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Top 7 Vegetables That Start with U (Everything You Need To Know)

Do you know the importance of vegetables? They are paramount because they are a source of vitamin C and beta-carotene, which act as antioxidants, protecting the body from free radicals.

The vegetables are rich in fiber, manganese, potassium, and copper, which keep the excretory and digestive systems healthy.

Fiber presence contributes to better digestion, reduces fat absorption, and reduces cardiovascular disease risk. They can be consumed in several ways: boiled, pureed, fried, or canned in syrup.

In addition to simple starch, the vegetables have a lot of complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and beta-carotene. They are rich in potassium, low in sodium, and moderate in other micronutrients.

The vegetables that start with U are unique in the market. This is because they have iron, an essential mineral in the diet needed in the blood to carry oxygen to different body parts.

Being a rich source of magnesium, these vegetables help in strengthening the immune system. Magnesium is necessary for the normal performance of many body functions.

Also, they help you lose weight by making you feel fuller for longer and keep you from overeating between meals.

Vegetables That Start with U

1.       Ube

Ube Vegetables That Start with U
Ube via Pxhere

Ube, also known as purple yam, Dioscorea alata, or purple yam, is a plant with potato-like tubers that are bright purple with purple flesh. It grows in warm latitudes, and among all types of vegetables, this is the sweetest.

This vegetable has purple tubers, often used to make desserts, including ice cream. For the first time, ube flavored ice cream was made for a Hawaiian brand. 

Likewise, in the Philippines, ube ice cream is generally like a signature dessert. For this country, this vegetable is generally a popular product.

The taste of ube is earthy and slightly sweet, like a mixture of pistachio and vanilla. This is why it is so often and widely used in desserts. 

It is known as an anti-aging remedy, as it is high in antioxidants that prevent damage to the body’s cells. The antioxidants in this vegetable also help fight inflammation. The product is rich in vitamins A, C, B6, fiber, manganese, and potassium.

Ube is a good source of complex carbohydrates, especially resistant starch, which works like a prebiotic fiber. Prebiotics improve healthy bacteria in the gut and protect the immune system. In general, ube should be taken into account, as it is a useful product that benefits the body. 

2.       Urad dal

Urad dal Vegetables That Start with U
Urad dal via Wikimedia

It is a small grain of ivory or black rectangular shape. Urad dal also known as Vigna mungo is often used to make snacks from dried beans and combined with rice.

This vegetable is used to make mashed potatoes, soups, and also in the form of flour for snacks and sweets. Folic acid in urad dal helps the body produce and maintain new blood cells, especially red blood cells.

Pregnant women need to have enough folate. They should eat folate-rich foods even when just planning to get pregnant. 

Fiber present in this vegetable gives the stomach a feeling of fullness, which is better than when eating refined carbohydrates.

Being a very good source of folic acid, urad dal helps lower homocysteine levels, reduces the risk of blood clots, and maintains arterial elasticity. Magnesium in urad dal effectively relaxes the blood vessels and thus regulates the heart.

Potassium in urad dala also supports heart rhythm. Calcium helps the normal contraction of the heart muscle.

Due to its low-fat content and high protein and fiber content, urad dal will help you lose weight by making you feel fuller for longer, as well as keep you from overeating between meals.

3.       Ulluco

Ulluco Vegetables That Start with U
Ulluco via Wikimedia

Ulluco, also known as Ullucus tuberosus, is among the vegetables that start with U, which is well-known and commercially viable for its flavor.

Tubers are bright yellow, white, orange, purple/ red, or green, sometimes with spots, and also they contain a much firmer consistency than potatoes and the flavor of potato and beet.

It is simple to grow, moderately drought tolerant, and frost resistant, although it prefers soils with plenty of organic matter. Ulluco comes in many different shapes and colors.

Its high water content makes it better for cooking, and there’s no need to peel the smooth, shiny skins before consumption. The leaves are as well edible.

They are rich in carotene, calcium, and protein and have the same texture as spinach. A tablespoon of cooked leaves may provide a significant portion of a child’s daily nutrients.

Ulluco is an excellent source of carbohydrates, with about 20 percent fewer calories for each serving than potatoes. It is rich in vitamin C and occurs more than twice in potatoes.

Traditionally, ulluco is almost certainly most regularly prepared in stews and soups. Smaller tubers are better suited for ulluco soup as they are small and only require to be tossed and rinsed in a pan, where they solidify the broth and stay intact during prolonged cooking.

