If you're already thinking about cool snacks, you're doing the right thing. Advanced housewives are already in full swing collecting cool life hacks from all sorts of reliable sources and getting ready to pickle their favorite vegetables. Lightly salted cucumbers are considered a particularly popular summer snack.

Of course it's great to cook fresh salads from cucumbers from the garden, but there are other equally tasty options. Lightly salted cucumbers will still retain some of their vitamins. And they taste very, very good!

We share valuable secrets and tricks that you definitely need to know to prepare crispy lightly salted cucumbers. The family will be delighted!

Choose the right cucumbers

Some people mistakenly believe that delicious lightly salted cucumbers can be obtained from absolutely any variety. This is not entirely true. It’s not for nothing that there are special pickling varieties of cucumbers with thin skin and a high sugar content. These include, for example, cucumbers of the "Nezhinsky" variety.

When choosing cucumbers, pay attention to their appearance. They should be medium in size, with pimples and ideally the same size. Otherwise, some cucumbers will be under-salted, while others, on the contrary, will be over-salted.

Soak the cucumbers for a while

This is an important stage. Even if you choose cucumbers from the garden, we still recommend soaking them in water for a while. This is done so that the cucumbers become elastic, strong and crispy.

If the cucumbers have just been picked, you can keep them in water for a short time. But leave cucumbers from the store or market in water for 3-4 hours.

Pay attention to the water

By the way, it is important what water you soak the cucumbers in. The most ideal option is spring water. If you do not have access to such water, then choose bottled or filtered water.

On average, for 5 kilograms of cucumbers you will need 10 liters of water.

Prepare suitable utensils

Another important point is the container in which you will pickle the cucumbers. Some pickle cucumbers directly in the jar, while others choose an enamel pan. This is a matter of your personal preference, because lightly salted cucumbers do not need to be rolled into a jar.

We believe that, of course, it is more convenient to pickle cucumbers in a saucepan. You can easily put them there and take vegetables out of it.

Don't forget about oppression

You will also need some pressure. A jar or other container filled with water, but smaller in volume, is ideal. This is necessary so that the cucumbers are well soaked and salted evenly.

Add herbs and spices

Cucumbers will become even tastier and more aromatic if you add herbs and spices to the list of ingredients. Universal list: dill, currant leaves, horseradish leaves, bay leaf and peppercorns. The cucumbers will turn out just right. Currants provide a pleasant crunch, and horseradish disinfects and protects against mold.

Lightly salt

Don't forget to add salt, but the right kind. This is not iodized or sea salt. To prepare lightly salted cucumbers, choose rock salt. You will need about 2 tablespoons of salt per 1 liter of water.

Don't be afraid to experiment

Having mastered classic recipe lightly salted cucumbers, start experimenting and looking for your favorite combinations. Maybe you can come up with your own signature recipe. Try adding apple slices, black or red currants to the cucumbers. It will turn out delicious and original!

be patient

Lightly salted cucumbers do not take a couple of hours to prepare. You need to be patient and wait a little. On average, the cooking time for lightly salted cucumbers does not exceed 3 days. If you cook cucumbers in hot brine, they will be ready in a day, and if in cold brine, in 2-3 days.

Store lightly salted cucumbers correctly

Remember that lightly salted cucumbers do not last long. Therefore, try not to add too much salt at once. Over time, they will still turn salty.

Store cucumbers in the refrigerator. This will slow down the fermentation processes.

Incredibly popular in Russia, they can be considered a healthy diet if consumed in moderation. In Russia, recipes for lightly salted cucumbers instant cooking have been known since the 12th century. In those distant times, they began to add dill, horseradish root and leaves, and garlic to cucumbers, which gave the pickling a completely different flavor. In addition, garlic and horseradish have bactericidal properties.

