TASK 41 COMMODITIES "CUCUMBER"

History of Cucumbers

Cucumber is a popular cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae that managed to captivate our attention from the moment it appeared in ancient India. Since that pivotal moment over 4000 years ago, cucumber was spread beyond Indian borders, moved through Ancient Greece, Rome, Europe, New World, China, and eventually becoming fourth most widely cultivate vegetable in the world. This journey was filed with golden periods when they were viewed as integral parts of many culture’s cuisines, and sometimes they were treated as bringers of disease.
Home for cucumbers (which have three main varieties - "slicing", "pickling", and "burpless") originated from Ancient India where it grew in the wild. Around 2-3 millennia BC, early Indian civilization managed to domesticate cucumber and start infusing it into their rich cuisine. As time went by, their manufacturing capabilities expanded, and in 1st millennia BC they started trading with Middle Eastern civilization and Europe. The most famous example of cucumber finding home in Middle East can be found in the legends of the ancient Ur and the sagas of Gilgamesh. Later on, Greek civilization embraced cucumbers and started calling them síkyon (σίκυον). During those times, cucumbers also reached Turkey, Bulgaria, Africa, Modern-day Serbia and Italy.
Roman Empire was the place where cucumbers were truly embraced by both nobility and lower classes. The ease of production and wide variety of types and tastes ensured that cucumbers remained popular in Italy for several centuries. In addition to eating, cucumbers were also widely used as a source of several medicinal remedies (both cultivated and wild cucumbers of cucumbers were used for creation of over various 40 remedies). They treated everything from bad eyesight, scared mices, cured scorpion bites, and carried around wastes by wives who wished to have children. The most famous example of cucumbers fascination in Ancient Rome came during the short reign of Emperor Tiberius (14 – 16 AD) who demanded to eat cucumber on every day of the year. During summer special gardens were tended just for his vegetables, and in winter cucumber was grown on moveable bed frames that were moved to be exposed to the sun, or illuminated with the mirror-stones.
After the fall of Rome, cucumbers receded from popularity for long amounts of time. They resurfaced on the court of Charlemagne in 8th and 9th century, and arrived in England in 14th century. That first interaction with English population was not successful, but cucumbers returned there in mid-17th century when they managed to take hold.
Age of Discovery proved to be a very important factor of spreading cucumber all across the word. Christopher Columbus brought cucumbers to Haiti in 1494 where they were grown by Spanish settlers and distributed further across New World. During 16th century, European trappers in North America introduced cucumbers to the native Indians in the region of Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains. Those tribes quickly saw the potential and nutritious value of cucumbers and watermelons, integrating them into immediately into their fields. The best Native American cucumber farmers were located on the lands of modern North and South Dakota.
During 18th century, expansion of cucumbers across North America suddenly stopped when several medicinal journals started reporting that cucumbers and all similar vegetables that were not cooked represented serious health risk. Discouraged by those misconceptions, cucumber use plummeted across the continent, which was reversed only in 19th century.
In 2010 worldwide cucumber production was 57.5 million tons, with majority of the world’s production and export being located in China (40.7 million tons).

How to Select and Store

Since cucumbers can be very sensitive to heat, you'll be on safer grounds if you choose those that are displayed in refrigerated cases in the market. They should be firm, rounded at their edges, and their color should be a bright medium to dark green. Avoid cucumbers that are yellow, puffy, have sunken water-soaked areas, or are wrinkled at their tips.

We address the issue of seeds and skins in our Tips for Preparing Cucumbers" section below. But during the selection process, you may find it helpful to know that thin-skinned cucumbers will generally have fewer seeds than those that are thick-skinned.

At WHFoods, we encourage the purchase of certified organically grown foods, and cucumbers are no exception. Repeated research studies on organic foods as a group show that your likelihood of exposure to contaminants such as pesticides and heavy metals can be greatly reduced through the purchased of certified organic foods, including cucumbers. In many cases, you may be able to find a local organic grower who sells cucumbers but has not applied for formal organic certification either through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) or through a state agency. (Examples of states offering state-certified organic foods include California, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.) However, if you are shopping in a large supermarket, your most reliable source of organically grown cucumbers is very likely to be cucumbers that display the USDA organic logo.

Cucumbers should be stored in the refrigerator where they will keep for several days. Cucumbers should not be left out at room temperature for too long as this will cause them to wilt and become limp.

Here is some background on why we recommend refrigerating cucumbers. Whenever food is stored, four basic factors affect its nutrient composition: exposure to air, exposure to light, exposure to heat, and length of time in storage. Vitamin C, vitamin B6, and carotenoids are good examples of nutrients highly susceptible to heat, and for this reason, their loss from food is very likely to be slowed down through refrigeration.

If you do not use the entire cucumber during one meal, place it in a tightly sealed container so that it does not become dried out. For maximum quality, cucumber should be used within one or two days.
Tips for Preparing Cucumbers

Two common questions about cucumbers involve consumption of their skin and their seeds. There are several facts you need to know before making your decision about consumption of cucumber skins and seeds. First, it is important to remember that the skins and seeds of cucumbers are both rich in nutrients. In fact, the nutrient richness of both plant parts is significantly higher than the flesh. For this reason, consumption of both skins and seeds is desirable from a nutritional standpoint. Both conventionally grown and organically grown cucumbers may have been waxed. However, the only waxes that can be used on organically grown cucumbers are non-synthetic waxes, and these waxes must be free of all chemical contaminants that are prohibited under organic regulations. Conventionally grown cucumbers may be waxed with synthetic waxes that contain unwanted chemical contaminants. For these reasons, we recommend leaving the skin of organically grown cucumbers intact regardless of whether the organically grown cucumber has been waxed. For conventionally grown cucumbers, we recommend removal of the waxed skin. For conventionally grown cucumbers that have not been waxed, we don't have a good research basis for recommending either removal or non-removal of the skin. However, if you do decide to consume the skin of a non-waxed, conventionally grown cucumber, we recommend thorough washing of the whole cucumber under cool running water while gently scrubbing with a natural bristle brush.

Some people have a personal preference for removal of cucumber seeds, and we respect this preference. The seeds can easily be removed from a cucumber if it's cut lengthwise and the tip of a spoon is used to gently scoop out the seeds. Our general recommendation, however, is to keep and consume the seeds, since they are an unusually rich source of nutrients. Getting optimal nourishment from your cucumbers while minimizing your health risks will mean choosing organically grown cucumbers over conventionally grown varieties.

How to Enjoy


A Few Quick Serving Ideas
Use half-inch thick cucumber slices as petite serving "dishes" for chopped vegetable salads.
Mix diced cucumbers with sugar snap peas and mint leaves and toss with rice wine vinaigrette.
For refreshing cold gazpacho soup that takes five minutes or less to make, simply purée cucumbers, tomatoes, green peppers and onions, then add salt and pepper to taste.
Add diced cucumber to tuna fish or chicken salad recipes.



Reference :

http://www.vegetablefacts.net/vegetable-history/history-of-cucumbers/

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=42