Five Vegetables You Haven't Tried

You see them at the store or on a delivery app. They look interesting. You are mildly curious. And then you buy the same vegetables you always buy, because you do not know what to do with these ones.

This is not a knowledge problem. It is a confidence problem. Most unfamiliar vegetables are not difficult to cook. You just need someone to tell you the first move.

For the Pan: Bok Choy

Bok choy is one of the easiest vegetables to cook, and one of the fastest. The white stems are juicy and crunchy. The green leaves are tender and mild. Together they give you two textures in a single ingredient.

The simplest approach: cut the bok choy in half lengthwise, heat some oil in a pan until it shimmers, and lay them cut-side down for two minutes until they pick up a little colour. Add a splash of soy sauce, a clove of crushed garlic, and let it sizzle for another minute. That is it. Serve alongside rice, noodles, or a fried egg.

Bok choy also works in soups and stir-fries — add it in the last couple of minutes so the stems stay crunchy. It absorbs the flavour of whatever broth or sauce it sits in without losing its own character.

For the Pan (With a Twist): Rainbow Swiss Chard

Rainbow Swiss chard looks dramatic — red, yellow, and pink stems with deep green leaves — but cooks down gently. The trick is to treat the stems and leaves separately, because they cook at different speeds.

Slice the stems and sauté them first in olive oil with garlic for three to four minutes until they soften slightly. Then add the roughly chopped leaves and cook for another two minutes until they wilt. Season with salt, a squeeze of lemon, and a pinch of chilli flakes if you like heat.

Swiss chard works anywhere you would use spinach but want more structure. Stir it into pasta. Fold it into an omelette. Pile it on toast with a poached egg. The stems add a crunch that spinach never has.

For Roasting: Fennel Bulb

Fennel bulb confuses people because it looks unusual and smells like anise. Raw, it has a crisp, liquorice-like sharpness. But roasting transforms it completely — the anise flavour mellows into something sweet, caramelised, and almost nutty.

Cut the bulb into wedges (top to bottom, through the core so the pieces hold together), toss with olive oil and salt, and roast at 200°C for about 25 minutes until the edges are golden and slightly charred. The outer layers caramelise while the inner layers turn silky.

Roasted fennel pairs well with chicken, fish, or a grain salad. It also works beautifully alongside roasted root vegetables — carrots, beetroot, sweet potato — where its sweetness fits right in.

For Eating Raw: Watermelon Radish

Watermelon radish is one of those ingredients that sells itself the moment you slice it open. The outside is pale and unassuming. The inside is a vivid pink that looks like it was painted.

The flavour is milder than a regular radish — slightly peppery, slightly sweet, with a satisfying crunch. It is best eaten raw, where the colour and texture stay intact.

Slice it into thin rounds and add to a salad. Use it as a topping for hummus on toast. Cut it into matchsticks for a slaw or a rice bowl. Or just slice and eat with a sprinkle of flaky salt and a squeeze of lime — one of the simplest, most visually striking snacks you can make.

For Make-Ahead Meals: Kale

Kale — flat or curly — has a reputation for being tough and bitter. It is, if you eat it raw without preparation. But two approaches fix this entirely.

For salads, massage the kale. Strip the leaves from the stems, tear them into pieces, drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt, and work the leaves with your hands for about two minutes. The texture changes from stiff and waxy to soft and almost silky. Dressed with lemon, parmesan, and toasted seeds, massaged kale is one of the best make-ahead salads because it holds up for hours without wilting.

For cooking, treat it like a sturdier spinach. Sauté with garlic and chilli, add it to a soup in the last five minutes, or bake the leaves with oil and salt at 150°C for crispy kale chips.

The First Move Is the Hardest

None of these vegetables require special equipment or advanced technique. They just need you to try them once. Pick one, cook it this week, and see what happens. The unfamiliar becomes familiar faster than you think.

Explore our full range of fresh vegetables, grown on our farms and delivered across Delhi NCR and Chandigarh.