When I think of summer, cucumbers come to mind – as in “cool as a cucumber.” The high-water content of the cucumber provides a moist, cooling effect to the palate.
My grandmother called cucumbers “varoonk.” My father sprinkled salt on the thin, moist slices to bring out their goodness. My niece and nephew would fight over cucumbers when they were little.
I just like them for their cool, crisp snap when biting into one.
If you’re lucky, you might even find Armenian cucumbers in stores, otherwise, they can be grown in a home garden.
Did you know that the Armenian cucumber is actually a variety of melon?
It’s related to the muskmelon and is known by several names: yard-long cucumbers, snake cucumbers, and snake melons. The Armenian cucumber is long, slender, not bitter, is burp-less, easy to digest, can be eaten with the skin still on, and – tastes like a cucumber.
No matter what type of cucumber you find, here’s a favorite hot-weather recipe combined plain yogurt that will cool you down the instant you take the first sip.
Chilled Yogurt-Cucumber Soup (Jajuk)
Ingredients
- 1 seedless cucumber (washed and peeled. If you don't have Armenian cucumbers then English cucumbers work well here too. )
- 2 cups plain yogurt
- ½ cup cold water
- 1 garlic clove (squeezed through a garlic press, or hand-mashed)
- 2 tsp crushed dried mint
- salt (to taste)
Instructions
- Cut the cucumber in quarters, lengthwise. Slice each section into thin pieces.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt with the water.
- To the yogurt, stir in cucumbers, garlic, if using, salt, and mint. To keep this very cold, add a few ice cubes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- To serve, stir, ladle into bowls, and add an ice cube in each bowl. Garnish with fresh sprigs of mint.
Simple version of russian okroshka or bolgarian tarator. Pretty tasty though.