Sister, I had cucumbers yesterday, I don’t want cucumbers, I want a snack, something sweeter, like candy. At least have some fruit! Cucumbers are just a side dish! You’re terrible, sister!
Ms. Watanabe
Oh, Taku, cucumber is a fruit. Don’t you like melons? It’s just like that! Overseas, the cucumber’s unique green flavour is accepted as refreshing.
Taku boy
Is that so? I always thought that cucumbers were vegetables. Come to think of it, where do cucumbers come from?
Ms. Watanabe
Cucumbers are believed to have originated in the Himalayas in northern India, from where they spread all over the world. In Chinese characters, cucumbers were once written as “yellow gourd”, which was read as “kuqua” in the Chinese language of the time. It was cultivated in Japan from around the Heian period (794-1185). In Japan, the pronunciation of kuqua took some twists and turns and became “Kiuri”, and in Europe, “Cucumber”. I didn’t realise there was a connection between the etymology of the Japanese word Kiuri and the English word Cucumber. It’s kind of emotional. I didn’t realise that words that I thought were totally unrelated were actually connected at the root.
*Reference website Accessed on 16 Mar 2023. Wikipedia－キュウリ (Japanese)
Taku boy
Right. I know the history, but the cucumber is still a cucumber. It’s not that they’ve become sweeter. Tell me how to eat cucumbers as fruit. I don’t want to eat it straight every day!
Ms. Watanabe
Taku, first you need to free yourself from the belief that fruit = sweet, and also from the scheme of ‘snack = sweet’. But if you want to eat sweet cucumber, I recommend jam. Cucumber jam sounds strange, but if you look it up, there are many recipes you can try. It is said to have a melon-like flavour, as it is a close relative of the melon.
You probably don’t know this, but there was once a Cucumber Cola that used cucumber as a flavouring for cola. Look it up on the internet. That was 16 years ago! Yes, how about this recipe for the green, refreshing flavour of cucumber?
Cucumber soda (sister’s original recipe) 1. Prepare a quantity of thinly sliced cucumber rings and a stick of cucumber. 2.Put the sliced cucumber in a plastic bag and rub it lightly (to make it easier to extract). 3.Put ice and sliced cucumber into a mixing glass (or a normal glass if not available).Pour in Half the volume of cider and stir. 4.Pour the finished liquid into the glass and top up with the Other half of the cider.Garnish 5.the glass with a cucumber stick and you’re done!
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Taku boy
Is this,,,is this tasty?
Ms. Watanabe
Delicious! Come on, your sweet sister made it for you. Enjoy it. If it doesn’t suit your taste, you can adjust the quantity, but the first step to enjoy it as a fruit is to feel the freshness of the cucumber. Well, I prefer oiseoju (Korean cucumber soju). Put sliced cucumbers and cold Korean soju in a kettle, it’s just irresistible!
