Avocado: Fruit or Vegetable

Avocado, scientific name Persea americana, belongs to the family Lauraceae of the order Laurales. It shares the same family with camphor and cinnamon. Known by different names in different regions, avocados are highly valuable plants all over the world. Among the several cultivars, the Hass avocado is the most sought after variety. Though, it is easy to grow an avocado tree from seeds, it takes about six years to bear fruit. Considering this, commercial plantation of avocados is done using grafted plantlets.

Avocados are enriched with various types of macronutrients and micronutrients such as vitamins, minerals, fats, dietary fiber, carotenoids, calcium, magnesium and potassium. Considering the fact that avocados are free of sodium and cholesterol, the nutritional value of avocado has been studied from the health perspective. So we actually know a lot about these wonderful avocados. The most confusing question for many of us is whether avocado is a fruit or a vegetable. Let's take a look at the various concepts that have been put up regarding avocados.

Avocado, Fruit or Vegetable: Botanical Aspect
In botany, fruit is the reproductive organ and/or seed bearing part of the plant. Hence, botanically speaking, there is no doubt that the avocado is a fruit and not a vegetable. It belongs to the berry type of fruits. Nevertheless, there are several true fruits that are used as vegetables in our day-to-day lives such as peas, tomatoes, chillies, peppers, cereal grains, etc. In fact, as far as the botanical definition of fruit is concerned, there are no true vegetables as such.

Avocado, Fruit or Vegetable: Culinary Aspect
Avocados are often used as vegetables in the kitchen. They are widely included as a vegetable ingredient in salads and other savory meals. Avocados are also used as vegetables in a variety of cuisines and traditional food recipes. Occasionally, an avocado is used as fruit in dessert recipes and ice creams. Hence, in terms of culinary aspect, the avocado can be considered both as a fruit and as a vegetable.

Avocado, Fruit or Vegetable: Common Aspect
For a layman, fruits are borne in trees, while most vegetables are grown as herbs and at times, as shrubs. Since avocados are harvested from trees, they are included in the fruit category. Another common aspect that categorized avocado as a fruit, is that the majority of the species belonging to the Lauraceae family are fruit trees. In addition, avocados continue to ripen after being plucked from the tree, which is a characteristic feature of most fruits. If you search for avocados, you will find them in the fruit market with other varieties of fruits. Hence, in this case also, avocados belong to fruits and not to vegetables.

Well, this was a brief regarding the query 'is avocado a fruit or vegetable'. The answer for the same query depends entirely on your perspective. Many people are of the opinion that avocados are actually fruits, but taste like vegetables. To be precise, avocados are considered both as fruits and vegetables in our day-to-day usage. On a simpler note, it does not matter if the avocado belongs to any group, either fruits or vegetables, as long as it is incorporated in the diet plan.