It is also good to eat raw ulluco in salads. Roasted ones produce fewer large tubers and are most excellent when roasted with meat or different vegetables. Also, they are more suitable for dicing and slicing than soup varieties.

4.       Upland Cress

Upland Cress Vegetables That Start with U
Upland Cress via Flickr

Upland cress is medium to the small vegetable size of about 6 to 8 inches in diameter. It grows as flat, rounded rosettes of leaves resting on narrow stems.

Besides, this vegetable has dark green leaves, pliable and glossy, with slightly serrated edges and a fine vein running along the surface. The slender stems are bright green, tender and crisp.

Upland cress has the same spicy flavor but is sharper than watercress. The aroma also becomes pungent, less juicy, and acrid as it ages.

Upland cress has vitamins K, A, and C, vitamin B2, iron, and minerals like potassium, folic acid, calcium, and manganese. This vegetable is best used when cooked and raw, steamed, roasted, or fried.

Upland cress is perfect for salads and sandwiches, but it also works well as a garnish for cooked meats and soups, poultry, or fish. When used fresh, its leaves may be seasoned in salads, sandwiches, and rolls, seasoned with pasta, or served as a side dish.

After cooking, the leaves are often added to sauces, soups, or lightly fried and served with cooked meats. You can serve upland cress as raw and cooked and with vegetables like cabbage.

It pairs well with meats like fish, chicken, smoked turkey and ham, apple, avocado, onion, garlic, Greek yogurt, and cucumber.

5.       Udupi Matti Gulla

Udupi Matti Gulla Vegetables That Start with U
Udupi Matti Gulla via Wikimedia

This vegetable is a unique brinjal species that grows in and around Udupa in Karnataka. This vegetable is also known as Gulla, Udupi Brinjal, Matti Gulla, or Mattu Gulla.

It has a long history where it is considered the most delicious variety of brinjals. In Konkani, it is called gulls, whereas, in Kannada, it is called gullas.

Compared to other Gulla varieties that can be bitter, this vegetable is tasty. Sagle is prepared with this Udupi Matti Gulla.

It can be served with sweet and sour coconut puree and cooked whole until tender and delicious is formed. This vegetable is a yummy side dish that goes well with dalithoy and rice.

6.       Uhikura

Radish Vegetables That Start with U
Uhikura via Wikimedia

Uhikura, also called radish, is an annual or biennial plant in the Brassicaceae family grown for its swollen roots that can be cylindrical or spherical. It is believed to have originated in Asia, but many varieties vary in shape, size, color, and flavor.

Uhikura is fresh and firm with smooth, blemish-free skin. Its leaves, if still attached, must be green, fresh, and not wilted. It would be best to avoid large red uhikura as it can be pulpy and woody.

Like many salad vegetables, uhikura is high in water content, containing no nutrients. It is not eaten in high quantities to have a significant nutritional effect, except for vitamin C, of ​​which it is a perfect source.

The major phytonutrients in uhikura are glucosinolates, also present in cabbage and broccoli, and anthocyanins in red-skinned varieties. You can eat uhikura as a raw snack, in sandwiches and salads, or as a side dish. It can be roasted, fried, boiled, or baked.

7.       Umbelliferae

Umbelliferae Vegetables That Start With U
Umbelliferae via Wikimedia

Umbelliferae, also known as Apiaceae, is in the celery, parsley, or carrot family. It is an annual or perennial herb, which is rarely woody at the base, and acaulescent or caulescent.

The stem of Umbelliferae is usually solid or hollow and striate, and the leaves are alternate but rarely basal or opposite. Blades are compound and at times simple, much divided or incise, pinnatisect or pinnatifid, or ternate-pinnately decompound. 

Umbelliferae is a source of secondary compounds and metabolites that have industrial applications and medicinal value.

It has medicinal properties, like antihypertensive anti-inflammatory, and treats hepatitis, bronchitis, asthma, and gastrointestinal infections. It produces taproots, which are used as food. Also, it produces essential oils, which are in the fruits and leaves, making it a flavorful, aromatic vegetable.


Conclusion

Being a very good source of important elements for the body, the above vegetables that start with U help reduce the risk of blood clots and maintain arterial elasticity. There is magnesium, which effectively relaxes the blood vessels and thus regulates the heart. 

Potassium supports heart rhythm, and calcium helps the normal contraction of the heart muscle. Also, these vegetables have iron, which is an essential mineral in the diet because it is needed in the blood to carry oxygen to different parts of the body.