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The cucumber has
been cultivated in Asia for 3000 years. Spreading from
India, it traveled to China, Greece and Italy, appearing in
the 9th century in France, it spread to England in the 14th
century and to North America in the 1500's.
When preparing
cucumbers for a salad, you may wish cut off the blossom end
as this part of the cucumber may be taste bitter. The
world's largest cucumber was grown in 1988 Australia. It
weighed in at 59 pounds. However, small cucumbers are
preferred for making pickles. The sweet gherkin, from the
German word for cucumber; 'gurke' is made of very small
cucumbers.
As the cucumber
grows, it ripens; turning yellow, soft, full of mature
seeds, and coarse, becoming less attractive as a food.
Cucumbers are a source of vitamin A and C, Molybdenum,
potassium, manganese, tryptophan, and dietary fiber. Dill
pickles have similar nutritional values to cucumbers with
the addition of 660mg of sodium per pickle.
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