Ways to preserve cucumbers for the winter: how to keep cucumbers fresh

Fresh, crispy cucumbers with a full set of vitamins will always prevail over the canned option. Unfortunately, with improper storage, fresh cucumbers start to decompose very quickly. The only way out is to eat vegetables as soon as possible while they are fresh, or to find a new way to store them. Fortunately, simple methods have long been invented to keep cucumbers fresh for a long time. Check out our recommendations and learn how to keep cucumbers fresh for the whole winter.

Rules for the selection of cucumbers for long-term storage

Consider the mandatory requirements for the selection of cucumbers for storage. First of all, cucumbers should be fresh. It is necessary to minimize the time of transportation of cucumbers from the garden to the place of storage. The cucumbers that have lain for 3-4 days at room temperature are no longer suitable for long storage. Choosing cucumbers on the trading floors, you need to take into account the condition of the entire batch of vegetables. If, on the whole, the product looks stale, you should not choose individual fruits that are different from greens - they will quickly deteriorate anyway.

Cucumbers must also be free from defects and damage. Otherwise, the fruits will not last long.

Another important requirement is that only soil varieties are suitable. The dense body and the bubbly skin of ground cucumbers are well stored. On the contrary, the juicy pulp and thin skin of greenhouse varieties are completely unsuitable for long-term storage of fresh cucumbers.

Based on the experience of experts, the best kept cucumbers varieties Kharkov and Nezhinsky. Fruits of long varieties also meet our requirements:

• Parade;
• Competitor;
• Sadko;
• Shrub;
• Non-invasive 40;
• Nezhinsky 12;
• Nezhin local.

And the last tip: if you are going to stock up on winter cucumbers, choose the fruit from the last harvest.

Storage of cucumbers in the refrigerator

If you keep cucumbers in the refrigerator without much preparation, they will remain fresh only for 3 days. However, there are a few simple secrets that will help ensure a much longer storage of cucumbers in the cold. So, let's see how to properly store cucumbers in the refrigerator.

Freeze Cucumber

The appearance of whole frozen vegetables leaves much to be desired. The form and texture are completely lost. Green leaves become wrinkled and soft, and their taste deteriorates. Therefore, the cucumbers should be chopped before freezing. So vegetables fully retain their freshness and taste. In addition, cucumbers frozen in this way do not need to be thawed before consumption. Therefore, freezing is an acceptable option for keeping cucumbers fresh longer. but Try to follow the correct freezing technique. It is necessary to cut vegetables into medium or small cubes. Next, the cutting should be tightly placed in special packages with a clasp.Send bags stored in the freezer. This product is convenient to use in the preparation of salad or okroshka.

Storing cucumbers in the fridge without freezing

Next, consider the options for how best to store cucumbers in the refrigerator.

• In water. In a tray or bowl with cold spring water, drop cucumbers (vertically, tails down). Water should cover fruits only by 1-2 cm. A bowl of greens should be kept in the fridge (in the vegetable compartment). Water is desirable to change once a day. Absorbing water, cucumbers will compensate for the natural loss of moisture. Fruits remain fresh up to 4 weeks.

• In cellophane. Wrap each fruit in a separate plastic bag or film. Then place the cucumbers in the refrigerator. This method of storage minimizes the amount of moisture that will help slow down the decay process. Cucumbers remain fresh for up to 10 days.

• Wrapping a paper towel - Another magical option of storing fresh cucumbers. Zelentsy will remain completely fresh for two weeks. Put the cucumber in the center of the paper towel (napkin) and wrap, and then pack in cellophane. Do this procedure with each fruit.Now do not forget to put the "bags" with wrapped cucumbers in the refrigerator. Raw cucumbers, surrounded by a paper towel, remain dry for a long time. This effect is achieved due to the absorption of water from the surface of the fruit by a towel. The moisture level decreases, which helps to keep the cucumber fresh.

• In egg white. The principle of operation of this method is similar to the previous version. Thanks to egg white, a film is formed on the surface of cucumbers that prevents the formation of moisture. Fruits need to be carefully, trying not to damage the skin, wash and dry. Meanwhile, take a raw egg, separate the white from the yolk. Next, you need to coat the cucumbers with protein. Store prepared cucumbers in the refrigerator.

