moisture from their cells as they cook, starchy
vegetables tend to have a dry, mealy texture,
while nonstarchy vegetables remain moist and
cohesive.
Food Words: Root, Radish, Tuber,
Truffle
Our word root comes from an Indo-
European word that meant both “root” and
“branch.” Radish and licorice share that
same ancestor. Tuber comes from an Indo-
European (linguistic) root meaning “to
swell,” as many plant storage organs do.
The same root gave us truffle, the swollen
underground fungus, as well as thigh,
thumb, tumor, and thousand.Potatoes
There are more than 200 species of potato,
relatives of the tomato, chilli, and tobacco
that are indigenous to moist, cool regions of