topic Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh in Kitchen

Cucumbers - don't laugh

colleena — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 02:41:07 GMT

So, I've got these gigantic cucumbers that I'm not sure what to do with. They are dark green, maybe a foot long, very firm. And, they seem a lot firmer than the cukes I find in the store. Any ideas/help would b much appreciated.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Sooner — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 02:50:24 GMT

@colleena Probably pitch them out. They are most likely overgrown and seedy.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

drizzellla — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 02:57:20 GMT

If the cucumber seeds are large, I would scope out the seeds. And fill the cucumbers with tuna

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

JeanLouiseFinch — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 19:48:34 GMT

Our neighbors have been very kind, leaving tomatoes on our picnic table a few times this summer. One time we were gifted two cucumbers that were as big as my forearm. I thanked the neighbor but pitched the cukes. They were past their prime.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Spacrazy — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 02:58:25 GMT

@colleena: Maybe make some bread & butter pickles?

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Queen of shop — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 03:13:26 GMT

@colleena I love tzatziki sauce. It's a dip for veggies or can be served with salmon.

Really delicious and made with almost all grated cucumbers, yogurt, lemon, garlic, olive oil and dill weed. Maybe you can try that?

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

sunshine45 — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 03:47:08 GMT

asian cucumber salad.....i would probably remove the seeds though.

we also make something that is similar to tzatziki and serve it as a side dish, especially if we are eating a meal with rice. yogurt, grated or chopped cucumber, salt, pepper, dried mint.....it is sometimes garnished with chopped walnuts and raisins.

cucumber mint infused water

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Desertdi — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 05:50:57 GMT

@Sooner wrote:
@colleena Probably pitch them out. They are most likely overgrown and seedy.

@Sooner That's what I always thought. Cukes should look like, well, cucumbers, not bowling pins. (Grandpa was a farmer) di

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Carmie — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 06:21:57 GMT

Don't throw them out. Cucumbers come in a few varieties. It sounds like you have English cucumbers.

You can use them just like "regular" cucumbers.

They are good to slice and dip for a snack or use in salads. You can make a cucumber salad with oil, vinegar, cukes and onions with a little oregano.

Another salad is chunks of cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and feta cheese dressed with olive oil (authentic Greek salad).

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Imaoldhippie — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 10:24:02 GMT

@colleena ...........are you sure they a cucumbers? Sounds like a possibility of zucchini that has the appearance of being cucumbers?

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

ID2 — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 10:22:02 GMT

I buy fresh cucumbers all the time from local farmers. I picked the biggest ones last time (they were huge) thinking I got a great deal. They were very bitter...yuck.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Q-Checker — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 10:25:06 GMT

Glad to read so many good suggestions on what to do with your giant cuke. Throwing food out is .......

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

SoCal Bred — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 12:37:47 GMT

It does sound like you have English cucumbers. I like to peel and slice them thinly add to a large bowl with a little vinegar just enough to slightly cover the cucumbers add a little sugar and toss all together. Makes a Japanese style pickled relish.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

BlueFinch — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 14:40:00 GMT

Growing up around my dad's huge fenced in garden, when cuke's would get too large (far from gigantic), we'd throw them over the fence for the deer and other critters.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

ahoymate — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 14:58:54 GMT

There are nearly 100 different varieties of cucumbers.

English, Lemon, Persian, Chinese, Armenian etc. Google to see what kind of cucumber you have.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

colleena — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 15:25:14 GMT

Thanks everyone for the great ideas, appreciate it.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

ECBG — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 19:31:25 GMT

Peel and cut length wise; invert a teaspoon and scrape out the seeds, make

cucumber sandwiches,

tomato and cucumber salad with red onion and oil and vinegar.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Scooby Doo — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 16:39:04 GMT

If they are too big and round they will be bitter. Firm texture doesn't matter. I grew some cukes last year and a few "hid" at the bottom of the plant and got big enough to use as a weapon. How big around are your cukes? If they are maybe 2 inch in width they might be English cukes and they would be ok. Just taste them to see if you like them.

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

Othereeeen — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 17:40:47 GMT

Maybe cut them open, scoop out the seeds, and taste the flesh that's left...if it tastes GOOD , eat it, if not, toss it for the animals!!!

I always felt like I was wasting food too when I'd find a zucchini hidden below the plant's leaves, as big as a baseball bat...but I know from experience they are no longer tasty ( they COULD be edible, but not tasty!!) so I'd toss them as high as possible into the back field, where they'd land with a satisfying THUD, broken apart, and they'd be gone by the next morning ( Deer I think!!)

So they weren't really "wasted"...

Today's veggies are bred to produce large yields of fruit or veggie per plant....so you don't have to plant dozens of plants to get a good yield like when we were kids ...each plant today, if cared for and watered and reasonably fertilized occasionally, produces like crazy...ESPECIALLY zukes, cukes and tomatoes.

Which is good if you're single like me.....each plant produces enough for fresh and a little left over for breads or sauce!!!

Re: Cucumbers - don't laugh

RedTop — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 17:47:06 GMT

@colleena

There is a HUGE difference between an English cucumber and the typical garden grown American cucumber!

My Dad only liked and grew, a Straight 8 variety of cucumber, which is at peak at about 6" long and 2" diameter. At the height of growing season when vines were loaded, my brothers and I were pulling cucumbers 2x a day to keep up with their rapid growth. It was nothing for us to fill a 5 gallon bucket with cucumbers every day just to avoid letting them get too big. At the very end of the season when the vines were dying, the cucumbers that were left were allowed to grow until we pulled the vines and threw everything in the hog lot for our pigs to enjoy.

To me, a huge American variety cucumber is a sign of a lazy gardener, and I will not eat them. As the seeds get big, the inner flesh of the cucumber changes to a stronger, bitter taste, and nothing you try to do with those slices will make them tasty. When my family made our own pickles, they were made with young, early season cucumbers, not those end of the season giants.