Recipes for quick-cooking lightly salted cucumbers:

Nowadays, for spiciness, hot red pepper, other spices, laurel leaves, and plants are added to recipes. Leaves of oak, blackberry, cherry, and currant make the preparations crispy, elastic, dense, due to the presence of tannins in them. The taste of lightly salted cucumbers, prepared quickly, depends on the spices, the cleanliness of the dishes, and the quality of the cucumbers.

On mineral water

Prepare:

• medium cucumbers - 7-8 pcs,
• sea ​​salt - 4 tbsp. spoons,
• horseradish - 2 leaves,
• cherry - 4 leaves,
• fresh dill - medium bunch,
• sugar - 1 teaspoon,
• 2 liters of sparkling mineral water,
• 3 cloves of garlic.

1. Pour mineral water into a saucepan, adding salt and sugar, bring to a boil, stir until the sugar dissolves.
2. Let the solution cool for 20-30 minutes.
3. Wash the cucumbers thoroughly, put the garlic, half the spices and leaves at the bottom of the vessel, then the cucumbers, pour in cooled water, cover with the remaining leaves and herbs.
4. Place lightly salted cucumbers in the refrigerator for a day. Cooked lightly salted cucumbers in mineral water are ready, use as a snack.

Recipe for crispy lightly salted cucumbers

List of what is needed:

• 2 kg of cucumbers, 2 heads of garlic,
• bunch of dill,
• 2 leaves of horseradish,
• 6 cherry leaves,
• 6 black currant leaves,
• greens (any taste - celery, parsley),
• 1.5 liters of boiled water,
• with a slide 2 tbsp. spoons of salt,
• heaped sugar 1 teaspoon,
• 1 tbsp. spoon 9% vinegar.

Preparation:

The quantity of products is indicated per jar with a capacity of 3 liters.

1. Wash the cucumbers thoroughly, cut off the ends on both sides.
2. Peel 2 heads of garlic, divide into cloves.
3. Wash the greens and begin placing them in a container: dill comes first, put garlic, herbs, cherry and currant leaves on the bottom.
4. Place the cucumbers tightly in a jar.
5. Making the marinade: 1.5 liters of water, 2 tbsp. Boil tablespoons of salt and sugar in a saucepan.
6. As soon as the hot steam subsides, fill the contents of the jar with marinade, adding 1 tbsp. a spoonful of vinegar. Cover the jar with gauze and place it on a wide dish or plate.
7. Place it on the window for 2 days. It's delicious to serve crispy lightly salted cucumbers with new potatoes in the summer.

Recipe for quick lightly salted cucumbers

This good snack, distinctive feature The proposed recipe is simple and quick to prepare! You can start enjoying the taste of cucumbers within a couple of hours, but it’s best if you can resist not eating the dish yet 5-6 hours. Just wait a little. I’ll tell you now how to make a recipe for lightly salted cucumbers quickly.

List of what is needed:

• 1 kg - small cucumbers,
• 0.5 liters - water,
• 0.5 tbsp. spoons - sugar,
• 1 tbsp - salt,
• black pepper, dill, garlic
• blackcurrant leaves (oak, leaves or horseradish root give a crunchy result)

Cooking process:

1. Dissolve salt and sugar in boiling water, then cool.
2. To speed things up, cut off the ends on both sides.
3. Place spices and cucumbers in layers in a bowl.
4. Pour in the chilled marinade, cover with a plate, and place something heavy on top, such as a stone. Alternatively, you can use a jar of water.

Recipe in the package

All you need for the recipe: medium-sized cucumbers, 4 cloves of garlic, black currant leaves, 1.5 tbsp. salt, fresh dill (dried is also possible).

1. Cut off the ends of the fruit, cut lengthwise into four or more pieces (at your discretion), add crushed garlic.
2. Add the remaining ingredients to a regular plastic bag and sprinkle with salt.
3. Tie the bag tightly, transfer it to another bag for a good seal, shake for a few minutes.

Ideally, you have someone in the house who will agree to shake the bag. Children really like to help in the kitchen, ask them and let them shake you. In a maximum of one hour, you can eat delicious lightly salted cucumbers from the bag. Instead of a bag, try making these quick cucumbers in a container.

