By the time food makes it to our plates, it’s unclear exactly where it came from or what it’s been through. Food processing and the distance it travels aren’t something most companies advertise.
That means plenty of us take our food for granted, never even thinking about where it comes from or the effort it takes to grow and harvest it.
Anyone who has had a voluminous veggie garden or has worked on a farm will find some of these photos familiar. But even then, we still think some will be surprising.
These 25 foods start out in ways we didn’t expect.
How many are a surprise to you?
1. Pineapples
We have to admit that this photo struck us as so funny and unlikely that we had to look it up to make sure it wasn’t Photoshopped.
But this is, indeed, how pineapples grow!
Most people envision pineapples growing on trees, but it turns out they grow straight up from the ground!
2. Chickpeas
The “peas” are the seeds that grow inside small pods that sprout from the plant.
3. Peanuts
During harvest, the plants are first dug up and then left in the field to dry for a few days before the peanuts are gathered.
4. Cinnamon
Those little rolled-up sticks are actually tree bark. (The spice is just the powdered form.)
Cinnamon is a labor-intensive crop. To harvest it, one has to scrape off the first layer of the tree before getting to the good stuff.
As it dries, it curls up naturally into those sticks.
5. Brussels sprouts
But the first time you get a look at one it’s a little startling.
This is not what we envisioned!
They’re both beautiful and strange.
6. Cashews
Simply getting them into nut form is a laborious process!
Cashews grow on trees, but not in the way you might think. The cashew nut is the bottom part of something called a cashew apple, the fruit the tree produces. And each fruit produces just one cashew!
The nut has to be pulled from the fruit, then dried and steamed before being removed from its shell.
7. Coffee beans
Native to tropical climates, these trees produce little red berries – and the coffee bean grows inside of those.
In other words, coffee beans are basically berry pits.
8. Pistachios
They’re incredibly water-intensive and difficult to grow.
Pistachios grow on huge 20- to 30-foot trees. And the real kicker is that they don’t even start bearing edible nuts for the first 15-20 years of their lives!
9. Vanilla
But you may not know that those pods grow on a specific vining orchid.
If you buy pods, you have to open them up and scrape out the seeds yourself. But many of us buy it as a liquid extract. In that case, it’s macerated and mixed with water and alcohol to make vanilla extract.
10. Saffron
But there’s a reason it’s so pricey.
Saffron is the styles and stigmas of tiny saffron crocus flowers – and each little strand is plucked out by hand!
11. Almonds
The nuts themselves grow beneath pretty white flowers on the trees – and they’re harvested in late summer after the nut hulls have split open.
12. Sesame seeds
The pods have to be dried out before harvesting so that the seeds can easily be shaken out (and eventually get stuck in your teeth).
13. Cranberries
Weird, right?
You can find the berries floating in bogs and marshes along with layers of sand, peat, and gravel.
The bogs are often flooded to aid in the harvest of the fruits.
Who knew?
14. Leeks
Leeks grow underground and require a long growing season of about 120 to 150 days.
While they’re often referred to as a root vegetables, leeks do not form a bulb and are the taproots of the plant.
The bottom six inches or so of the cylindrical stalk is what we end up eating.
15. Capers
But it turns out they grow on vines. And the capers themselves are the unopened buds of the little white flowers that will eventually bloom.
16. Cloves
They require a very specific climate that is warm and moist, but they also do best in shade.
Once the seeds are harvested, they’re dried out and sold as cloves.
17. Kiwi
But what you may find interesting is that farmers have to plant male and female vines – usually 1 male for every 3-8 females – in order to ensure the male plants pollinate the female plants to produce the fruit.
18. Black pepper
But having seen peppercorns, you’ll easily be able to imagine them starting out as tiny, unripe fruits.
Black pepper starts off as green peppercorns on the Piper nigrum plant and they cluster together like grapes.
The fruits are first cooked and then sun-dried.
19. Asparagus
Asparagus fields look like someone went to the store, bought some stalks, and stuck them in the ground. In fact, we remember laughing the first time we ever saw one!
But, in fact, asparagus just grows straight up out of the ground.
20. Celery
But once they take root, they’re pretty sturdy as they pop up from the ground.
The main edible part grows above ground and forms leafy greens at the top. But some celery has a giant celeriac bulb at the bottom that can be used as well.
21. Paprika
To get the ground spice, one first has to dry the red fruits before pulverizing them.
22. Pomegranates
They require a warm climate and are drought-tolerant. But the trees don’t bear fruit until they’re about 5-6 years old!
23. Wasabi
What we eat is the macerated root, but the plant itself has large, leafy greens above the dirt and has to be grown under a shade cloth because it’s so delicate.
24. Quinoa
When the plant shoots up beyond three feet, they produce the seeds that we call quinoa. (Note: that means quinoa is not a grain – those are the fruit of a plant!)
The leaves are also edible, in case you’re growing your own and want to add some pizazz to your salad.
25. Ginger
Just put it in soil with the growth buds pointed up (about 2-4 inches deep), and you’ll have a big, new piece of ginger root when the plant grows about 2-3 feet tall above ground.
Imagine what else we don’t know!
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