The nuances of preserving long cucumbers: is it possible to preserve Zozul's cucumbers for the winter and how to do it tasty and simple

Zozulya long cucumbers - salad hybrid. Its fruits have a refreshing sweet taste and are ready to harvest 35 days after sowing.

Zozulya is a high-yielding hybrid. For this reason, the owners of the garden often do not have time to eat the entire harvest. Due to the large size and low keeping quality, many gardeners do not know what to do with the remaining cucumbers. Meanwhile, the harvesting of such fruits is quite possible, you just need to know the technology and some of the nuances of the process.

Is it possible to preserve Zozul's cucumbers for the winter and what recipes are best suited - read on.

Features of harvesting Zozulya cucumbers

Zozulya belongs to salad hybrids. Is different long fruits with a small number of "pimples". The flesh of cucumbers is dense, juicy with a rich sweet taste.

With insufficient moisture, the fruits begin to taste bitter. Such cucumbers are not suitable for blanks. Their taste will not change for the better, even after prolonged pickling.

It is believed that salad varieties are not suitable for pickling. Most of them are soft and not crunchy, quickly lose their shape and are poorly saturated with brine.

This is not the case with Zozulya. The fruits of this hybrid meet all the requirements for pickling - dense pulp, thin skin, and the presence of tubercles. When properly prepared, they will remain crispy throughout the winter.

The only drawback of marinades with Zozulya is that such blanks are stored for no more than a year. In old preparations, cucumbers become soft and tasteless.

Important! Harvest as much Zozuli as you can eat during the winter.

As Zozuli fruits rather large, they are pickled not whole, but in pieces. Sometimes cucumbers are harvested ahead of schedule, before they have reached their maximum size. In this case, they will fit in the entire jar.

Selection and preparation of cucumbers

Many housewives, once faced with an unsuccessful attempt to harvest Zozuli, no longer try to cann the hybrid again.

The secret of crispy cucumbers is not the recipe, but the correct preparation:

1. Freshly collected fruits from the garden are thoroughly washed in cold water, removing thorns and residual dirt with a rag.
2. After that, they are washed again in clean water, clearing the remains of inflorescences.
3. Zozulya is soaked in cold water for a longer period of time than cucumbers intended for conservation. On average, this process takes 4-8 hours. It is soaking that allows the fruit to remain crispy throughout the shelf life.

The choice of cucumbers also matters - the appearance and taste will depend on it.

For recipes, in which cucumbers are pickled in pieces, long fruits are suitable. But they should not be overripe, otherwise the workpiece will turn out to be tasteless.

To preserve whole cucumbers, they are picked 5-7 days ahead of schedule. In this case, the hostess will receive small fruits.

It is recommended to try a few of the harvested fruits to make sure there is no bitterness. Bitter cucumbers will not work for the workpiece.

The cucumbers selected must be firm and firm. For canning, do not take spoiled and soft fruits, as well as those collected more than 4 hours ago.

The best recipes for preserving Zozul cucumbers for the winter

There are many recipes for harvesting cucumbers for the winter.Some of them involve cutting the fruit into pieces, while others - canning them whole. Consider the most unusual and successful options.

Preparation for sandwiches

Zozulya cucumbers make a delicious appetizer, which is used to make sandwiches and hamburgers. This preparation for the winter will appeal to lovers of spicy and spicy dishes.

The recipe involves cutting cucumbers into slices. Even large fruits.

Ingredients:

• hot red pepper powder - 1-2 tsp;
• cucumbers - 1.5 kg;
• turmeric - 2 tsp;
• allspice and black peas - 10 pcs.;
• mustard seeds - 1 tsp;
• table vinegar or apple cider - 400 ml;
• sugar - 1 glass;
• onions - 1 kg;
• water - 1 l;
• salt - 4 tbsp. l.

The amount of hot red pepper is changed according to one's own taste. If you wish, you can do without it.

How to cook:

1. Prepared cucumbers are cut into slices 0.5-1 cm thick. They are covered with salt and left for 15 minutes. After this time, the separated juice is drained.
2. The fruits are washed with cool water and gently wiped off with a paper towel to remove excess liquid.
3. Onions are cut into half rings no more than 0.5 cm thick.
4. The chopped vegetables are mixed. They are laid out in jars, filling the dishes up to the shoulders.
5. Spices, salt and sugar are poured into water, brought to a boil and boiled for 10 minutes. Then vinegar is poured into the mixture and boiled for another 2 minutes. The brine is poured into sterilized jars.
6. The cans are rolled up, left upside down under the blanket until they cool completely, then put into the refrigerator.