In brine

Ingredients:

• 10 medium cucumbers,
• for 1 liter of brine 5 teaspoons of salt,
• allspice peas,
• 20 g horseradish, roots (leaves),
• water,
• 3 cloves of garlic,
• hot pepper pod (optional).

Cooking steps:

1. Wash the cucumbers and leave them in a jar in cold water for a couple of hours.
2. Remove the cucumbers from the water, cut off the ends and place them in a jar very close to each other, place dill, garlic, herbs and horseradish between them. The more horseradish, the better!
3. Brine for lightly salted cucumbers: boil water (for 1 kg of fruit - 1 liter of water), add 5 teaspoons of salt, or according to your taste, add allspice and hot pepper. Let this simmer for 10 minutes, let cool completely.
4. Pour the cooled brine over the cucumbers until they are covered with brine. Cover the jar and place it on a plate (the brine will begin to bubble in the next couple of days). Let sit for about 24 hours and then place in the refrigerator.

Now the cucumbers are ready, try to eat them within 1-2 weeks. However, lightly salted cucumbers usually don’t stay in jars for that long and are eaten very quickly.

Look recipes for quick-cooking lightly salted cucumbers, without brine in the bag.

Now we will tell you how to prepare lightly salted cucumbers very quickly and without much kitchen hassle.

How to quickly cook lightly salted cucumbers in 2 hours

To prepare you will need:

• cucumbers - 1 kg;
• dill - 1 bunch;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• salt - 1 tablespoon without top;
• sugar - 1 tiny pinch.

Cut clean cucumbers lengthwise into 4 parts, and then each part into 2 halves across. Finely chop the dill. Press the garlic through a press. Mix salt and sugar. Take a strong plastic bag and place all the prepared ingredients in it. Tie the bag with a strong thread or fasten its top with a special culinary staple. Shake the bag in your hands to mix the inside contents. Place the bag in the refrigerator. Shake the bag every half hour so that the released juice is evenly distributed throughout the cucumbers. After 2 hours, during this time you will probably boil the potatoes and fry the cutlets, call your family for lunch. Place the cucumbers in a deep bowl and be sure to pour the aromatic juice from the bag onto them. Instead of a bag, you can take a food container with a tight lid.

How to quickly cook lightly salted cucumbers in 8 hours

For these cucumbers you will need exactly the same products as in the first recipe. In addition, you will also need water - 1 liter.

• Wash small, identical cucumbers well and cut off their ends on both sides.
• Place the cucumbers in a jar, interspersing them with slices of garlic and chopped dill.
• Bring the water to a boil and add salt and sugar. Wait until the salt and sugar are completely dissolved.
• Pour hot brine over the cucumbers in a jar and leave it on the kitchen counter until the morning.
• In the morning, place the jar in the refrigerator, but do not forget to take a sample from the crispy lightly salted cucumbers.

How to quickly prepare lightly salted cucumbers in 3 days

You can prepare these lightly salted cucumbers in advance if you do not need to serve them very quickly.

• 2 kg fresh cucumbers put in a three-liter jar. Before doing this, you can cut off their ends.
• Season the cucumbers with garlic (2-3 cloves) and a dill umbrella (a couple of pieces).
• In two liters cold water Dissolve 2 tablespoons of coarse rock salt and a coffee spoon of granulated sugar.
• Pour the resulting brine over the cucumbers and leave them warm for 12 hours.
• When the brine becomes a little cloudy, transfer the jar to the cold.
• After three days, serve the cucumbers.

The three recipes described differ from each other only in cooking time. You can, by choosing the appropriate method, make lightly salted cucumbers with different tastes. Add to them any spicy leaves (cherry, currant, horseradish - 1-2 pieces each), spices (peppercorns, cumin, allspice - 5-10 pieces each). Tarragon also goes well with cucumbers - add one small sprig of tarragon to 1 kg of vegetables.