In the spotlight - Cucumber

Cucumbers, a nice addition to a salad or sandwich, or a vegetable that sits in the salad box waiting to be used? There's nothing particularly to dislike about a cucumber - though admittedly some people aren't keen on the skin and seeds - but they usually aren't top of the list when it comes to selecting something in the greengrocers or a veg to grow. Perhaps it's time to reverse this trend and give cucumber more of a look-in on the weekly menu. However, this is the last month that cucumbers are in season, so if you are playing the seasonal fruit and veg game, make the most of them in September, as those grown in the UK won't make an appearance again until March.

When you look at the nutritional content of a cucumber, they are disappointingly low in most vitamins and minerals - the only one that they provide a reasonable amount of is Vitamin K, with a 100g serving meeting 21% of your recommended intake, though this is more cucumber than most of us would eat at a time; they are very low in fibre to boot. However, cucumbers have a very high water content - they are 95% water - so are very low in calories, making them, like the majority of veg, a great option to fill up on if you are watching your weight.

So how might you include cucumbers a bit more in your meals? Cucumber doesn't cook well due to its water content, so your best bet is to enjoy it in cold meals.

• Go beyond tuna and cucumber sandwiches - add chopped cucumber and diced onion to soft or cottage cheese with added herbs and spices for extra flavour; mix chopped cucumber and tomato with mashed hardboiled egg and black pepper; add sliced cucumber to tinned salmon; mix chopped cucumber and raisins with hummus.
• Add chopped cucumber to a salad, but forget plain old ham salad, try the following suggestions
• Cook chicken breast marinated in lemon and herbs, then cool and prepare a salad with pasta, chopped cucumber, red pepper and sweetcorn; drizzle with a little oil if desired.
• Prepare couscous and season with cumin and coriander; stir through chickpeas, chopped cucumber, raisins and sunflower seeds.
• Make a take on kedgeree by cooking a tuna steak, hardboiling an egg and adding curry powder to cooked rice. Once cool, chop the fish and egg, along with cucumber and spring onions; stir through the rice.
• Slice cooked new potatoes, add to a portion of bean salad (a bit of a cheat, as this is from a tin, but a handy standby) with chopped cucumber and tomato.
• When hunger strikes, try sticks of cucumber, carrot, celery and pepper dipped into salsa, extra light soft cheese or reduced fat hummus as a filling snack.  

Photo of cucumber by Muu-Kahru (own work) via Wikimedia Commons