Calorie content and composition of gherkins. Useful properties, consequences of abuse and contraindications of a vegetable. How to cook properly and for what dishes to use. Absolute contraindications to the use of gherkins:
- Diseases of the liver. Potassium negatively affects the course of the disease and its treatment.
- Pregnancy. You should refrain from eating raw gherkins, as they can provoke an upset stomach.
- Lactation. Until the end of breastfeeding, it is better to refuse French cucumbers.
How to pickle gherkins
Before buying gherkins, you need to know several external signs of a quality product:
- Tail … Gherkins that have been properly stored have a hard and green tail.
- Colour … There should be no yellowish spots: they indicate that the gherkin was not grown correctly, it may have been lying on damp ground for a long time. Also, white spots may indicate an overripe fruit.
- Consistency … The fruit should be firm, with no flabbiness or soft patches.
- Skin … The skin of a good gherkin is abundantly covered with pimples, which indicate a high crunchiness.
- The size … The length of the fruit should not be more than eight centimeters. If the gherkins are larger, most likely, the negligent seller is trying to pass off regular cucumbers for them.
Raw gherkins are great for anything that uses cucumbers. They differ from the latter in a more tender skin and elastic flesh. But in cookbooks, you often find canned crunchy gherkins, which are prized for the fact that after processing they retain their consistency and keep their shape perfectly.
We present to your attention the recipes for pickled gherkins:
- French gherkins … Mix almost a tablespoon of white wine vinegar with the same amount of water, add 5 sprigs of tarragon and 5 sprigs of thyme, bring the marinade to a boil, cool. If necessary, make more marinade by doubling the ingredients. Rinse gherkins (1 kg) in cold water, cover with coarse salt so that each cucumber is completely covered with it, leave in a closed container in the refrigerator for a day. After salting, rinse each cucumber in a vinegar solution (about 2 tablespoons of vinegar per 500 ml of water). Blot the cucumbers with a paper towel, collecting excess moisture. Place several peeled white onions together with gherkins in a sterilized jar. Add to it, if desired, a couple of bay leaves and 5-6 dried cloves. Pour gherkins with marinade, close the jar tightly, store in the refrigerator for 10 days until fully cooked.
- Instant pickled gherkins … Soak 30 gherkins in cold water, 4-5 centimeters in size. Place them in a sterilized 500-gram jar. Put horseradish leaves, peeled garlic cloves, allspice peas, a few sprigs of dill between the cucumbers. Pour boiling water twice for a couple of seconds, pour immediately. For the third time, leave in boiling water for 4 minutes, covered with a lid. Drain the water into a saucepan, add a teaspoon of sugar, a teaspoon of salt, a little water, and bring to a boil. Pour a tablespoon of vinegar into a jar, pour boiling brine so that the gherkins are completely covered with it. Close the jar tightly with a lid, leave in a cup at room temperature until it cools completely, store in the refrigerator.
Gherkin recipes
If you do not have time to marinate French cucumbers, then in stores you can always find a coveted jar at an affordable price for your future dish.
Consider recipes for dishes with gherkins:
- Noodles with champignons and gherkins … Boil 200 grams of rice noodles, rinse under cold water in a colander. Chop the pickled gherkins and champignons (150 grams) in equal proportions. Stew the mushrooms with vegetable oil until the liquid evaporates completely. Put the mushrooms in a colander, let the oil drain. Fry small pieces of pork (200 grams) in the same oil. Add gherkins, mushrooms, finely chopped spinach (100 grams) to the pan. Dilute 1 teaspoon of starch with 1 teaspoon of water, pour into the resulting mixture. Add 3 teaspoons of red wine, half a teaspoon of salt, a pinch of sugar, simmer until cooked. Put the frying on the noodles and serve hot.
- Salad with tuna and pickled gherkins … Rinse lettuce (1 small bunch), tear the leaves with your hands. Finely chop the green onion and dill, add to the salad. Add pickled gherkins (500 grams), cut into thin circles, there. Canned tuna (if desired, you can replace with another canned or fried fish), peel from the ridge and fins, cut into medium-sized pieces, put in a salad. Season with salt, season with olive oil and lemon juice. Boil 1 chicken egg hard-boiled, chop finely, sprinkle the salad on top.
- Vegetarian hodgepodge … Rinse sauerkraut (2 kg) under running water, put in a colander, chop finely in parts, put in a saucepan, pour in a little water, 50 grams of vegetable oil, simmer for 15 minutes. Add 100 grams of tomato paste, 200 grams of pickled gherkins in circles … Salt, sugar, bay leaf and peppercorns to taste, add boiling water to the desired consistency. Pour 1 kilogram of any mushrooms with water for 5 minutes, peel, rinse. Cook in boiling salted water for 15 minutes, drain into a colander, cool, cut into pieces, fry in a pan in vegetable oil with finely chopped onions (100 grams). Put the mushrooms and onions in a hodgepodge. Optionally, you can add potatoes, cook until cooked.
Interesting facts about gherkins
The cultivation of the predecessors of French cucumbers took over 3000 years and a huge part of the culinary world in the form of pickles. In the 19th century, gherkins appeared for the first time, which originally bore the name "gherkin", but then it slightly changed to what is familiar to us. It is believed that this change was due to the French fashion at that time for euphonious names.
Gherkin by biological origin is a "false berry" from the family of Pumpkin crops.
The sowing area of cucumbers is much larger than the sowing of gherkins, which led to the naming of all small cucumbers as gherkins. The difference lies not only in the varieties, but also in the price: a jar of real crispy gherkins is much more expensive.
If you come across sluggish pickled fruits, then this indicates either a decrease in salt from the correct recipe, or these are not gherkins at all. Also, French cucumbers are distinguished by tender, soft, but crunchy seeds, which give the feeling that the fruit consists entirely of pulp.
How to pickle gherkins - watch the video:
Gherkins give free rein to imagination in decorating the dish, small whole cucumbers look great in vegetable salads, and the content of substances and vitamins allows us to call this dish healthy. You should definitely try these French cucumbers and be sure to appreciate their taste and aesthetic qualities.