MR. GREENS "FRESH TIPS"
March 31, 2003

English Cucumbers grow about 3" per day.

ENGLISH CUCUMBERS (Monday, March

31): Al Gore turns 55 today. Happy birthday. If he Tipper plans on having a salad at the party, be prepared, Tipper, to pay a pretty penny for your cucumbers. There are three main types of cucumbers. First is the pickling cucumber. Second is the slicing cucumber, the one most of us use. This time of year, Mexico supplies about 2/3 of the slicing cucumbers to the United States, with the rest coming from Florida. Supplies from Mexico's Culiacan and Los Mochis growing regions have been very tight, leading to some very high prices, much higher prices than normal for this time of year. The third type of cucumber is the English Cucumber, also known as the European Cucumber, Hothouse Cucumber, Burpless Cucumber. Usually, regular slicing cucumbers are about 1/3 to 1/4 of the price of Hothouse Cucumbers. Not so right now. Regular slicing cucumbers are running about double the price of normal for this time of year. English Cucumbers are a very good value right now. Where do you store your English Cucumbers? Do you know where your English Cucumber is right now? Cucumbers hate the cold. In fact, have you ever cut a cucumber in half, only to find a translucent appearance to the inside flesh? Well, that is called "chill damage." Cucumbers should be stored at around 50 degrees. Most refrigerators are much colder than that. Simply keep your English Cucumbers out on your counter. And because there are no natural "oils" on the skin of the English Cucumber, that's why you find the plastic wrap on them. Just keep that wrap on. No need to peel this cucumber. The skin is very thin. And seedless? Well, not really, but just like the "seedless" grape of the "seedless" watermelon, the "seedless" cucumber has "immature seeds." By the way, it is the seed of the cucumber that makes you "burp." That's why the English Cuke is "burpless."

The Mother of All Onions: The Texas 1015Y.

TEXAS 1015Y SWEET ONIONS

The Father of the Mother of all Onions, Dr. Leonard Pike.

(Tuesday, April 1): The United States defense department recently tested the MOAB bomb, the Mother Of All Bombs. Well, Dr. Leonard Pike of Texas A&M's Vegetable Improvement Center, has created the MOAO, the Mother Of All Onions. This onion is not explosive with strong flavor, but is the sweetest of all onions. With very high onion prices right now, the new crop of onions from Mexico and the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas is a very welcome sight. Especially the harvest of the Texas 1015Y, the onion that put Texas back in the onion saddle again. Remember that Spring Sweet Onions are built differently than winter storage onions. Storage onions have a very dense cell structure, which is why they store so well. Spring sweet onions, however, have a very large cell structure, and filled with more water. This makes the sweet onion sweet and mild, but also makes the sweet onion more susceptible to damage. Please, don't throw your 1015Y around. Treat them like fine china, gentle and easy.

ULTIMATE ONION RINGS (Wednesday, April 2): Dr. Leonard Pike of Texas A&M developed the Texas 1015Y onion. When Your Produce Man asked him why he developed such a sweet onion, one with thick rings, onions with a "single center." Dr. Pike quickly answered, "Because I love onion rings, and this onion makes the best onion rings found anywhere." When you peel your onions, make sure your knife does not score completely through the outer rings. Also, make sure when you slice your onion, you slice them thick, about ½" thick, or more if you like. My Ultimate Onion Ring recipe is a must.

The most popular fruit in the world

GRILLED MANGOES (Thursday, April 3): The Mango is the most popular fruit eaten in the world today. More popular than bananas, apples or oranges. This time of year, Mazatlan, Mexico begins their harvest. It is one of the southern most growing regions in Mexico. Over the past decade, imports of Mangoes from Mexico have increased 10 fold. These early Mangoes will not be quite as full of sugar and juice as will Mangoes in just another month or so. One great thing to do with these early Mangoes is to grill your Mango. On a hot grill, you can brush it with a little Olive Oil and throw it on the grill. Just a few minutes on each side, just enough time to get some nice grill marks (no relation to Michael Marks). What grilling will do is actually intensify the flavor by causing some slight dehydration, leaving more flavor.

When you think of Asparagus: Think Fat, Peel and Grill.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS (Friday, April 4): Asparagus is one of the classiest vegetables grown on earth. Right now, prices are most likely going to be as cheap as they can get for the year. Several growing regions, from Baja, Salinas and the Delta region in California. You may think that the thinner Asparagus spears may be the best. Not so. The fatter they are, the sweeter they are. The fatter they are, the more tender they are. Buy the fat ones. When you get them home, cut off the very bottom, the white part, and then place the bunch into a mug of water. Then refrigerate. Those spears will stay much fresher, much longer. You should also peel your Asparagus spears. At least the fat one. Any good chef trained in Europe will peel the Asparagus. You can use a carrot peeler or a small pairing knife. Be careful with the pressure you put on the spear. It could snap. Brush the spers with a little Olive Oil, then throw them on the grill. When you pull them off the grill, a little salt, a little pepper, a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice on the spear. Then serve. You won't need any mayonnaise with these spears of Asparagus.