Fresh Indian cucumber and tomato relish with ground cumin, lemon juice, cilantro, and cayenne. A cool, crunchy kachumber-style side dish that pairs with any spiced meal.
Classic gazpacho made with fresh tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, and red wine vinegar. A chilled no-cook Spanish soup pureed smooth and served cold.
End of the garden pickle relish using whatever is left in the fall harvest: cucumbers, green tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, beans, and carrots in a sweet mustard brine.
Chilled Bloody Mary soup with sauteed vegetables, tomato juice, Tabasco, and Worcestershire, served with a shot of ice-cold vodka at the table. A crowd-size cocktail in a bowl.
Old-fashioned sour cucumber pickles brined in vinegar, sugar, dry mustard, and alum with no cooking required. A three-month cold-cure refrigerator pickle.
Indonesian vegetable salad tossed in creamy peanut dressing with garlic, rice vinegar, and chili flakes. Crunchy tofu, bean sprouts, and broccoli make a bright gado-gado style make-ahead bowl.
Crab and cucumber rolls are a no-cook appetizer with seasoned crab salad stuffed inside hollowed-out cucumber and sliced into elegant bite-sized rounds. Cool, crisp, and ready in minutes.
Fresh Thai cucumber pickle with rice vinegar, shallots, carrot, and hot chili in a sweet-sour dressing. A no-cook, 15-minute condiment that pairs perfectly with rice dishes.
Bread and butter pickles with thin-sliced cucumbers and onions brined with salt and ice, then packed in a sweet-sour brown sugar, cider vinegar, mustard, and turmeric syrup.
Sweet pickles brine cucumber chunks overnight, then bring them to a boil in apple cider vinegar with sugar, turmeric, mustard seed, allspice, and celery seed. Eight pints of golden, crunchy pickles by tomorrow.
A delicious and refreshing salad can be a side dish with any main courses.
Sour cream cucumbers with fresh dill, chives, celery seeds, and apple cider vinegar. A cool, creamy side salad that chills in an hour. No cooking required.
Gurkensuppe, a German cucumber and potato soup with heavy cream, dill, and white pepper. Potatoes are boiled soft and sieved into a silky base with tender cucumber pieces.
India relish with cucumbers, green tomatoes, peppers, and onions in a spiced vinegar brine with turmeric, cinnamon, and mustard seeds. A classic canning recipe.
Cold stuffed tomatoes filled with crunchy diced cucumber, cabbage, peppers, and celery, topped with curry-spiked mayo. A retro summer salad-stuffed appetizer that pre-makes for parties.
A chilled, crunchy gazpacho-style soup packed with black beans, corn, jicama, peppers, cucumber, and zucchini in tangy tomato juice. Low-fat, vegetarian, and loaded with fresh vegetables.