Cucumbers and tomatoes are everyone’s favorite vegetables. As soon as spring comes, they immediately appear on the tables of each family. They are not only very tasty, but also healthy. But few people know what to cook from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes except salads. And once there comes a moment when every housewife asks this question. But what do we know about these familiar vegetables? Is it really just a tasty snack?
The benefits and harms of cucumbers
An interesting fact is that we eat this vegetable not ripened, but also green. In addition to its refreshing taste, it has several beneficial properties. Although not a whole lot of them, but it is worth knowing about them. This product is one of the most welcome guests on the diet table, as it has a very low calorie content, namely 13.5 kcal per 100 grams. Therefore, if a person sits on a very strict diet, the cucumber will always be an assistant in this matter. Also, nutritionists recommend it to overweight people also because of the ability to regulate appetite and create a feeling of satiety. It contributes to better digestion of proteins, so it is very good to use it in combination with meat. Cucumber has a unique property - it neutralizes acidic compounds that disrupt metabolism and lead to aging of the body. But it is worth remembering that the benefit will be only from fresh vegetables, pickled here will not work. Therefore, you need to think about what you can cook from fresh cucumbers, since they are most useful. But if a person has high acidity, he needs to limit the use of this product. Nursing mothers should also temporarily limit themselves in the use of cucumbers, because this can cause diarrhea in the baby. All other categories of people can safely experiment and come up with what can be prepared from fresh cucumbers.
The benefits and harms of tomatoes
People call this vegetable a source of good health. Tomatoes are not only tasty, but also very useful, as they contain many vitamins (PP, B 6 , B 2 , A, E, K and others). In addition, they contain fructose, mineral salts, glucose, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, zinc and sodium. But the most useful substance that the body receives from tomatoes is lycopene, which in heat-treated fruits even enhances its properties. It has an anti-cancer effect, killing pathological cells. This vegetable owes it to him its bright red color. Therefore, you need to know what to cook from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes. If this is a salad, then it must be seasoned with vegetable oil for better absorption of lycopene. If a person has depression, the Red Healers come in handy. Serotonin contained in them helps to regulate the nervous system, its second name is “hormone of joy”. But there are contraindications to the use of this vegetable. The first is allergic reactions, the second is diseases of the musculoskeletal system and kidneys. They should not be eaten with bread, fish, eggs and meat, although we are very used to it. This raises the question of what to cook from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes.
Fancy salad
Salad is a classic of the genre in recipes with cucumbers, but there is a dish that seems very unusual to the hostess, its taste will surprise everyone. In addition to this green vegetable, kiwi, mint and green onions are also included. The mixture is seasoned with sauce made from mustard, olive oil and lemon juice. The result is a wonderful addition to meat (chop, pork ribs). But what to cook from fresh cucumbers except salads?
Soup
In summer, in hot weather, you want something refreshing. And then cold cucumber soup comes to the rescue . To cook it, the hostess will need a kilogram of cucumbers, a liter of broth (vegetable or meat to choose from), 200 g of fat sour cream, mustard to taste, 6 leaves of mint, 4 cloves of garlic, 200 g of smoked fish (preferably red), herbs. Cooking this dish is very simple: grate the cucumbers, mix the broth with mustard, finely chopped mint, sour cream and herbs. Squeeze the garlic into the mixture, add the grated cucumbers, mix. Put the resulting soup in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. Before serving, put a fish cut into cubes on top. If you want a more dietary option, take sour cream of lower calorie content. But if you get enough of this recipe, and again you will think about what to cook from fresh cucumbers, then there are several more options.
Stew
Vegetable once from fresh vegetables is considered a very easy and tasty dish. To prepare it, you will need cucumbers, mushrooms, sour cream, garlic, herbs, a spoonful of flour and spices to taste. Wash and cut vegetables, put in a pan and simmer until liquid appears. Next, add herbs, salt, garlic and spices. After 10 minutes, add the sauce made from sour cream and flour. Put out a couple of minutes. An excellent side dish for this stew will be mashed potatoes or rice. In the summer, you often feel thirsty, so the urgent question is what to cook from fresh cucumbers as a drink.
Lemonade
A very unusual property of a cucumber is that it is easily combined not only with seasonings, but also with honey or fruit syrups. Therefore, they make a very delicious refreshing lemonade. For him, you need to take a peeled cucumber and grind it in a blender. Add lemon juice and honey. Next, you need a mixer, because the mixture needs to be beat well, add mineral water and mix again. Such lemonade will surprise even the most ardent gourmet. But these are all summer dishes. And when the cold comes, I want to try something fresh and tasty. Therefore, you need to think about what to cook from fresh cucumbers for the winter.
Pickle
This soup is quite common, but few people know that you can create a blank for it, which will help any housewife at the right time. This recipe easily solves the question of what to cook from fresh cucumbers for the winter. For cooking, you need to take cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, carrots, pearl barley, vegetable oil, vinegar, water, salt and sugar. All vegetables are chopped or rubbed at will, then stewed in vegetable oil. After a couple of minutes, barley is added, and this mixture is cooked for 20 minutes. Then vinegar is added and the stew is stewed for another 10 minutes. The resulting dish is laid out in jars and sent to the basement.
Fancy Tomato Dishes
Tomatoes can be prepared in many ways. They are boiled, steamed, squeezed, fried, stuffed, canned, baked and cook unusual desserts. Therefore, there are many answers to the question of what to cook from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes. Mexicans and Spaniards are very fond of this red vegetable. It is part of world-famous salsa and mashed gazpacho soup. Another interesting recipe that came to us from the Mediterranean is a pie with tomatoes. It is very easy to prepare, but its taste will not leave anyone indifferent. If you decide on extreme experiments, you can cook tomato jelly. This is a savory dish that will be the decoration of any table. You can also stuff tomatoes with octopus or lentils, making beautiful baskets from the vegetables themselves. A super-vitamin smoothie will turn out if you mix tomatoes and celery in a blender. And its aroma will even more cheer you up.
Thus, the cookbooks are full of recipes that are not very well known among ordinary people, but the dishes are excellent. Therefore, if you think about what to make from fresh cucumbers, except for salads, then just use our tips.