Food

Concept: Sources and Storage of Food

Anything which gives us energy to do work is called food. There are two main

1. Food from plants:

1. Fruits:
   
2. Vegetables:
   
3. Grains:
   
4. Oil:
   • Oil is obtained by pressing the plant seeds.

   Examples:

   • Mustard oil is obtained from mustard seeds.
   • Groundnut oil from groundnut seeds.
   • Castor oil from castor seeds.
   • Other seeds that are used to obtain oil are olive, almond, sunflower, coconut, etc.

   

i) Edible parts of plants:

a) Edible leaves:

b) Edible stem:

c) Edible flower:

d) Edible root:

e) Edible seeds:

• All pulses we eat are seeds.

Examples:Moong, gram, rajma, etc.

f) Edible fruits:

• The fruits we get from plants like orange, mango, guava, and grapes are all edible.
• Moreover, vegetables like tomato, brinjal, ladyfinger, beans, etc. are born as fruits of their respective plants.

ii) Processed food from plants:

• The food we get from the plant is consumed directly or converted into different food items before consumption.
• Such food is called processed food.

Examples:

• Bread is made with wheat.
• Idli is made with rice.
• Potato chips are made using potatoes.
• Fruit juices are made using fruit pulp.
• Jams and jellies are made with fruit pulp mixed with sugar.

2. Food from animals:

i) Processed foods from animals:

3. Storage of food:

• It is necessary to store food properly.
• Improper food storage may lead to the attack of germs, which makes the food unsuitable for eating.
• Different methods are used for storing different food items. Some of them are mentioned below—

a) Freezing:

• Storing food items in very cold conditions in a refrigerator is called freezing.
• Food items like fruits, vegetables, raw meat, raw fish, etc., can be preserved by freezing.

b) Drying:

• Drying stands for the removal of water from the food item for its storage.
• Pulses, rice, wheat, chips, fish, etc., are preserved by this method.

c) Canning:

• Canning stands for the packing of food items in an airtight container for its storage.
• All processed food items are stored using this method.

d) Salting

• Salt does not allow germs to grow on the food items and is used for storing them.
• Fish, raw vegetables, and pickles are preserved by salting.

e) Adding oil and vinegar :

• Oil and vinegar keep the food items fresh and unaffected by germs
• They are used for making pickles that can be consumed for many days.

New Words:

Did You Know?

• Bread slices can be kept fresh for a long time by keeping them in a tightly closed packet outside the refrigerator.
• People used to dry food items by keeping them in sunlight in ancient days, but at present, food can be dried in minutes using modern equipment like a microwave.
• The part of broccoli we eat is the flowers that haven’t opened.