Produce Briefs...
Orange Honeydew Melon
Oval-to-round and a delicious cross between a cantaloupe and a honeydew, the very fleshy juicy orangish-yellow pulp of the orange honeydew melon is encased in a hard very yellow matching rind.
Spring Onions
Spring onions are most often utilized raw. The whole onion can be flash blanched and grilled, which brings out more the robust and sweet elements of the onions, and makes them a bolder pair for fish and meats
Seasons/Availability
Pickling cucumbers are available year round. The peak season for pickling cucumbers is summer.
Current Facts
Technically, all cucumbers, Cucumis sativus, are a fruit but are treated and eaten as a vegetable. They are members of the gourd family Cucurbitaceae. There are three classifications of cucumbers: slicing, burpless and pickling. Pickling cucumbers are not a singular independent variety, rather dozens of varieties that are suited well for pickling. Pinnacle pickling cucumber varieties include Gherkin, Cornichon, Kirby cucumber, County Fair 83 and the Pickle Bush cucumber. Though, modern cultivars have been developed and chosen for pickling, any given cucumber can be pickled if harvested young and crisp.
Description/Taste
Pickling cucumber varieties can be distinguished from other cucumbers by their size, coloring and texture. Generally they will have a thin paler lime green skin with light colored longitudinal stripes with rough knobs throughout the surface. Most notable about pickling cucumbers is their flesh. Picklers are known for their trademark succulent, crispy and crunchy flesh that snaps upon bending or biting into even after canning and preserving. Pickling cucumbers can be eaten fresh and their flavor can range from mild and insipid to acidic and bitter.
Applications
As its given name suggests, the pickling cucumber will be best showcased after preserving in a vinegar, water, salt, sugar and pickling spice solution. This does not limit their culinary utility to one purpose, though, as non-bitter varieties can be treated the same as a slicer cucumber. Thus, you can use pickling cucumbers in a multitude of applications to provide both textural and flavor components. Pickling cucumbers can absorb other flavors quite quickly, which gives them the opportunity to act as a vehicle for spices in a short period of time. Consider using pickling cucumbers as a salad ingredient, for salsas and with creamy dressings. They are a great cooling ingredient in hot and spicy dishes. Pickling cucumbers make a perfect accoutrement to roasted fish and lamb, pair well with mint, chiles, mustard, cumin, citrus and fresh cheeses, such as feta and cotija. Cucumbers that have been pickled are a quintessential sandwich and burger accoutrement as well as a relish ingredient.
Geography/History
All cucumbers can trace their origins back to the ancestral cucumber native to the Fertile Crescent where North Africa meets the Middle East. Their cultivation evolved from a kibbuts (agricultural community) in North Israel. Cucumbers have since become a successful food crop for agricultural communities throughout both the Old and New World. They thrive in warm, dry, arid climates, most productively though, within greenhouses, protected from nature's elements, which can contribute to disease, flawed skin and of course, pests. Pickling cucumbers arose out of creativity and a necessity to remove bitterness from the fruit and to preserve aging crops. Though documentation cites the preserving of cucumbers in brine as early as Ancient Egyptian civilization, it wasn't until the mid- 19th Century when choice pickling cucumbers were first catalogued by New England horticulturist Fearing Burr. The Industrial Revolution brought about mass production which allowed Picking cucumbers to become an international staple throughout agricultural and culinary landscapes. Common mass produced supermarket pickle brands evolved in the early 20th century including Vlasic and Claussen. The 21st Century has brought about a renaissance of home preserving and pickling, creating a new market for small production pickling products that can be found at both farmers markets and specialty markets.
Featured Restaurants
Restaurants currently purchasing this product as an ingredient for their menu.
| La Valencia | San Diego CA | 858-551-3750 |
| Chaplos Restaurants & Bar | San Diego CA | 619-798-3888 frdesk |
| Mainstream Bar & Grill | Poway CA | |
| Lei Lounge | San Diego CA | 619-813-2272 |
| The Wine Pub | San Diego CA | 619-758-9325 |
| Sbicca | Del Mar CA | 858-481-1001 |
| Blind Lady | San Diego CA | 619-255-2491 |
| J six | San Diego CA | 619-531-8744 |
| Underdogs Gastro Truck | San Diego CA | 760-580-9158 |
| Tiger Tiger | San Diego CA | 619 764 5475 |
| Nine - Ten | San Diego CA | 858-964-5400 |
| Whisknladle | San Diego CA | 858-551-7575 |
| Prepkitchen Del Mar | Del Mar CA | 858-792-7737 |
| The Lion Share | San Diego CA | 619-564-6924 |
| Leroy's Kitchen & Lounge | Coronado CA | 619-522-6890 |
| Table 926 | San Diego CA | 858-539-0926 |
| Enoteca Style | San Diego CA | 619-546-7138 |
| The Bristol Hotel | San Diego CA | 877-784-6835 |
| Craft and Commerce (Sekscobra Inc.) | San Diego CA | 619-962-5935 |
| Hilton Carlsbad Oceanfront & Spa | Carlsbad CA | 760-602-0800 |
| The Smoking Goat | San Diego CA | 858-232-4220 |
| Bo Beau Kitchen & Bar | San Diego CA | 619-224-2884 |
| Salad Style | San Diego CA | 619-255-6731 |
| 100 wines | San Diego CA | 619-491-0100 |
| US Grant Hotel Grill | San Diego CA | 619-232-3121 |
| Counterpoint | San Diego CA | (619) 564-6722 |
| D Bar SoCal | San Diego CA | 619-632-7644 |
| The Wild Thyme Company | San Diego CA | 858-527-0226 |
| The Village at 631 | San Diego CA | 619-255-9405 |
| The Rose Wine Pub on 30th | San Diego CA | 619-280-1815 |
| Prepkitchen Little Italy | San Diego CA | 619-247-0394 |
| Paradise Point Resort Main Kitchen | San Diego CA | 858-490-6363 |
| Claire's on Cedros | Solana Beach CA | 858-259-8597 |
| Cucina Urbana | San Diego CA | 619-239-2222 |
| Terra Restaurant | San Diego CA | 619-293-7088 |
| Alchemy Restaurant | San Diego CA | 619-255-0616 |
| Urban Pickles Inc. | San Diego CA | 619-929-1458 |
| Amber Walsh/Michael Hayes | San Diego CA | 408-596-1191 |
| Roy's San Diego | San Diego CA | 619-239-7697 |
| Rancho Valencia | Del Mar CA | 858-756-1123 |
| Union Kitchen & Tap | Encinitas CA | 760-230-2337 |
| Vine Cottage | La Mesa CA | 619-465-0138 |
| Prepkitchen La Jolla | San Diego CA | 858-875-7737 |
| Starlite | San Diego CA | 619-358-9766 |
| Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center | National City CA | 619-434-4281 |
| Currant | San Diego CA | 619-702-6309 |
| Donovan's La Jolla | La Jolla CA | 858-450-6666 |
| The Craftsman New American Tavern | Encinitas CA | 760-415-2380 |
| Ritual Tavern | San Diego CA | 619-283-1618 |
| Inn at Rancho Santa Fe | Rancho Santa Fe CA | 800 843 4661 |
| Urban Solace | San Diego CA | 619-295-6464 |
| Herringbone | La Jolla CA | 858-459-0221 |
| Hotel Palomar-Salt Box | San Diego CA | 619-515-4062 |
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Pickling Cucumbers. One
is easiest, three is harder.
