Ingredient: Cucumber

Step into summer with one of the season’s most refreshing veggies

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CUCUMBER BASICS

Buying: Look for firm, evenly rounded cucumbers with dark green skin that’s free of blemishes or wrinkles. Cucumbers should be eaten soon after harvest and last about a week in the fridge.

Cooking: Best enjoyed raw, cucumbers are essential in a summer salad of tomato, cucumber and onion. The porous gourd soaks up flavorful dressings handily, making them picnic perfect.

KEEP IT COOL

This crisp, refreshing vegetable is great for eating with a sprinkling of Tajin seasoning or packing in a pickle jar. Branch out from the typical cuke with the round yellow lemon, the pale green Armenian, or the long, ribbed Suyo varieties.

AROUND RVA

Cheng Du: Spicy from the Szechuan peppercorns and cooling thanks to the cuke, this eatery's heat-tinged cucumber salad is hard to quit.

Juice Life RVA: Cold-pressed watermelon and cucumber are blended with lemon and ginger for a hot-weather antidote dubbed “Summer Friends.”

Stella’s: In the Tria appetizer, try the tzatziki, a traditional yogurt and cucumber sauce tinged with garlic and ready for dipping.

“The cucumber is a refreshing, versatile vegetable.” —Mike Ledesma, chef-owner of Perch and Instabowl

COOK LIKE A LOCAL

Quickles 

By Mike Ledesma, chef-owner of Perch and Instabowl

The menus at chef-owner Mike Ledesma’s Perch and Instabowl are dotted with cucumbers, whether in the tuna poke or the Korean-inspired Seoul to Seoul rice bowl, where they add a fresh reprieve to gochujang’s smoldering heat. “It’s a great base for cocktails and easily takes on flavorings to brighten up any entree,” Ledesma says. His recipe for quickles — quick pickled cucumbers and onions — calls for an abundance of the summer bumper crop, and it can be used on anything from sandwiches to libations.

1-2 cucumbers (depending on size), deseeded, cut in half-moons  

1 cup white vinegar   

1/4 cup sugar  

1 sprig thyme  

1 teaspoon peppercorns  

1 garlic clove (crushed)  

1 shallot, diced  

Bring vinegar and sugar to a boil. Add liquid to cucumbers and seasonings, and allow to cool to room temperature. Place in the refrigerator to cool for an additional 30 minutes.  

This recipe has many variations, including substituting agave for sugar or adding any combination of Szechuan peppercorns, juniper berries, beets, jalapenos, citrus or fresh herbs.   The finished quick pickles will last for a few weeks in the refrigerator.