The cucumber1 is very refreshing, and it is very watery from the inside. Everyone should eat them in summer to fulfill their body’s water requirement. Cucumbers are sweet and have a lot of seeds inside them. The seeds inside it do not taste sour because they are also sweet. Yet they don’t have a long shelf life and can get bad quickly.
Kids also eat them without throwing tantrums. Several ways can help you include it in your diet, and we will discuss them later in this article.
1. Is Cucumber a Fruit or a Vegetable?
First, discuss whether the cucumber is a fruit or a vegetable. Whether it is a fruit or a vegetable is very debatable. Cucumber is usually sold amongst other vegetables, so people think it is a vegetable. In reality, it is a fruit with a valid reason for that. It
has seeds inside its flesh, just like many other fruits. They also grow from the plants grown from these seeds. All these signs are enough to say that cucumber is a fruit.
2. Is the Cucumber a Summer Fruit or a Winter Fruit?
Cucumber is always a summer fruit, and it stays the same in all the different parts of the world. Its seeds are sworn in winter, and by the time it is summer, they come into the market for us. Even if you find it in winter, because it is possible now, don’t eat it because seasonal fruits are always better. In the season, they also do not taste good, and they can be bitter or tasteless from the inside.
While buying a cucumber, ensure it is not too big or small. If they are too big, the seeds in them will be tight; if they are too small, they might be unripe. You can choose to peel or eat them as they are because the peel is not unhealthy or bitter. Avoid drinking water right after eating cucumber because it can cause indigestion.
3. How to Know If a Cucumber is Bad?
Knowing when a cucumber has gone wrong can be tricky because signs are sometimes unclear. This portion will discuss the signs to tell if a cucumber is bad.
3.1. White Fome
This is the easiest way to know it. Storing cucumbers in a cool and dry place would prevent rot2. If you leave them for over two days, you may see some white dorm on them.
The white form is an indicator that it is bad now. If you keep a lot of cucumbers together, that white form will spread to the others, too, and all of the cucumbers will rot. Once the white form appears on a cucumber, Know that the cucumber is not edible now.
3.2. Dark Spots
If you keep them at room temperature, it can get nasty. Don’t keep them on the kitchen counter because they are summer fruit. The temperature is high in summer, so you should keep all your vegetables and fruits in the fridge.
If you see any dark spots on the cucumber, then it means that it is about to go wrong. Dark spots do not mean that you can’t eat it now. You can eat but not store them and use them immediately.
3.3. Soft Spots
While buying cucumbers, press them with your finger to ensure they do not have any soft spots. Soft spots only mean that they are wrong. If you find soft spots, then don’t buy them. If you notice soft spots on it after you have kept it for several days, it may mean it is terrible now. People should avoid eating them. Rotten fruits or vegetables can cause food poisoning to anyone.
3.4. Yellow Patches
When a cucumber goes terrible, it can grow one or more than one sign to indicate it has gone bad. Try to observe all these to ensure it is not bad yet. If you see some small or big yellow patches on the skin of the cucumber, it has gone bad in all those places. Instead of removing all these spots, throw the fruit away to prioritize your safety.
3.5. Holes
Don’t buy it if it has even a tiny hole on its surface. These holes indicate that they have some worms in them. You should not buy any fruit or vegetable with holes. If you cut it and see some holes or hollow spaces in it, that fruit has worms, and eating it is unhealthy.
Throw that away immediately. It can happen even if the cucumber is in the fridge because it had a tiny hole while buying it. Then, it can grow later and ruin the whole cucumber.
3.6. Squishy Flesh
When you cut a cucumber in half and find the flesh of the cucumber a little squishy or watery, then you should be concerned. You can also observe a bad smell in it. Observing any of these signs means it is bad, and you should throw it in the dustbin. Eating a lousy cucumber can cause food poisoning or some other stomach problems.
4. What Can Happen After Eating a Bad Cucumber?
Eating a rotten or bad cucumber should be avoided at all costs, but if you still eat it, you must take care of it. If you will eat it, you may suffer from food poisoning.
If not food poisoning, you may experience some discomfort in your stomach. People can also feel diarrhea and indigestion. If you are eating them, then make sure not to drink water or any liquid for a few minutes. In this condition, you may experience indigestion and discomfort.
5. How to Store a Cucumber?
Correctly storing fruits is as essential as buying the right fruit, and they are both extremely important. Start by washing them neatly and then dry them. If you want to store them, use an airtight container and put a paper towel on its base. This way, the paper towel will absorb all the water.
If you want, put a paper towel on them, too. You can also cut them into small pieces and then store them. Store the cucumbers in an airtight container.3 Put some lemon juice drops to keep them refreshing.
6. Some Things to Make With a Cucumber
There are many fun and refreshing food items to make with them. They are all delicious. Also, they have many health benefits and are summer fruits, so you can make many refreshing snacks with them. You can also give them to your pets in small quantities. Add cucumber to your diet if you often forget to fulfill your daily water requirement. Ensure they are fresh and in a good state before eating them.
Cucumbers aren’t just for salads anymore. Consider blending them into a deliciously refreshing summer smoothie. You can toss in some leafy greens like spinach or kale, add your favourite fruits, and a spoonful of your favourite protein powder for an extra boost. It’s a fantastic way to pack nutrients into your diet while staying cool and hydrated during those hot summer days.
In this section, I will tell you some exciting things to make with cucumber.
6.1. Adding It to Your Water
Drinking water right after eating them can be harmful, but adding a few slices is fine. Cut it into round, thin slices and add it to a glass water bottle or a jar where you keep your water. You can keep them in water for a day and then change them with fresh cucumber slices. It makes your water taste more refreshing and gives it a gentle smell.
6.2. Ice Cubes
Cut the cucumber into small pieces and put them in an ice tray. Add water to a silicon tray and freeze it. You can use these ice cubes in any drink. These ice cubes can make any dish very refreshing and smell good.
Final Draft
This article discussed how to identify a rotten cucumber. It would help to permanently store cucumbers in a cool and dry place because they are summer fruit. There are many ways to use cucumber, and its nutritional value is very high, making it a perfect summer fruit.
Use your skills and creativity to make different refreshing drinks using cucumbers. It is also very easy to feed cucumbers to your kids, and it can keep them hydrated for a very long time.
- Staub, Jack E., Matthew D. Robbins, and Todd C. Wehner. “Cucumber.” Vegetables I: Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Chenopodicaceae, and Cucurbitaceae. New York, NY: Springer New York, 2008. 241-282. ↩︎
- Robinson, J. E., Browne, K. M., & Burton, W. G. (1975). Storage characteristics of some vegetables and soft fruits. Annals of Applied Biology, 81(3), 399-408. ↩︎
- Hoehn, E., Prange, R. K., & Vigneault, C. (2009). Storage technology and applications. Modified and controlled atmospheres for the storage, transportation, and packaging of horticultural commodities. CRC Press (Taylor & Francis Group), 17-50. ↩︎
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