In this form, the workpiece is stored for about a month. To extend the shelf life of the snack, cucumbers with pickle in jars are sterilized. To do this, they are placed in a pot of cold water "shoulder-length" and boiled for 20 minutes over low heat. In this case, it is not necessary to sterilize empty jars, and you need to treat the lids with boiling water.

Advice! If desired, a bunch of finely chopped parsley is added to the specified amount of ingredients.

Vinegar-free recipe

Adherents of proper nutrition consider canning with vinegar harmful. In this case, a recipe that does not include this product will work. Despite the lack of characteristic acidity, the appetizer will have a rich spicy taste.

Whole fruits are needed for this recipe. Therefore, they are collected at a small stage.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers - 2 kg;
• garlic - 2 heads;
• mustard powder - 1 tbsp. l .;
• cherry and currant leaves - 4 pcs.;
• dill umbrellas - 4 pcs.;
• salt - 4 tbsp. l .;
• water - 1.5 l.

If desired, add other spices (allspice, cloves, etc.).

Cooking method:

1. Leaves and horseradish are placed on the bottom of carefully washed and sterilized jars. Peeled garlic cloves are also sent there. All ingredients are evenly distributed among the jars.
2. Jars are filled with prepared cucumbers. This is done as tightly as possible.
3. Dissolve salt in warm water and wait for it to cool completely. The resulting brine is poured into cans.
4. Cucumbers are covered with nylon lids and left for 2-4 days. During this time, the liquid should become cloudy, and the cucumbers should acquire a yellowish tint.
5. The brine is poured into a separate container. It is not poured out.
6. Pure boiling water is poured into the banks.
7. After the water has cooled, it is drained. At this time, the brine is boiled, in which the cucumbers were fermented.
8. The brine is poured into jars, after which they are immediately closed with sterilized lids.
9. The jars are turned upside down and left under a blanket overnight.

Advice! Some housewives, before rolling such cucumbers, add 1 aspirin to the jar.

Pickle recipe

A delicious dressing for pickle is prepared from large Zozul cucumbers. In this recipe, they are cut into pieces. This preservation simplifies the cooking process. It is enough to add a little mixture to the pot with potatoes and meat and the soup is ready.

Ingredients:

• pearl barley - 250 g;
• cucumbers - 1.5 kg;
• vinegar - 45 ml;
• carrots - 0.5 kg;
• tomato paste - 300 g;
• sugar - 120 g;
• onions - 0.5 kg;
• salt - 3 tbsp. l.

For this recipe, no additional spices and ingredients are added.

Recipe:

1. The onion is cut into cubes. Carrots are rubbed on a coarse grater.
2. Cucumbers are cut into strips, cubes or grated.
3. All ingredients are placed in a saucepan. Sugar, salt, vegetable oil and tomato paste are also added there. The mixture is simmered over low heat for 30 minutes.
4. Vinegar and boiled pearl barley are added to vegetables. The ingredients are boiled for another 20 minutes.
5. The dressing is poured into half-liter sterilized cans. Roll up with lids, turn upside down and leave to cool completely.

If you make the same mixture without pearl barley, you get a dressing for a hodgepodge.

Zozulya cucumbers with rowan

One of the most unusual recipes is rowan cucumbers. This mixture turns out to be spicy and beautiful thanks to the orange berries.

Ingredients:

• rowan berries - 0.6 kg;
• cucumbers - 1.5 kg;
• water - 2 l;
• salt - 3 tbsp. l .;
• sugar - 150 g;
• vinegar (preferably apple cider) - 200 ml.

The mountain ash will not only make the appetizer taste more savory, but also act as a preservative.

Cooking snacks:

1. The tails of the prepared cucumbers are cut off. Rowan is washed under cold running water and soaked for half an hour.
2. Cucumbers and mountain ash are evenly distributed over sterilized jars. The container is filled as tightly as possible.
3. Salt and sugar are added to the water. The mixture is boiled until the ingredients are completely dissolved. Then vinegar is added to the brine and boiled for another 2 minutes.
4. Cucumbers with rowan are poured with brine. The ingredients are allowed to stand for 5 minutes. Then the brine is poured into a saucepan and boiled again. This is done 3 times.
5. After the third pouring, the cans are rolled up, turned upside down and left in a warm place until they cool completely.

Chokeberry is also suitable for this recipe. In this case, the taste of the appetizer will be softer.

