20 unique vegetables that will add major flavor to your dishes

Despite their name, watermelon radishes do not taste like watermelon at all. They are peppery, not unlike a typical radish, and they can be used just the same. Whether you roast them or keep them raw, they work well on sandwiches, salads, and as a side. 

A root vegetable, taro is a great alternative to the potato. Its taste is a little nuttier than a potato, but you can use it in essentially all the same ways. Mashed, fried, scalloped, or as chips, taro is a great, versatile food. 

If nothing else, Chioggia beets are fun to eat because of their appearance. Their insides have pink and white concentric stripes, making them look like the inside of a tree trunk. They can be used just like normal beets, but they look much cooler. 

Celeriac, or celery root, is a fantastic vegetable to add to your fall and winter root rotation. It’s great mashed, as soup, or as chips, and it’s very easy to season in various ways. You’ll love cooking with it. 

Cucamelon is quite possibly the most darling of all produce. Though technically a fruit, they have a cucumber-like taste, so it’s easy for them to act like a vegetable. These tasty little buggers are great on their own, in salads, and in so many other ways.  

Salsify is another root vegetable that can be used in many ways. With an artichoke-like flavor, it can resemble carrots, parsnips, potatoes, and more. It can be roasted, made into fries, or pureed for mash or soup. 

Dandelions get a bad rap, but there’s a lot to love about them, especially their greens. Dandelion greens can be eaten raw or cooked like any other green. If you would use kale in a particular dish, you can substitute it for dandelion greens. 

Radicchio is similar to lettuce and cabbage, but it adds a lot more flavor and color to your dishes than green vegetables. It can be sauteed, seared, roasted, or eaten raw — you name it. It’s good with sweet or savory flavors. 

Kohlrabi is a unique vegetable because, although it looks like a root vegetable, it is more similar to a cabbage. Still, it has more of an apple-like texture and a light taste that you’ll find refreshing on its own, in salads, or on sandwiches. 

Cardoon is a vegetable that is closely related to artichoke. It’s been known to grow wild in the Mediterranean, especially popular battered and fried. Some cooks have even taken to the air fryer to prepare cardoon. 

Shiso is technically an herb (you might find it to be a great alternative to basil when making pesto), but its leaves are so big that it sometimes acts like a vegetable. Shiso leaves can be made into tempura, and they can be candied, among other ways to prepare them. 

Romanesco is like a cross between cauliflower and broccoli. Though it’s milder in taste than either aforementioned vegetable, romanesco can be cooked in the same way or eaten raw. 

Jicama is another root vegetable that you’ll have fun cooking with instead of potatoes, turnips, or carrots. Some find its taste similar to water chestnuts, so it does well in stir-fries and other Asian dishes. 

Not to be confused with the boots, sorrel is a leafy green with a tart taste and a look similar to spinach. It can be used as a vegetable or an herb, and it’s great in soups, salads, or as a garnish. Its beautiful color will brighten up any dish. 

Another leafy green, mache also looks like spinach, but it’s technically a lettuce. Still, you can use it in all the ways you would use spinach, like in salads and sandwiches or sauteed. It’s not the easiest green to find, but it’s quite simple. 

Another root vegetable, sunchokes, is very similar to jicama. If you can find them, use them like you would any number of root vegetables. They’re especially tasty when roasted, and their natural flavor is so great you can keep your seasoning simple, and they’ll still taste great. 

Nopales, or cactus paddles, can be a little dangerous to cook with, but as long as you’re careful of the spikes, you can make tasty dishes with them. They’re especially popular grilled and added to tacos. 

Fiddleheads are fun to look at and tasty to eat. They can be sauteed, tossed on top of pasta, or eaten in a salad. Fiddleheads are the answer if you want something that will add a sweet vegetable taste and a spicy visual element. 

Puntarelle sounds like a pasta variety, but it’s actually the sprouts of Catalonian chicory. They have a bitter taste but in a good way. They’ll brighten any raw dish and work especially well in Mediterranean food. 

Samphire is a stalk vegetable similar to asparagus. Like asparagus, it can be eaten raw or cooked and can take on a variety of tasty seasonings, making it versatile.