Braised Cucumbers...Who Knew?

Ever seen the film Julie & Julia? I was intrigued by one line, "braised cucumbers, who knew?" Now for someone that prefers slightly grilled lettuce to completely cold, the concept of cooked cucumbers definitely piqued my interest.

Let me remove the mystery. These are essentially cucumbers sautéed in butter. Sounds weird but promising doesn't it? Once I looked up the recipe and saw how simple it was I had to try it.

Braised Cucumber

1 huge cucumber (or 2 regular sized)

1 tablespoon butter

1 dash salt

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 pinch dried mint

Peel cucumber. Cut into quarters and remove seeds. Cut into 1 inch pieces.

Melt butter in a pan and add cucumber. Cover and cook about 5 minutes on medium heat.

Stir in salt, lemon, and mint. Cover and cook another 2 minutes.

The recipe is Julia Child's, so how bad could it be?! She knows a few things about cooking. So next time I'll try this out with coconut oil just to see what happens, but as I happen to love butter as much as our dearest Julia, I can't see that it'd come out any better by substituting OUT the butter. I mean, that's crazy talk!

Recipe Review

First off, it is delicious. However, if you are one that doesn't like avocados, bananas or melon due to textural issues this is NOT for you. Stick to raw cukes in that case.

The cooking softens the cucumbers just slightly, so be careful not to over cook or this could get ugly. The sweetness is certainly highlighted, the lemon & salt brighten the flavors so that this dish can stand alone. I dare say that it makes the cucumber taste almost complicated!

Typically cucumbers are relegated to the supporting role of just adding crunch & bulk to a salad. It's amazing how this simple little recipe will remind me to grab these at the farmers stand more often. I just may be more inclined now to buy a cucumber to cook! Weird :)

With fittest intentions,

Michelle

 

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