Cucumbers

[Deleted]

For me the ultimate hot weather food. As a child my mother would serve with a simple dressing that consisted of plain milk and some mayonnaise shaken up in a jar with the requisite amount of salt and pepper. Cool and crisp. Now, I've heard tell that in some cuisines the preferred method of serving is wilted or with the moisture leached out beforehand with salt.Or some remove the seeds.I guess wilted they absorb more flavor from the dressing. I think I prefer them as crisp as possible.The age and size certainly play a part in all this.
How do people prefer and prepare.?

[bazfaz]

I make tsatsiki (Greek) or cacik (Turkish). The cucumbers are grated and mixed with thick yogurt, garlic and salt. I also like to add some olive oil and serve topped with some black olives. Chopped mint is another addition.

[imec]

Depends. We generally get two kinds of cucumbers, the fat somewhat smooth skinned variety which are almost always covered in wax - I generally avoid these - and the long (typically 12") thinner type with a somewhat coarser skin - typically called English Cucumbers here. If I absolutely have to used the waxed kind, I remove the skin. The "English" variety I eat with the skin on. Either way, I remove the seeds (usually by scraping a teaspoon down the centre of a halved cuc. There is a third type we get which is essentially a baby "english" cuc about 3-5 inches long - these are the best (the ones we were able to buy in Riyadh were sensational - they were grown in air-conditioned greenhouses btw).

Usually, I'll just grind some sea salt onto them but will sometimes chop fine along with some tomato and onion - typically when I'm serving Indian food. And I'm with you - cold and CRISP!!

[bixaorellana]

Crisp. Absolutely -- crisp!

One thing I always do is to rub the cut end with the tip I've just cut off. Supposedly this draws out any bitterness. I remove the seeds if they're fairly big. It's always a treat to open a cucumber that still has little gelatinous seeds. Then I slice them down the middle the long way and, depending on size, slice each of those halves the long way down the middle. I don't like anything cut into wheels.

I do love them in raita or in some version of what Baz describes above, but mostly I like them plainly dressed. Just salt is good, or salt & pepper, or sal de gusano is popular here and goes well on cucumber, as does salt & ground cayenne, with maybe a squeeze of lime.

Last night I ate a version of the lovely Asian salads kindly shared by Imec & HW. (here, replies 5 thru 8) The cucumber worked perfectly in that, although I don't usually put cuke in a "regular" tossed salad.

[imec]

Jun 26, 2009 15:17:31 GMT bixaorellana said:

One thing I always do is to rub the cut end with the tip I've just cut off. Supposedly this draws out any bitterness.

Just salt is good, or salt & pepper, or sal de gusano

I've only ever heard that once before and that was 30 years ago. I used to do it myself for a while but then forgot all about it.

What's this "sal" of which you speak?

[bixaorellana]

Sorry. I translated it somewhere else and of course assume that any pearl that drops from my keyboard is instantly recorded and treasured by everyone else.

Sal is salt. Sal de gusano is salt with the ground up worm used in mezcal and chile.

[Deleted]

I had to throw away my previous cucumber. I had forgotten it for some reason and had left it out on the counter. When I rediscovered it, it was all yellow. Goodbye! (And 0.99€ in the garbage)

I bought another one, but at least it is in the refrigerator vegetable drawer and clearly embedded in my mind -- I think it will be used tomorrow.

[bixaorellana]

*shudder*
I don't know how many times I've forgotten a cucumber in the vegetable drawer then when I go to pick it up because it looks fine, my fingers sink into it. Yuck!

[Don Cuevas]

I'm about to try making Kosher Dill Cucumber Pickles from some fine little pepinos we bought yesterday at our shiny new Bodega Aurrerá.

[auntieannie]

just got my fill of excellent cucumbers in Greece. so many delicious versions!

[bixaorellana]

Annie ~~ you were in Greece? Do tell!

Share the wealth, Annie! What were those delicious versions? Do they use yogurt there much? Also, what herbs do the Greeks use with cucumbers?

[Deleted]

I had a Greek salad for lunch, i.e. anything with cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, olives, and feta.

I now officially need to buy another cucumber (or two).

[Don Cuevas]

I fear that the waxy little bastards may not pickle because I may not have removed enough of the thin, wax coating.
Or, on the other hand, it may be that the climate here has been so cool that they just have not started to ferment after...let's see...36 hours now.