Rules for storing cucumbers in the cellar

To learn how to properly store fresh cucumbers in a barrel, read our tips. Cucumbers can be stored in a cellar in ordinary wooden boxes. To do this, lay a thick plastic wrap on the bottom of the box and place on it the selected fruits of cucumbers. Top to preserve moisture, too, cover with cellophane. As a container, any enamel or ceramic container with a lid is also useful. At the bottom lay out a plastic wrap. Each cucumber wrapped with a paper towel and put in the bag. Then carefully lay out the wrapped cucumbers in a container. So cucumbers retain moisture and freshness better. In a dry and cool cellar manages to save cucumbers for a month.

Other ways to store cucumbers for the winter

Consider the storage methods of cucumbers, which were used by our grandmothers and great-grandmothers. Unconventional methods help keep cucumbers fresh for a fairly long time. If you have the desire and opportunity, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with unusual recipes on how to preserve fresh cucumbers until the New Year.

Recipe from the magazine "Worker"

We use only small or medium cucumbers. Vegetables must be whole, dry, unwashed and directly from the garden. Before harvesting, it is desirable to knock off dust from the fruit and water the bushes. Give the fruits on the bushes to dry.Then we collect the fruits, trying less to touch them with your hands. Cucumbers do not wipe!

We place a regular wax candle in a sterile three-liter jar, and cucumbers are neatly and carefully laid around. Filling the jar, light our candle. Fire displaces oxygen, and the tank is filled with carbon dioxide. Roll the jar with a metal lid. The candle goes out when the supply of oxygen in the bank is over. Cans of cucumbers should be placed in a cool place. As the Worker magazine explains to us, fresh cucumbers in a sealed can of a candle are in an oxygen-free environment. This makes it possible to extend their freshness for 1-2 months. In an oxygen-free environment, cucumbers are stored much better.

How to keep cucumbers in a barrel

The next option will tell you how to keep cucumbers fresh so that they do not spoil for a long time. First you need to purchase a wooden barrel of solid wood. Excellent oak barrels that are resistant to rotting.Tightly pick cucumber fruits in a barrel and seal hermetically with a wooden lid. Harvested barrel of cucumbers to deliver to the river and lower to the bottom. Take care that the barrel is not carried away over. In this way, it is possible to preserve the freshness of cucumber fruits until the middle of winter.

Storage in an acetic chamber

How to help vegetables retain their moisture for a long time, as well as how to preserve fresh cucumbers for the winter, will be prompted by the following unconventional method. To store cucumbers in the vinegar chamber, you need an enamel container and a plastic stand with holes. The container must be resistant to acetic acid. Stand set in such a way that the cucumbers on it did not touch the vinegar. At the bottom of the dishes pour 9% edible acetic acid (3-4 mm thick). Cucumbers are laid on a stand in several layers, tightly covered with a lid and transferred to a cool place. Cucumbers remain fresh for up to 1 month.

Storing cucumbers in a clay pot

Clay pot is an excellent container where you can store fresh cucumbers. In such a container cucumbers effectively retain their freshness. So, we pour a layer of dry river sand into a clay container, and on top of it we lay the fruits of selected cucumbers in layers. Then we fall asleep with another layer of sand.Thus, repeating the layers, fill the entire pot. Further capacity must be plugged and buried in the ground. In winter, you will be able to surprise your household and guests with fresh and tasty cucumbers that you managed to keep in this original way.

How to store cucumbers in cabbage

For those who care about how to keep fresh cucumbers longer, we offer the following effective option. Cucumbers need to be planted between the rows of the cabbage later varieties. The ovary of small cucumbers, along with the gentle, flexible stems on which they grow, are carefully placed between the leaves (closer to the stalk). Thus, cucumbers and cabbage grow together, and the fruits of cucumber are inside the cabbage. Cabbage head is well kept in a cool place, wrapped in a paper napkin. And along with the cabbage and cucumbers are stored.

All the above methods for storing fresh cucumbers are so effective that everyone should try to apply them! Fresh and tasty cucumbers will provide you with a good mood in winter.