Cucumber has become a familiar guest on our table : which vitamin salad will do without thinly sliced green circles in it, and can you imagine winter preparations without it? This dweller of the beds seems to be one of the simple and unpretentious friend of the gardener. He is familiar to each of us, but how much do we really know about this green vegetable, or maybe fruit? Cucumber - is it a berry or a vegetable?
Table of contents
- Cucumber - is it a berry, fruit or vegetable?
- Features of growing cucumbers
- Useful properties for the body
- Is there any harm?
- Benefits for expectant mothers and their children
- Cooking applications:
recipes Is cucumber a berry, fruit or vegetable?
There is a lot of controversy about the true affiliation of cucumber to one of the types of plants. Someone calls it a vegetable, which is the most common opinion, someone - the fruit.
But at the same time, it is very reasonably attributed to vegetable crops .In cooking, they are classified as vegetables.
No matter how familiar for our places cucumber, in fact, , he is a native of hot and India at the foot of the Himalayas , being the very tropical plant grown by Egyptians and Indians.
Nevertheless, in Russia he took root with great success for himself.
Cucumber belongs to the pumpkin family and is a berry Features of growing cucumbers
Cucumber is one of the most ancient vegetable crops along with eggplants, beets and peas, which causes such a great variety of its varieties and types.
This representative of the plant world is presented in the form of an elongated pumpkin .Often has a rich emerald green color of the skin, covered with tubercles or pimples, more familiar to us.
They are intended for breathing plants, and for the gardener are an indicator of the maturity of the fruit for salting.
This crop can be grown both in open ground and in the greenhouse ( greenhouse) by seedling and seedless ways.
When planting in open field due attention should be paid to the soil. It should be nourished and fertilized.
Planting of crops usually takes place at the end of April of , when strong frosts are over, and their collection from mid-August to late September.
Hothouse the same way of cultivation usually guarantees a harvest that is richer in quantity and quality. Such fruits are juicier and more palatable and ripen one or two weeks earlier than their “non-celiac” relatives.
The most delicious and crispy means unripe .You should not wait when it will get its maximum size.
Ripe and over-ripe fruits will have a watery taste and lack of the freshness that is required of them.
Can be grown both in the open field and in the greenhouse by seedling and seedless methods Useful properties for the body
A well-known fact is that cucumber is almost entirely water, namely 95% .
As well as the vegetable has the following beneficial properties of the :
- is an excellent helper of the cardiovascular system, reducing blood pressure;
- carries a light drainage effect;
- is useful in the prevention of diseases of the kidneys, liver and thyroid gland.
Do not forget about one of the main beneficial qualities of a vegetable: rejuvenation of the body .There are a great many cosmetic creams for the face and hands with an extract of this vegetable, as well as many recipes for masks based on it.
Vegetable contains 95% water, vitamins C and B, phosphorus, iodine, magnesium and iron. The rest of the composition is taken up by vitamins and minerals, the number of which can pleasantly surprise with its quantity.
This and vitamin C , familiar to everyone, as a source of maintaining immunity. And vitamins of group B , supporting a stable state of the body.
As well as iodine, magnesium, iron and phosphorus , which are important components of the body.
Dishes from it are a great help for those who aim to lose weight or just get healthier. So, per 100 grams of such a vegetable has only 16 calories .
And, of course, , no cholesterol and what can worsen the body's condition in large quantities.
The program "About the most important" will tell about the benefits of the vegetable:
Is there any harm?
As already noted earlier, cucumber is a simple and familiar product for us, the use of which in reasonable quantities brings only benefit. But excessive eating it does not carry anything good .
There are a number of contraindications for , knowledge of which will help protect against further consequences. There are only a few of them:
- vegetable consumption is contraindicated for stomach diseases with high acidity levels;
- needs to pay particular attention to vegetables bought in a supermarket or on the market. In poor quality fruits, the risk of heavy nitrates is high.
Benefit for expectant mothers and their children
As a non-allergenic product, cucumber can be a great addition to the menu of pregnant women .
It is possible to teach children to it as early as about one year old , starting to lure from small portions.
Non-allergenic vegetables can be included in the menu of pregnant women and children from the year onwards. We all are well aware of the long preparation of blanks for the winter. In general, these processes are represented by several stages of :
- soaking fresh fruits in cold water for 6-8 hours;
- sorting, allowing to separate good fruits from those with cracks and dark spots;
- adding spices to taste( bay leaf, parsley, dill, pepper);
- process of pouring and rolling cans.
Salad with cucumber and kiwi and fresh cucumber cocktail:
A few interesting facts about cucumbers:
- cucumber and melon are distant relatives;
- cucumbers were introduced to our lands in the 16th century;
- in the city of Nezhin a monument to a cucumber was erected;
- in Europe, cucumbers with thorns are called "Russians".
And at the same time, this culture does not bear any harm, if it is properly grown and use as directed.
It is very important to look closely at the simple, because it is usually more useful. And such a dweller beds is no exception.