With the addition of peas

Cucumbers with green peas are a mild-tasting snack. It will appeal to those who prefer interesting combinations, but do not like spicy and spicy dishes.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers - 1.5 kg;
• green peas - 300 g;
• dill and parsley - 1 bunch each;
• garlic - 2 large heads;
• vinegar - 50 ml;
• sugar - 5 g;
• salt - 2 tbsp. l .;
• water - 1 l.

For this recipe, it is better to take a small Zozulya. The amount of ingredients is calculated for two liter cans.

Cooking method:

1. The peas are washed 2-3 times, each time draining the liquid. Then it is simmered for 10 minutes.
2. Greens are washed and finely chopped. The garlic is peeled and cut into halves. The ingredients are evenly distributed over the jars.
3. Cucumbers with peas are laid out in the banks as tightly as possible.
4. The water is brought to a boil and poured into jars. After 10 minutes, the liquid is drained and boiled again. Then it is poured into jars and after 10 minutes it is poured back into the pan.
5. Salt, sugar and vinegar are added to the boiling liquid. The ingredients are boiled until the spices are completely dissolved.
6. The brine is poured into jars. The workpiece is rolled up, turned upside down and left to cool completely.

Assorted tomatoes and peppers

Assorted vegetables is a favorite recipe of many housewives. During storage, the tastes of vegetables are mixed, complementing each other. This appetizer turns out to be beautiful and unusual.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers - 1.2 kg;
• garlic - 2 large heads;
• onions - 2 pcs.;
• Bulgarian pepper - 0.5 kg;
• tomatoes - 1.5 kg;
• parsley - 2 bunches;
• leaves of currant, oak, cherry, horseradish - 6 pcs.;
• dill - 8 umbrellas;
• salt - 4 tbsp. l .;
• sugar - 8 tbsp. l .;
• red hot ground pepper - 1 tbsp. l .;
• cloves - 6 pcs.;
• water - 3 l.

For this recipe, small tomatoes and cucumbers are chosen.

Cooking method:

1. The greens are washed and evenly distributed over the jars. Dill umbrellas, fruit tree leaves - whole. The dill is finely chopped.
2. The pepper is cut into strips. The onion is cut into thick half rings. Garlic is peeled and used whole.
3. Layer onions, peppers, tomatoes, garlic and cucumbers. Cucumbers are only cut if they are too large.
4. Vegetables are poured with boiling water and allowed to brew for 5 minutes. Then the water is poured into a saucepan, spices, sugar, salt, vinegar are added and boiled until the sugar and salt are completely dissolved.
5. The marinade is poured into jars, after which they are immediately rolled up. The workpieces are left in the room until they cool completely, without wrapping them up.

In tomato juice

Cucumbers, cooked according to this recipe, have a spicy sweet-sour taste with a sharp edge. This recipe will not leave indifferent fans of unusual dishes.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers - 2 kg;
• tomato juice - 2 l;
• hot red ground pepper - 2 tsp;
• garlic - 2 large heads;
• allspice - 2 tsp;
• Bulgarian red pepper or paprika - 0.5 kg;
• sugar - 300 g;
• salt - 150 g.

The amount of sugar, salt and hot pepper can be changed to your liking.

Cooking method:

1. The garlic is peeled and disassembled into cloves. Pepper is cleared of seeds. Garlic and pepper are ground in a meat grinder or in a blender.
2. Cucumbers are tightly packed in sterilized jars along with hot red and allspice (peppers are evenly distributed over the jars). Vegetables are poured with boiling water and left to cool.
3. Tomato juice is brought to a boil, chopped garlic with pepper, sugar and salt are added to it. Cook the ingredients for 10 minutes.
4. Water is poured from the cans, a boiling tomato mixture is poured in instead.
5. Jars of cucumbers in tomato sauce are placed in a pot of water and sterilized for 40 minutes. After that, they are rolled up, turned upside down and left under the blanket until they cool completely.

In the process of cooking tomato sauce, they try it. If necessary, add additional sugar or salt.

Terms and conditions of storage

All curls are stored in a cool, dark place - a pantry and cellar are well suited. Some recipes require refrigeration.

Banks with Zozulya have not been stored for more than a year. After this time, the cucumbers become soft and tasteless.

Conclusion

Zozulya is a salad variety that is suitable for conservation. Delicious and unusual snacks are made from it. Large fruits are used for recipes in which they are cut into pieces, and small ones are suitable for preservation whole.

To make preparations for the winter with Zozulya tasty and crispy, cucumbers need to be properly prepared. It is due to prolonged soaking that they do not soften during prolonged storage.