Starchy Vegetables and Fruits

Starch is a carbohydrate, which has a large number of glucose units in it. It is produced by all plants as an energy store. One of the most important part of the human diet is carbohydrate. Starch in its purest form is white in color, is tasteless and odorless. It cannot be dissolved in either cold water or alcohol. Most of the junk food that we eat consist of sugar, which is processed from sugar. Therefore people on a weight loss diet or diabetics are prescribed to stay away from starch, as it can cause weight gain and/or spike in blood sugar levels. At such times, taking help of the starchy vegetables and fruits list proves to be beneficial.

I would like to bring it to your notice, that vegetables and fruits with starch content are a good source of essential nutrients. Hence, they should not be discarded as to be necessarily bad. All vegetables and fruits are essentially made up of three different types of carbohydrates, namely starch, sugar and fiber. When vegetables and/or fruits are consumed, the body may not be able to digest all the fiber, hence it is the sugar and starch which contribute to the calorific value. What differentiates the non-starchy foods from the starchy fruits is the different distribution of carbohydrates and starch in them. Most of them do not contain sodium or fat, but they do contain a high amount of calories in them. Hence, it is best to eat them in moderate quantities, when one is on a diet or has diabetic condition. They should not be a major part of your diet. The major part of your diet should come from vegetables and fruits whose starch content is at its lowest.

Starchy Vegetables and Fruits List

Starchy Vegetables
If you want to do away with the carbohydrates in your diet, then it is best to stop consuming the vegetables listed in the starchy vegetables list. A clue to know, if the vegetable is starchy or not is to check, if the vegetable does taste a little sweeter. Often the vegetables high in starch are a mildly sweeter. The other test would be to check, do they taste a little powdery. The vegetables high in starch do have a powdery flavor. It is important to note that fruits are a rich source of amino acids and antioxidants, which are almost not available in any other food. Hence, it is important to make vegetables one of the major part of your diet.

• Amaranthus
• Artichoke - Jerusalem
• Beans
• Lima Beans
• Garbanzo Beans
• Navy Beans
• Beets
• Cassava
• Carrots

• Cauliflower
• Corn
• Green Peas
• Peas
• Parsnips
• Plantains
• Potatoes in all forms
• Rutabaga
• Pumpkins

• Squash
• Lentils
• Sweet Potatoes
• Soy Beans
• Turnip
• Winter Acorn
• Winter Butternut
• Winter Squashes
• Yam

Starchy Fruits
Like vegetables, there are some fruits, which also are rich in starch. It is important that one knows about those fruits as well, so that they can be excluded from your diet.

• Banana
• Breadfruit
• Peanuts
• Pumpkins
• Winter Squashes
• Water Chestnut
• Plantain Bananas
• Manilkara zapota
• Fresh Figs

After looking at the list of starchy vegetables and fruits, you may wonder, how one of them is a fruit or a vegetable. It is no doubt confusing. However, there are some of them, which cross over into different food categories. For example, corn is as much a cereal as much it is a vegetable. The same can be said about peas, which are legumes as well as vegetable. It is best to consult your health care professional to know the starchy fruits and vegetables, which can be consumed for your condition. For example a person with diabetes may not be allowed banana for the sugar in it, and not so much because of the starch in it. It is recommended that you should not self treat yourself for any ailment, and it is always better to consult a health care professional.