Cucumber
Cucumbers are perhaps the vegetables most closely associated with summer. They even lived to see a season named by them in Polish language - cucumber season, reflecting the carefree, somewhat lazy, summer time. This is not surprising, as this vegetable contains a lot of water and some electrolytes, which help to rehydrate the body in hot weather. In the fresh form, cucumbers are ideal for salads, vegetables or as a refreshing addition to water. They are also suitable for pickling, marinating or, less commonly, stuffing.
The cucumber is closely related to the pumpkin, courgette, watermelon, melon or the exotic kwano. Cucumber is a thermophilic plant, so it is available most of the year from greenhouse crops. The earliest ground-grown varieties can be purchased is at the end of June.
Cucumbers owe their popularity to the versatility of their culinary uses and, above all, their mildly sweet taste.
Greenhouse varieties
Their fruit are divided into short, medium and long. All of them have a characteristic smooth and shiny skin. Their flesh is firm and their skin delicate enough to be eaten without peeling. Greenhouse cucumbers are best used to prepare salads, salads, and to add variety to cold dishes.
Ground-grown varieties
Preferred fruit are those with a straight shape, cylindrical form and dark green skin. These are the ones best suited for pickling, preserving or for salads. Well-grown ones in which the seeds have clearly formed can be served as a hot dish, e.g. stuffed. Crushed into smaller pieces, they are used in pickled vegetable preparations.
Gherkins
These are simply ground-grown cucumbers harvested at an early stage of growth. They are suitable for strongly acidic, spicy vinegar brines.
Interesting varieties
These include white cucumber and melon cucumber. The latter are long, without bumps, covered with a light, slightly mossy skin without shine. Both varieties are suitable for raw dishes.
Nutritional values per 100g of fresh peeled cucumber:
ENERGY VALUE
PROTEIN
FATS
CARBOHYDRATES
VITAMIN C
VITAMIN K
Due to their high water content, cucumbers supplement the diet with fluids.
Cucumber is a very low-calorie vegetable, so when eaten without dressings, additives and fats, it helps you maintain a slim figure.
Eating cucumbers - which contain some B group vitamins - will benefit the condition of the skin. Also, applying cucumber flesh compresses or cosmetic preparations prepared from cucumbers will firm and smooth the skin, leaving it brighter and tighter.
Cucumber is a thermophilic vegetable grown in Poland both in the field and under covers. Poland is the leader in cucumber production in the European Union. The largest area of cucumber crops is located in the following voivodships: mazowieckie, łódzkie, świętokrzyskie and wielkopolskie.