I've been promised small, white (?) pickling cukes by a local organic farmer couple. End of July.

[imec]

They put wax on them there too Don? I thought that was only something they did for shipping long distances.

[Don Cuevas]

Jun 28, 2009 20:21:51 GMT imec said:

They put wax on them there too Don? I thought that was only something they did for shipping long distances.

Just a little thin coating. I may have scrubbed it off, for today, there is the beginning of fermentation. I used a pretty saline brine and the ambient temperature here averages about 68º F/20º C at this time of year.

By the way, there are quite a few imported fruits here in Pátzcuaro, Mexico. Apples, especially. In fact, a seasonal treat, Rambutans, are being sold from wheelbarrows. I don't know about the vegetables.

[bixaorellana]

DonC ~ have you tried washing the cucumbers with dishwashing liquid? If it's that sort of sticky oil instead of real wax, the dishwashing liquid will get it off.

[Deleted]

Mmmmm.... dishwashing liquid! Then you can make soup with it afterwards.

[Don Cuevas]

Jun 30, 2009 3:36:39 GMT bixaorellana said:

DonC ~ have you tried washing the cucumbers with dishwashing liquid? If it's that sort of sticky oil instead of real wax, the dishwashing liquid will get it off.

That would probably remove the wax, but wouldn't it also remove the desireable yeasts and bacterias that cause the pickle fermentation? Of course, chances are there's little or none of those yeasts remaining after the waxing.

Did I already mention that a specialty vegetable grower near Pátzcuaro has promised unwaxed, pickle-able cukes by the end of July? They are starting a one day a week mercado or tianguis in conjunction with other specialty foods produces. I hope that if it's half as good as Oaxaca's Mercado Pochote, we will have a treasure on our hands.

[bixaorellana]

~~ Kerouac, many people who use any form of soap also use this stuff called water to rinse the soap off after the washing process is complete.

I don't think hyper-washing would affect the fermentation process as the yeasts are air-borne. They'll inveigle their way into the pickling liquid as you're in the process of making it.

Really, washing any produce with soap is not a bad idea, particularly during cold and flu season.
I routinely put just-bought produce in a basin of soapy water, then rinse it very well and put it in a wide strainer outside on the porch to air dry before storing it in the kitchen.

[traveler63]

I love them !!!! I pickle them . I also love them in salads. I have been experimenting with different couscous, called Israeli couscous. You might know it as pearl couscous. I made a salad with cucumbers, red peppers,celery, cut black olives, tomatoes and the couscous tossed in with a dijon, evoo and red wine vinegar dressing. Yum!

[Don Cuevas]

"Really, washing any produce with soap is not a bad idea, particularly during cold and flu season."

Of course, we use Microdyn solution on any unpeeled veg or fruit, with a few exceptions sometimes. (After this week's bout with the Revenge, think we'll disinfect everything. But I really suspect we got sick from pastry cream filled donuts.)

The pickles have begun to ferment. It's just been so cool here. I think opening up the jar occasionally and moving them around is a good thing, too. They may be sufficiently mature by tomorrow. Has it been 4 or 5 days?

I bought some other cukes today from the roving verduras (vegetables) truck. Some of them were like spongy plastic. I used the better parts in a very nice gazpacho. Maybe more about the gazpacho in another post.

[rikita]

i like to just eat big pieces of cucumber without doing anything (other than peeling them). and when i make salad i usually only add a bit of oil, salt and pepper, not more... well and i like steamed cucumbers, but that is a warm food of course.

[auntieannie]

I really struggle to accept the idea of steamed cucumbers.

[bixaorellana]

That reminds me of when people first started talking about eating raw zucchini. The horror! Everyone knew that was a cooked vegetable.

You can also stir-fry cucumbers.

[rikita]

yeah i imagine you can. steamed cucumbers though is something i grew up with (and like so many vegetables hated as a child)... tastes a lot like home these days, though it never quite turns out like my mom does it... anyway, i suggest to try it.

[Don Cuevas]

As the first cukes finally pickled (although just barely sour), I've started 2 kgs of new cukes, first washing and scrubbing them in a vinegar water solution, then rinsing and scrubbing in plain water. The brine went on at 8 p.m. last night. This time, no cap on the pickling jar; just brine to the top and a small china bowl to weight them down.

No Axion detergent shall touch MY pepinos!