Cucumbers are long, green vegetables that are super cool and refreshing, and they are made up of about ninety-five percent water! That makes them one of the wateriest vegetables in the world and a perfect snack for a hot summer day. Cucumbers are actually a fruit, just like tomatoes, because they grow from a flower and have seeds inside. They are related to pumpkins, watermelons, and squash, and they all belong to the same plant family called gourds. Cucumbers grow on vines that spread along the ground or climb up trellises, and the plant has big, scratchy leaves and pretty yellow flowers.
Cucumbers have a thin green skin on the outside and soft, watery seeds in the middle. They are very crunchy and have a mild, fresh taste that goes great in salads, on sandwiches, or sliced up into little rounds to eat with dip. Did you know that cucumbers can also be turned into pickles? When you soak a cucumber in vinegar and spices for a while, it becomes a sour, crunchy pickle! People have been growing cucumbers for over three thousand years, and they were first grown in India. Because cucumbers have so much water inside, they actually feel cool to the touch, which is where the saying “cool as a cucumber” comes from!
