While many vegetables are perfectly safe and even healthier when eaten raw, some can cause serious problems if not prepared properly. Certain veggies can taste unpleasant when uncooked, while others can actually be harmful or even dangerous. With a little knowledge, you can easily avoid mistakes and enjoy your produce the right way. This list highlights the vegetables you should think twice about before adding them raw to your plate.
Note: The content of this article is not medical advice.
Potatoes
Why anyone would eat a raw potato is beyond us, but it's just not a good idea. Flavor aside, potatoes can cause digestive issues if you eat them raw in large quantities. A nibble or two, though, won't hurt you.
Yucca
Yucca is another tuber you shouldn't eat raw. Unlike potatoes, it can seriously hurt you. Raw yucca contains saponin in quantities that can make a person ill. It has to undergo a whole process before it's safe to eat.
Lima Beans
Much like yucca, raw lima beans contain a fairly high concentration of poisonous chemicals. One of these compounds turns into cyanide in your digestive tract if you eat it raw.
Thankfully, cooking them well will make the cyanide neutralize itself. This is why most lima beans come pre-cooked.
Elderberry
You're not alone if you love elderberry syrup or elderberry sodas. However, you should know that elderberries are very toxic in their raw state. When cooked, they turn into a nutritional powerhouse and a delicious treat.
Eggplant
Eggplant is a must-have in any Mediterranean kitchen, but you may have noticed that it's never served raw. This elegant plant has a high level of solanines, which can trigger negative reactions in people who have certain health issues.
Rhubarb
Though this plant is now almost exclusively found in pies, it was once a staple. It also used to be common knowledge not to eat rhubarb raw. The stalks are very bitter raw, and the leaves are toxic regardless of whether they're cooked or not.
Sprouts
Sprouts are not poisonous when raw, but they do have an issue worth noting. They tend to be breeding grounds for toxic bacteria, which means that you might get food poisoning if they are not cooked or stored properly.
That doesn't stop people from eating it, though.
Bitter Almonds
Bitter almonds are actually illegal to sell in the United States. This is because their raw forms tend to be chock-full of cyanide. Eating these raw can kill you, so make sure to cook them if you want to stay extra safe.
Wheat/Flour
A pantry staple by anyone's definition, flour seems fairly safe. However, that's not the case. The CDC traced a major E. coli outbreak to flour. The organization makes a point of warning people not to digest raw flour to avoid history repeating itself. Learn how you can heat-treat flour and make these irresistible edible cookie dough balls.
Rice
Even if you think the crunch might be appealing, rice is the last thing you want to eat raw, because of how rice is grown, it tends to grow bacteria that can cause serious illness. Seriously. Cook your rice.
Olives
Raw olives are not the same as the olives you eat at your favorite Italian deli. When they're raw, they're quite hard and extremely bitter. Even if you don't get sick from them, you won't have fun eating them. They need to be cured to be edible.
Asparagus
Asparagus is safe to eat when raw but it is much better cooked. Cooking asparagus actually increases the levels of antioxidants in the veggie. It will taste better and be better for you when cooked!
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