Cucumbers are the favorite vegetables of many people who prefer healthy food and fresh salads. Of course, you can buy this from the store even if the price is not seasonal. But it’s best to grow your own cucumbers if you have a garden. Unconditionally, you want to save your harvest as long as possible. But how to do this, if you can’t put all the cucumbers from the garden in the refrigerator? There are simple tips to store cucumbers fresh longer.
Best Ways to Store Cucumbers in Fridge
For cucumbers to last longer, you better take young types. If you are taking vegetables from the garden, then choose young cucumbers from 1 to 3 weeks.
This will increase the likelihood that they will be able to keep fresh in the fridge longer than the old ones:
- The easiest way is to keep cucumbers in the vegetable compartment. Most often it is located at the bottom of the chamber where the temperature has an optimal level of coolness. Usually, the shelf life in such a compartment is 5-6 days. If you put cucumbers in a plastic bag, then the shelf life can be increased to 1-2 weeks. Put this in a bag and cover with wet cheesecloth on top;
- You can also place each cucumber in baking paper. After that, you need to put them in a plastic bag. This will help keep vegetables fresh for up to 3 weeks;
- More complicated ways are to coat each cucumber with an egg white to create a film. This will protect the vegetables from moisture loss and keep them fresh longer;
- Another way is to put the cucumbers with their tails down in a shallow bowl with water. Check the liquid in the refrigerator and change it once a day. This method will keep the cucumbers fresh for up to 4 weeks.
How to Store Cucumbers at Room Temperature
To store fresh cucumbers, you can take a box or container and put them in it. The air temperature in the room should not be higher than +15 degrees, and the humidity should not be less than 90%. Cover vegetables better if you cover them with a damp cloth.
With any storage method, you need to inspect the cucumbers and remove spoiled vegetables every 2-3 days. It is best to choose a cool room – with a temperature of about 7 degrees. Such storage will not be long, a maximum of a week.
This storage method is convenient after harvest when you have a lot of cucumbers. You will need to hold them for a while before salting or selling.
Benefits of Cucumbers
Cucumbers are very useful when eaten fresh. These vegetables provide your body with useful substances: potassium, calcium, iodine. Cucumbers also contain vitamins: carotene, B2, pantothenic acid, C, B6 and others. The cucumber mask is good for the skin.
Other beneficial properties: good absorption of food and increased appetite. Also, these fresh vegetables will help with kidney, stomach and liver diseases. You can store fresh cucumbers for juice and drink for stomach pains or coughs.
They are also considered to be an excellent diuretic to cleanse the kidneys. The skin of the cucumber needs to be rubbed into porridge to smear the problem areas of the body with cellulite. There are many recipes for drinks with cucumber and other ingredients that help remove toxins and harmful substances from the body. There are drinks with cucumber, lemon, ginger and other elements that help to reduce weight.