Cucumbers, Prepare what you Grow

Do you grow cucumbers each year, but end up with way too many and don’t know what to do with them?

I like to grow cucumbers each year. But some years we end up with a lot of them.

I make pickles out of them, both bread and butter pickles and dills.

I can some pickles. I make refrigerator pickles with some of our cucumbers. But if you are wondering what else to do with all your homegrown cucumbers, I have ideas for you.

Pickles are a great way to use up cucumbers from the garden. If you like crisp pickles give refrigerator dills or bread and butter pickles a try.

If you like pickles that will keep all year long, then you’ll want to can them. I make a couple of batches of baby dill pickles and bread and butter pickles each year. So we can enjoy homemade pickles even in the dead of winter.

But I know not everyone loves pickles. Even though I think the store bought ones can’t compare to homemade pickles, I get it. Some people just don’t like pickles.

But even if you won’t be making pickles you need to consider growing pickling cucumbers. They are smaller and have fewer or smaller seeds in them. Making them great for pickles but equally nice for many other recipes too.

They are just more versatile than the regular slicing cucumbers. But you don’t have to have pickling cukes, slicing cukes will work great in any of these recipes below.

Now let’s get to some recipes…

Creamy Dill Cucumber Salad

The first recipe I have to share with you is our all time favorite cucumber salad. It’s a creamy cucumber salad with dill. It’s so good I bet you’ll want to eat the whole bowl yourself.

It’s really that good. Get the recipe!

Healthy Cucumber Salad with Onions

This cucumber salad is healthier but also so good. You start with your cucumbers then add sliced onions and an easy dressing.

You end up with a healthy light salad perfect for summer or even fall. It’s simple to make and healthy too. Get the Recipe!

Refrigerator Dill Pickles

This next recipe is a simple and easy way to make classic dill pickles without canning. Just measure the ingredients and place them in the jar. Wait a while and you’ll have homemade crisp refrigerator dill pickles.

They are so much fresher than the dill pickles from the store. Get the recipe!

Bread and Butter Pickles

If a sweeter pickle is what you are after, then you need to try this recipe for refrigerator bread and butter pickles.

Bread and butter pickles are sweet and tangy pickles. If you like the bread and butter pickles from the store, you are going to love these. They are so much better.

And simple and easy to make too. Another easy pickle recipe, no canning needed. Get the recipe!

Crisp Cucumber Salsa

If you love salsa why not try this easy recipe for cucumber salsa. If you can chop and mix you can make this salsa. It’s a creamy salsa with the addition of sour cream. Yum! Get the recipe!

Fruit and Cucumber Salad

This fruit salad looks delicious with the addition of cucumbers. It’s a great way to add a bit of vegetable to a fruit salad to increase the crunch and healthiness of the salad too. Get the recipe!

Pickled Vegetable Salad

If you’re tired of the same old salads, try this one. It’s a pickled salad that has thinly sliced cucumber and a whole lot more. So healthy and refreshingly different. Get the recipe!

Sesame Cucumber Noodles

With this recipe, cucumbers go to the main dish. Make this yummy cucumber noodle recipe for a vegetarian meal. Or add chili chicken slices or beef to make it a full meal. This is a great summer dinner idea. Get the recipe.

Those should give you some great recipes to use up your homegrown cucumbers. You don’t have to eat your cucumbers sliced and dipped in ranch, although that is really good too. Make a recipe with them instead.

What if you don’t grow cucumbers?

But what if you want to try some of the recipes above but don’t grow your own pickling cucumbers? You can use regular cucumbers but you can also buy pickling cucumbers. You can buy baby cucumbers at Costco or get pickling cukes at the Farmer’s market or sometimes even Winco Foods has them.

So you don’t even need to grow your own, although I’d recommend giving it a try. You can find everything you need to know about growing cucumbers here.