Do you love munching on cucumbers but hate the soul-crushing bitterness that comes with each bite?
Well, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to know there are ways to get rid of that bitterness!
This article will walk you through some conventional and unconventional ways to get rid of the bitterness from cucumbers and only enjoy their mild refreshing taste.
Without wasting any more time, let’s get right into it, shall we?
How To Remove The Bitterness From Cucumbers? 4 Ways
4 – The Rubbing Trick
This one is a secret all Asian moms would know.
The rubbing trick involves cutting up a cucumber in half and rubbing both ends together till a white foam is formed.
The friction allows for compounds that are responsible for the bitterness to be released from the surface of the skin.
No need to be gentle though; vigorous rubbing for about 30 seconds to a minute is ideal. After rubbing both ends together, rinse the cucumbers under water to get rid of the foam as well as remaining bitterness.
3 – Peel The Skin
If you have a problem with the bitterness of cucumbers but don’t want to get rid of that taste entirely, just peeling the skin off would do the job.
The compound that’s responsible for the bitter taste in cucumbers is cucurbitacin. It’s primarily concentrated in the skin and seeds.
Removing the peel will not get rid of the bitter taste completely but still provide a solid relief. If you have some appreciation for the bitterness but don’t want the taste to be too overpowering in your mouth, this is the way to go.
2 – Remove The Seeds
Like I mentioned, most of the bitterness in cucumbers comes from the compound cucurbitacin which is mainly concentrated in the skin and seeds.
The good thing is that the seeds are all in one place, forming a core that can easily be removed to lessen the overall bitterness.
Simply peel your cucumber and cut it in half lengthwise. Then, scoop out the seed core using a spoon and munch away at the remaining cucumber which will be fresh and mildly sweet with pretty much no bitterness whatsoever.
1 – Salt Your Cucumbers
No, we are not just adding salt to cucumbers! That would turn them into bitter salty cucumbers, which sounds…delicious…but isn’t relevant in this context.
We are adding salt to cut up cucumber pieces and leaving them alone so that the salt can absorb some of their excess bitterness.
After about 30 minutes, run your cucumber pieces under water to get rid of the salt, and enjoy!
Keep in mind, however, that too much salt can dry out the cucumbers and leave a salty taste in them. Therefore, only use a moderate amount of salt when coating, and make sure to rinse them thoroughly afterwards.
Final Words
A lot of people refuse to eat cucumbers simply because they don’t like the bitter taste that creeps up in the mouth upon taking a bite.
However, if this article taught you anything, it should be that the bitterness can be removed for a fresh and even mildly sweet bite.
Depending on your preference and what you see as convenient, there are many ways to get rid of that bitterness in cucumbers.
Feel free to take any route you like as they all accomplish the same thing.
