Care library / Food

Blanched vegetables

Vegetables & gel

Blanched vegetables

Fresh vegetables offered to herbivorous/omnivorous fish: classic choices are cucumber, courgette (zucchini) and peas; harder ones (sweet potato, carrot) are blanched to soften.

For: Bristlenose plecos (Ancistrus) and other vegetarian fish.

How to feed: Weigh down floating veg (e.g. a teaspoon pushed through the slice, or plant weights); skin peas; blanch hard vegetables (sweet potato, carrot) to soften; remove uneaten veg after at most a couple of days, before it decays.

Careful: Uneaten vegetables decay and pollute the water; remove them.

Examples you may see in shops: Zucchini (courgette), Cucumber, Shelled peas. Not endorsements.

Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. See sources

Who eats it

41 species

Bristlenose plecoAncistrus cf. cirrhosus

Easy13 cm21–26 °C

Common plecoPterygoplichthys pardalis

Moderate50 cm20–28 °C

Royal plecoPanaque nigrolineatus

Hard43 cm22–26 °C

Clown plecoPanaqolus maccus

Easy9 cm23–28 °C

Hillstream loachSewellia lineolata

Moderate6 cm20–24 °C

OtocinclusOtocinclus vittatus

Moderate3.3 cm20–25 °C

Zebra nerite snailVittina natalensis

Easy2.5 cm22–26 °C

Horned nerite snailClithon corona

Easy2 cm22–26 °C

Trewavas' mbunaLabeotropheus trewavasae

Moderate11.7 cm24–28 °C

Fuelleborn's mbunaLabeotropheus fuelleborni

Moderate17 cm24–28 °C

Tropheus mooriiTropheus moorii

Hard14.5 cm24–27 °C

Duboisi cichlidTropheus duboisi

Hard12 cm24–27 °C

Petrochromis trewavasaePetrochromis trewavasae

Hard18 cm23–25 °C

Rubber-lip plecoChaetostoma milesi

Moderate14.6 cm21–27 °C

Blue-eyed plecoPanaque cochliodon

Twig catfishFarlowella vittata

Hard22.5 cm24–27 °C

Royal farlowellaSturisomatichthys panamensis

Moderate26 cm24–28 °C

Golden whiptail catfishSturisomatichthys aureus

Easy20 cm24–28 °C

Macrospilus otoOtocinclus macrospilus

Moderate3.5 cm21–26 °C

Zebra otocinclusOtocinclus cocama

Moderate4.5 cm21–25 °C

Jumbo otoParotocinclus jumbo

Moderate6 cm21–26 °C

Silver dollarMetynnis hypsauchen

Hard18 cm24–28 °C

Spotted silver dollarMetynnis lippincottianus

Hard16.4 cm23–27 °C

Red hook silver dollarMyloplus rubripinnis

Hard41.5 cm23–27 °C

Six-barred distichodusDistichodus sexfasciatus

Hard75 cm22–26 °C

High-hat headstanderAbramites hypselonotus

Easy14 cm22–28 °C

Java barbBarbonymus gonionotus

Hard30 cm20–26 °C

Black sharkLabeo chrysophekadion

Hard60 cm20–26 °C

Red-nose shrimpGracidina gracilirostris

Easy4 cm20–28 °C

Ninja shrimpMarosina serratirostris

Easy3 cm24–28 °C

Tiger nerite snailVittina turrita

Easy3 cm22–28 °C

Olive nerite snailVitta usnea

Easy2.5 cm20–26 °C

Black racer nerite snailNeritina sp. (black racer)

Easy2.5 cm22–28 °C

Diadem nerite snailClithon diadema

Easy2.5 cm22–28 °C

Japanese nerite snailClithon retropictum

Sunset nerite snailNeritodryas cornea

Freshwater limpetFerrissia californica

American flagfishJordanella floridae

Moderate6.5 cm18–28 °C

Neon blue gobyStiphodon atropurpureus

Moderate5 cm22–26 °C

Yellow garraGarra flavatra

Moderate9 cm22–27 °C

Spotted algae eaterGyrinocheilus pennocki

Sources

5 facts checked with sources

What it iscorrectedPractical Fishkeeping - What should I feed my veggie fish?
Who it's forcorrectedPractical Fishkeeping - What should I feed my veggie fish?
How to feedcorrectedPractical Fishkeeping - What should I feed my veggie fish?
ProductscorrectedPractical Fishkeeping - What should I feed my veggie fish?
SafetycorrectedPractical Fishkeeping - What should I feed my veggie fish?