it in a pie, but other than that, it doesn't really belong anywhere except in your mouth by itself. You can even coat it in caramel, but the best part is the fruit itself. This is why tomatoes are not a fruit, to me.

Vegetables (such as tomatoes) are often and regularly used as additions to something else. Carrots, celery, and broccoli, while I enjoy them by themselves on occasion, are USUALLY accompanied by some kind of dip - ranch, peanut butter, etc. While I may occasionally be in the mood for a raw carrot, the majority of people the majority of the time prefer it with something else, or in a salad, soup or stew. This is generally not so with fruits. I don't often find strawberries being dipped in ranch, only sometimes coated with chocolate - which, I might add, can also stand on its own. Ranch, however, is not something most people eat all by itself.

It's a vague line to most people, but to me, it's clear cut. Tomatoes and cucumbers are vegetables.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I eat cucumber by itself all the time.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Fruit in the English sense of the word, vegetable according to the German definition of "Gemüse" (=vegetable). Very confusing indeed.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

It's a fruitetable

I used to call it a vegetable but lately I've been calling it a fruit.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Ayos

Kraft dinner is another matter entirely, Mo0. Would you put dijon ketchup on your prewrapped sausages, though? OR prewrapped bacon, if it existed, which it doesn't, but can you blame them?

I suppose I should clarify my previous statements about fruits and vegetables. To me, a fruit is something you enjoy by itself. Sure, you can toss it into a fruit salad, or sometimes put it in a pie, but other than that, it doesn't really belong anywhere except in your mouth by itself. You can even coat it in caramel, but the best part is the fruit itself. This is why tomatoes are not a fruit, to me.

Vegetables (such as tomatoes) are often and regularly used as additions to something else. Carrots, celery, and broccoli, while I enjoy them by themselves on occasion, are USUALLY accompanied by some kind of dip - ranch, peanut butter, etc. While I may occasionally be in the mood for a raw carrot, the majority of people the majority of the time prefer it with something else, or in a salad, soup or stew. This is generally not so with fruits. I don't often find strawberries being dipped in ranch, only sometimes coated with chocolate - which, I might add, can also stand on its own. Ranch, however, is not something most people eat all by itself.

It's a vague line to most people, but to me, it's clear cut. Tomatoes and cucumbers are vegetables.

So is chocolate a fruit to you? Salad? Bagels?

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Chocolate doesn't come out of the ground the way it's presented to you in edible form, spritey. Nor does salad. Or bagels. They're also made up of several ingredients, but I guess that wasn't an obvious enough stipulation, I must state it outright, GOTTA GO EDIT BRB.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Right or wrong, I really can't think of a tomato as anything other than a vegetable...

There's nowhere I can't reach.