So, vacation has left me and the fiance broke and we had to do a budget grocery shop. I bought myself a nice huge cucumber because it was 1.79 or so and massive, I figured I could make something with it or eat it for a snack.
Yesterday I had a couple pieces with cottage cheese and pepper, mmm!
I'm also thinking I could do what another member suggested and use it like a cracker with a tuna and cottage cheese mix.
Another idea was cutting it into long strips and having it in my gluten free wraps I found with some tuna as well, for crunch factor.
What are some other good ideas for cucumber? I haven't bought one before and I enjoyed my snack last night :3 I'm excited to see what other possibilities there are.
I'm wondering as well, how long does it stay good for? I have it in the fridge in the crisper right now. How do I know if it's gone bad?
For a couple of weeks earlier this summer, our grocer had packages of 5 or 6 cucumbers that were about the size of a frankfurter. I ate them just like that while making supper. It was kinda fun, sneaking in a spare vegetable.
Sliced into a salad? chopped fine in almost any fresh salsa?
Cut it up and toss it with some cut up red onion and tomato! Toss in a bit of lemon juice and salt and YUM!
$1.79 seems high though- any local farmer's markets where you are at? I buy persian cucumbers from Henry's (they are SO MUCH better than those huge cucumbers) and it's like anywhere from 69-99 cents a POUND!
Ingredients
2 English cucumbers
1/4 large watermelon
1/4 cup lime juice (3-4 limes)
2/3 cup torn mint leaves
2 tbsp tarragon leaves, finely chopped
1/2 tsp salt
Slice cucumbers in half lengthwise. Chop cucumber and watermelon into small chunks and place in a large bowl. Stir in lime juice, herbs and salt.
As for storage and how long it lasts- the cucumber is very clear on when it it ready for the compost heap- the skin will get slimy, it will get wrinkly- you will know. My personal favorite as others have mentioned is thin sliced with a little salt, Splenda, thin sliced onion, black pepper, and rice vinegar- but.....plain old cheap white vinegar works too. Once marinated and stirred up once in a while in a sealed container it can last weeks.
mmm, that cucumber watermelon salad sounds awesome!
We just ordered 30lbs of bulk cucumbers from our CSA, so I can throw a few ideas out there. I think most people in our CSA get the bulk cucumbers to pickle them, but our favorite thing is making a simple cucumber salad... just peel and thinly slice (we use the slicing thing on the cheese grater) cucumbers, add some thinly sliced red onion and some vinegar and salt to taste. It's so simple and tastes pretty amazing....amazing enough that we buy 30 lbs of cucumbers so that we can make tons of it
I also made some tzatziki as someone else suggested. It's great for dipping veggies or using as a spread.
My mom recommended a summery cucumber tomato salad that you could try. You just cut up some tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and add some olive oil, vinegar, salt and mint leaves. I haven't tried it, but it's on my list.
When I buy the English cucumbers they come shrink wrapped. I just cut off the length that I want and cover the end with a bit of plastic wrap. When I want to eat more, I cut off the end, maybe 1/8 - 1/4" before I peel and use it. If it doesn't get eaten for dinner or something, which it ususally does, it lasts about 2 weeks. I also don't put it in the crisper. For some reason with all the other fruits it doesn't last as long, maybe because of the oxidization gas that occurs with apples and onions. Just a thought.
Last edited by glassbutterfly; 07-28-2010 at 02:06 PM.
I LOVE cucumbers. I remember getting them fresh out of my grandparents' garden when I was little. I mostly just eat them by themselves. Tea sandwiches are good, but they're not very healthy. You chop up some cucumber and mix it with cream cheese and spread it thinly on bread. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you used low fat or fat free cream cheese.
Cucumber?
