Keisha Shakespeare-Blackmore, Staff Reporter

Cucumber is great to add to almost any meal. Here, slices of cucumber are added to smoked marlin, along with pineapple mouse for a great appetizer. - Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer

Cucumber may be considered by many to be a boring tasteless vegetable. However, adding cucumber to your diet can aid in weight loss as it is extremely low in calories.

Having an enclosed seed and developing from a flower, cucumbers are scientifically classified as fruits. They are a lot like tomatoes and squash; however, their sour-bitter flavour contributes to cucumbers being perceived, prepared and eaten as a vegetable. It should be noted that vegetable is a purely culinary term and as such there is no conflict in classifying cucumber as both a fruit and a vegetable.

The fruit is roughly cylindrical, elongated with tapered ends, and may grow as large as 60 cm long and 10 cm wide. The ones that are grown to be eaten fresh are called slicers, while those intended for pickling are called pickles. They are mainly eaten green as the ripe yellow ones are usually bitter and sour in taste.

Great anyway

Nutritionist at the Heart Foundation, Frances Mahfood says she considers cucumber a free vegetable that can be eaten as much as possible. She explained that it is low in calories, but has other nutritional values. She says she advises her clients to eat as much as they want. She noted that though it is tasteless, it can be spiced up with salt and pepper or added to a salad or made into a pickle. However, she advises diabetics to avoid pickled cucumber because of the high sodium content. "But they can use the fresh ones and make their own dressing with a bit of salt, pepper and olive oil," she said.

Mahfood told Food that people should not take cucumbers for granted. The flesh of cucumbers is primarily composed of water, but also contains ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and caffeic acid, both of which help soothe skin irritations and reduce swelling.

The hard skin is rich in fibre and contains a variety of minerals including silica, potassium and magnesium.

Cucumbers are commonly harvested while still green, and can be eaten raw, cooked or pickled. The fresh cucumber seeds are also a source of Vitamin C and K, potassium, provides dietary fibre, Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, thiamin, folate, pantothenic acid, magnesium, phosphorus, copper and manganese.

Great ways to have cucumber

Mahfood notes that cucumber can be made into very interesting recipes that are both nutritious and tasty. She said that a cucumber sandwich is absolutely divine; all you need is thinly sliced cucumbers with cream cheese or mayonnaise. She added that yoghurt by itself is very bland, but with cucumber cubes, a pinch of salt and dried mint, will add a very delicious twist to your yoghurt. She added that cucumbers makes excellent drink and can be use instead of chips with your favourite dip.

Varieties of cucumber

There are several varieties of cucumber across the world.

English cucumbers can grow as long as two feet. They are nearly seedless, have a delicate skin which is pleasant to eat, and are sometimes marketed as 'Burpless', because the seeds and skin of other varieties of cucumbers can give some people gas.

Japanese cucumbers (kyuri) are mild, slender, deep green, and have a bumpy, ridged skin. They can be used for slicing, salads, pickling and are available year-round.

Mediterranean cucumbers are small, smooth skinned and mild. Like the English cucumber, they are nearly seedless.

Slicers are grown commercially for the North American market are generally longer, smoother, more uniform in colour, and have a much tougher skin.

Dosakai is a yellow cucumber available in parts of India. These vegetables are generally round in shape. It is commonly added in soup, daal (pea and vegetable stew) and also in making Dosa-Aavakaaya (Indian pickle) and Chutney.

Additional source: www.wikipedia.com