How to keep fresh cucumbers in the refrigerator for as long as possible: the best ways and tips

In China, folk methods of preserving the freshness of vegetables are still used. Cucumbers are stored in special water storage facilities or wells, and they remain fresh and edible for up to 3 months. In a regular refrigerator, you can also keep as long as possible cucumbers crispy and fresh if you know and apply some tricks.

Can cucumbers be stored in the refrigerator

At a normal room temperature of 20-22 ° C, these juicy crispy vegetables begin to wither quickly, so you need to immediately put in the refrigerator.

Depending on the chosen storage method and the variety of vegetables, the shelf life ranges from 2 days to 1 month at a temperature not higher than + 8 ° C. Good keeping quality of the varieties Competitor, Kustovoy, Sadko.

Rules for choosing cucumbers for storage

To keep these vegetables fresh at home longer, they must be:

• not spoiled;
• dry and clean, without lumps of earth on them and damage;
• from an open bed, not from a greenhouse.

Not suitable for storage for more than 3 days:

• sluggish cucumbers - they quickly deteriorate even in the refrigerator;
• overgrown and yellow fruits - it is better to make winter harvesting of them in the form of a salad;
• thin, watery and hollow fruits.

How to properly store fresh cucumbers in your home refrigerator

Vegetables are sorted out, cleaned of impurities and the strongest are chosen. Cucumbers, even with minor damage, are best eaten immediately. Prepare the container in which they will be stored and determine the place in the refrigerator.

Cucumbers are not stored next to ethylene-producing foods: apples, pears, peppers, melons, bananas, tomatoes. Ethylene softens and promotes quick spoilage of cucumbers.

Storage methods:

1. Vegetables are stored in a special box for 3-4 days.
2. In an open plastic bag under a damp cotton cloth, vegetables will be stored for more than a week.
3. If each cucumber is wrapped in paper and folded in a container or bag, they will stay fresh for up to 14 days. You can use special food grade wrapping paper or regular tissue paper.
4. By placing the cucumbers with their stalks down in a bowl of cold water by 1-2 cm, you will increase their shelf life to 1 month. Water must be changed once a day.
5. In a jar with a candle, the cucumbers will stay fresh all winter. They are quickly washed and dried well, then folded or placed in a clean, dry jar. A non-scented candle is lit in a jar and the lid is carefully closed so that the candle does not go out. When the oxygen burns out and the candle goes out, the jar is put into the refrigerator or cellar. When stored in a vacuum, vegetables stay fresh longer.
6. Another simple and fun way to preserve cucumbers is to rinse them, dry them and brush them over with egg white. Before this, the protein is slightly whipped so that it turns into a homogeneous liquid. The dried protein turns into a film that retains moisture. Store vegetables in the refrigerator.

Important! During storage, vegetables should not get water.

How cucumbers should not be stored

Vegetables should not be washed before being placed in the refrigerator, unless they are stored in a white wrap or in a jar with a candle. Cucumbers left in a plastic bag will quickly rot due to condensation on the walls. Vegetables quickly soften and become slippery when stored near the freezer.

The most unusual storage methods

There are ways people have kept vegetables fresh before refrigerators came to their homes. Now they seem unusual, but cucumbers can be stored this way from a month to six months.

In the pond

The fruits are placed in a bag with small cells and a weight suspended from below and the bag is lowered into a reservoir that does not freeze in winter.

In sand

You will need earthenware and well washed and dried sand. First, put a layer of sand, then vegetables, then sand again, and so on to the top of the container. The dishes are closed, put into the cellar. The vegetables will be stored even longer if the container is buried in the ground.

In the well

If you have your own well on the site, a bucket of cucumbers covered with natural cloth is immersed in water by 1-2 cm.

In cabbage

For cultivation and longer storage, cucumbers are planted between cabbage rows. The lash with the ovary appearing on it is placed between the leaves of cabbage. Thus, the cucumbers grow inside the cabbage and are then stored in a cool place.

In vinegar

Vinegar is poured into a clean enameled dish with a layer of 3 mm, a colander or grate is placed inside, where the cucumbers are placed. The fruit should not touch the vinegar. The container is covered with a lid and stored in the cold.

General tips and useful tips

Cucumbers are 95% water, which evaporates even at low temperatures, so the main condition is to delay the evaporation of liquid from vegetables. The fruits should be firm and not have voids inside. A household vacuum sealer will keep food fresh longer, vacuum packaging prevents oxidative processes in food.

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Conclusion

Cucumbers will stay fresh in a regular refrigerator for a month or longer if you choose and prepare your vegetables correctly and use a variety of storage methods. Unusual, old ways keep these vegetables fresh and tasty for up to several months.