Is a bell pepper a fruit or a vegetable?

The question of whether a bell pepper is a fruit or a vegetable is a common one, and the answer is somewhat surprising: it's both! While we generally think of vegetables as the leafy or rooty parts of a plant, and fruits as the juicy, sweet parts, this distinction is actually based on how the plant uses the part in question.

Botanically speaking, a fruit is the part of a plant that contains seeds, and is formed from the ovary of a flower. By this definition, a bell pepper is a fruit, as it grows from the flower of the pepper plant and contains seeds. However, in culinary terms, bell peppers are usually thought of as vegetables, as they are not typically eaten as a sweet or dessert food.

So while a botanist might refer to a bell pepper as a fruit, a chef or home cook is more likely to consider it a vegetable. Ultimately, the distinction is mostly a matter of language and usage rather than any scientific or botanical fact.