Deliciously Cool

Hi Everyone, Skin on, skin off; with or without seeds; sliced, diced, smashed or pureed, cucumbers are cool and tasty!

For many, a meal is not complete without a bit of cucumber on the side. There are certain dishes where lettuce and tomatoes make no sense as an accompaniment, except if they are eaten separately as a salad. Cucumbers, on the other hand, can accompany almost anything. It’s always a good laugh when people pile their plates with food and point proudly, completely tongue-in-cheek, to the cucumbers on their plate and say, “See, I am eating vegetables!”

With a water content of 95 per cent and only 16 calories in a cup (100 g) of sliced cucumbers, the melons rehydrate and offer nutrients found in their skin and seeds. When we remove the skin and seeds a lot of the nutrients are lost and all we’re left with is the water; that’s not a bad thing but there’s no harm, only benefit, when we eat the seeds and skin too. Cucumbers belong to the family of melon and squash and according to the University of Maryland Medical Center, when consumed, they provide 16 per cent of our daily percentage value of Vitamin K. Vitamin K plays a key role in helping blood to clot, thus preventing excessive bleeding. Studies have also shown that Vitamin K works with calcium to assist with overall bone health.

Cucumbers are not only good for keeping us hydrated, they also have a cooling and soothing effect that can help decrease swelling and irritation when used topically. We’ve all seen many images of women with slices of cucumbers covering their eyes. According to registered dietitian nutritionist, Megan Ware, the cucumber slices placed over the eyes is to decrease puffiness. You see, there is some science behind the pampering ritual. Here in the Caribbean, in addition to eating cucumbers with our meals simply for its deliciousness, we associate the eating of cucumbers with helping to lower blood pressure. While many studies have linked it to helping lower blood pressure, it is done so within the context of eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables with moderate sodium (salt) intake. What this means is that we cannot eat foods high in sodium then eat cucumbers and think that it will automatically lower our blood pressure. Every little bit helps, so yes, continue to eat cucumbers in large amounts but do not count on it solely to control your blood pressure.

Buying

There are several varieties of cucumber but the qualities to look for are consistent from one variety to another. Cucumbers should feel heavy for their size, they should be firm and smooth to the touch (there are some varieties that are bumpy). The colour whether light or deep green or yellow should be bright and not dull. Do not buy cucumbers where the tips are wrinkled or those that give if you press any part of the body with your thumb.

Cucumbers should be used within 2 days of purchasing. I tend to buy about 2 – 4 pounds of cucumbers each week and cannot use them all up in a couple of days, therefore, after washing and removing the tops and bottoms of the cucumbers, I pat them dry, slice or dice them and store in airtight containers. I do not add any salt or dressing, this way, their shelf life is prolonged.

Bitterness

I’m sure that you’ve cut up a cucumber already to eat it only to find it bitter and unpalatable. Here’s a tip I learnt many years ago. When you slice off the top and bottom piece of the cucumber, use the piece from each respective end and rub it in circular motion over the cut cucumber. If the cucumber is bitter, you will see a bit of white foamy substance. Keep rubbing the cucumber until it stops producing the foam. Rinse the cucumber, pat dry and cut to your likeness.

In the past, you may have done the slicing and rubbing as I explained above and realized that the cucumber is still bitter, what this means then is that the cucumber was stressed in some way during the growing process. It could be that the plant was not given enough water, the temperature was too cold or too hot and those conditions impacted on the taste of the cucumber. In our case, given our climate, it would either be from being too hot or a lack of water – rainfall or otherwise.

‘Cukes’

How do you like your cukes (cucumbers)? Me, I can’t begin to count the ways. For the most part I like them sliced (skin on with seeds), without any dressing. I change things up every now and then; sometimes I dress it with a squeeze of lime juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper. On other occasions, I may add some thinly sliced red onions to make it like a pickle. I play around with the shapes; sometimes, I dice the cucumbers, and other times I cut them into wedges. Recently, I have been cutting up the cucumbers and dressing them with the pepper-hot briny liquid from my lime pepper sauce. So hot and cool at the same time! Yum! Whenever I am serving food with robust flavours such as a curry, I always serve undressed slices of cucumbers that work as a palette cleanser.

Last month I tried a recipe for Asian-style smashed cucumber salad that I adapted to suit my taste. I almost ate the entire bowl of salad in one sitting. Try it and let me know what you think.

Stay cool!

Happy Diwali Everyone!

Cynthia

cynthia@tasteslikehome.org

www.tasteslikehome.org

Asian-style Smashed

Cucumber Salad

INGREDIENTS

For salad:

• 4 medium-sized cucumbers
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

For dressing:

• 3 teaspoons regular soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar

(sub: apple cider vinegar)

• 1 large clove garlic, grated or ground

to a paste

• 1 teaspoon sugar (or to taste)
• 2 teaspoons hot oil (see notes)

DIRECTIONS

For salad:

1. Wash and pat dry the cucumbers. Wrap one cucumber at a time in a clean kitchen towel. Using a mallet or rolling pin, give a few whacks or bash along the cucumber to break it up into large pieces. Remove the cucumber discarding most or all of the seeds and chop into large pieces.
2. Sprinkle the salt over the smashed cucumbers, toss to mix and place in a colander over a bowl. Set aside for 20 – 30 minutes to remove excess juice.

For dressing:

3. Whisk together all the ingredients and let sit while cucumbers are resting.

Assembling salad:

4. Drain the cucumbers well and add to a bowl.
5. Pour the dressing over the cucumbers and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
6. To serve, stir in the cilantro and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

NOTES

• Taste the salad dressing before pouring over cucumbers to ensure that it suits your taste and make adjustments as you see fit re: acid, sweetness or salt.
• Heat oil in a metal ladle until smoking hot and then pour into dressing. Make sure that the dressing is in a heatproof bowl, bottle or container.
• The cucumber salad while chilling will release more juice, you can leave it in or spoon the cucumbers into a separate bowl before mixing in cilantro, garnishing and serving.