Cucumbers
Salad Cukes
This is from The Beginner’s Guide to Preserving Food at Home by Janet Chadwick, which is a great book that gives several different options for preserving each kind of food, with good instructions and illustrations.
Wash 6-8 cucumbers. Slice thinly with a food processor. Peel and slice thinly a medium onion. Measure out 2 quarts of sliced cucumbers. Mix with onions and 2 tablespoons of salt in a large bowl. Let stand 2 hours.
Drain vegetables well. Rinse thoroughly with cold water. Drain well again. Return drained vegetables to the rinsed bowl. And 2/3 cup each oil, vinegar, and sugar [we use half sesame oil, half olive oil and only 1/3 cup sugar]. Add 1 teaspoon celery seed. Mix well.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Pack in freezer jars or containers. Leave 1-inch headspace. Freeze.
To defrost, place in refrigerator overnight.
Tomato and Cucumber Salad
This is adapted from Cooks Illustrated magazine. The key here is to extract and reduce the tomato juices, then add them back in the dressing. It takes a little longer than your average tomato and cucumber salad, but it's really good. This method also makes a nice fresh pasta sauce with really great tomato flavor. Yum.
4 cups chopped tomatoes
salt
1/2 tsp sugar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 shallot, minced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper
1 small cuke, diced
1/2 c chopped kalamata olives
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
3 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
- Toss the tomatoes, 1/4 tsp salt, and sugar in a bowl, then let stand for 30 minutes. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and shake gently to loosen seeds and juice, then strain, or place in a salad spinner and spin all the goop out. You should have about 1/2 cup goop.
- Simmer the 1/2 cup tomato goop, oregano, shallot, garlic, and vinegar in a small saucepan. Reduce to 3 tablespoons, 6-8 minutes. Let cool, then whisk in oil, and season with salt and pepper to taste
- Mix cukes, olives, feta, tomatoes, and dressing - and enjoy!
This is from The Beginner’s Guide to Preserving Food at Home by Janet Chadwick, which is a great book that gives several different options for preserving each kind of food, with good instructions and illustrations.
Wash 6-8 cucumbers. Slice thinly with a food processor. Peel and slice thinly a medium onion. Measure out 2 quarts of sliced cucumbers. Mix with onions and 2 tablespoons of salt in a large bowl. Let stand 2 hours.
Drain vegetables well. Rinse thoroughly with cold water. Drain well again. Return drained vegetables to the rinsed bowl. And 2/3 cup each oil, vinegar, and sugar [we use half sesame oil, half olive oil and only 1/3 cup sugar]. Add 1 teaspoon celery seed. Mix well.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Pack in freezer jars or containers. Leave 1-inch headspace. Freeze.
To defrost, place in refrigerator overnight.
Tomato and Cucumber Salad
This is adapted from Cooks Illustrated magazine. The key here is to extract and reduce the tomato juices, then add them back in the dressing. It takes a little longer than your average tomato and cucumber salad, but it's really good. This method also makes a nice fresh pasta sauce with really great tomato flavor. Yum.
4 cups chopped tomatoes
salt
1/2 tsp sugar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 shallot, minced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper
1 small cuke, diced
1/2 c chopped kalamata olives
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
3 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
- Toss the tomatoes, 1/4 tsp salt, and sugar in a bowl, then let stand for 30 minutes. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and shake gently to loosen seeds and juice, then strain, or place in a salad spinner and spin all the goop out. You should have about 1/2 cup goop.
- Simmer the 1/2 cup tomato goop, oregano, shallot, garlic, and vinegar in a small saucepan. Reduce to 3 tablespoons, 6-8 minutes. Let cool, then whisk in oil, and season with salt and pepper to taste
- Mix cukes, olives, feta, tomatoes, and dressing - and enjoy!