Cucumaria – what is it, useful properties of seafood and step-by-step recipes of dishes with photos

The content of the article

• What is Cucumaria?
• Beneficial features
• Harm and contraindications
• How to cook
• Cooking Recipes
• Skoblyanka
• Cucumber salad
• Risotto

Unusual sea dishes include cucumaria. The second name of this creature is a sea cucumber. This marine animal belongs to holoturia, has an unusual specific taste. Cucumaria is boiled, fried, canned, dried. Such dishes are popular in Japan, Far Eastern Russia, East Asia. Before you start cooking, first find out how to properly cook this product so that it is tasty and healthy.

What is Cucumaria?

Cucumaria is an echinoderm invertebrate marine animal. Externally, this type of holothuria has an elongated elongated muscular body. Color – dark purple or maroon. Small ambulacral legs are located on the abdomen. On the front of the animal there is a mouth opening around which tentacles with many branches are placed. The size of this animal is 40 cm in length and about 1 kg of weight.

Young individuals live in places with lush marine vegetation, near the coast or in bays. He rarely moves, preferring to lead a motionless lifestyle. It uses particles of silt as food, which it captures with the help of tentacles around the mouth. Sea cucumber loves a warm climate, so the main areas of distribution of this animal are subtropics and tropics, but often chooses places more northern. In Russia, it can be found in Primorye, Sakhalin, in the Japanese, Barents, Okhotsk seas.

Beneficial features

Sea cucumber meat is considered a valuable product. At the same time, calorie content is only 34.6 kcal. 100 grams contains:

• protein – 7.3 g;
• fats – 0.6 g;
• carbohydrates – 0.

Due to the high concentration of trace elements (calcium, iodine, chlorine, phosphorus), vitamin (B, C), hexosamine and holoturin, this product has a lot of useful properties:

1. It activates the brain, helps to focus.
2. A large amount of iodine contributes to the good functioning of the thyroid gland and endocrine system.
3. Lowers blood glucose, which is very important for patients with diabetes.
4. Heals the liver. Contains phospholipids that play an important role in protein synthesis and cell renewal in this important cleansing organ..
5. Very useful for men with potency problems. It affects the restoration of sexual function, improves erection.
6. Medicines based on the extract of cucumaria are often prescribed to restore joints and bones. They are prescribed for the treatment of diseases of the spine and other ligaments..
7. Studies have shown that this type of holothuria is able to inhibit the development of a cancerous tumor, therefore it is prescribed as a prophylactic drug in the treatment of cancer.
8. Used in the treatment of respiratory organs, kidneys, brain, nervous breakdowns.
9. It is used as an antiviral and antimicrobial agent. It successfully inhibits the activity of fungi and other parasites..
10. Increases immunity, improves well-being.

Harm and contraindications

Sea cucumber has no contraindications, with the exception of individual intolerance or an allergic reaction. In other cases, dishes from cucumaria will benefit the body. If you have any unpleasant consequences, you should stop using, if necessary, take an antihistamine and consult your doctor.

How to cook

The cucumber in cooking is not as simple as it might seem at first glance. You need to know how to cook this delicacy so that dinner enthralls household or guests. Cucumaria is often sold frozen and boiled, so it must first be thawed. In order not to spoil the dense meat, you need to do this at room temperature.

If you purchased the product in a frozen, but raw form, then you can not do without the following steps:

1. Wash thawed cucumaria well, remove all entrails.
2. Boil water, add salt. Put a sea cucumber there. When the water boils again, reduce the heat.
3. Cook for 2-3 hours, it all depends on size. Do not forget to remove the foam that will form on the surface.
4. When time is up, turn off the stove, leave it for 8 hours.
5. Empty the broth, use the delicacy as intended.

You need to clean cucumaria according to the rules:

1. First remove all the tentacles. They gather “camomile” around the mouth. Cut them all in one go.
2. The next step will be cutting the carcass of an underwater cucumber. It is done longitudinally.
3. A green liquid mass will show up inside. These are the entrails that must be removed, and the halves of the carcasses washed.
4. An orange layer will remain on the walls inside the cavity, which is sometimes removed, but this is not necessary.

Not all meat can be used. The part is put into the freezer until the next use. Raw cucumaria cannot be eaten. Today, ready-made semi-finished products are sold in stores in a boiled, and after frozen state. The hostess does not need to wait until the meat is cooked, the product only needs to be thawed and do further cutting according to the recipe according to the selected dish. This product can also be purchased in pickled form..

Cooking Recipes

Cucumaria has a pronounced taste that not everyone likes. Chefs recommend that connoisseurs of this product do not hammer in the taste of sea cucumber with spices and seasonings. For this feature, recipes from cucumaria are especially appreciated in Asia, emphasizing the beneficial properties of the main ingredient. They love to cook sea cucumbers and serve in Japan and Far Eastern Russia..

Cucumaria can be used as an independent dish, you only need to boil the meat in salted water and serve with a side dish of potatoes or rice. This product is used to prepare snacks, main dishes, soups, salads. Cucumber goes well with lean meats, fish, other marine life, flour. As spices use pepper, bay leaf. Harmonious turns out blowing from cucumaria and soy sauce or tomato paste.

Skoblyanka

• Time: 1 hour.
• Servings Per Container: 6 servings.
• Calorie content: 220 kcal / 100 g.
• Purpose: lunch, dinner.
• Cuisine: Far Eastern Russian.
• Difficulty: medium.

The cucumaria skewer belongs to the first dishes. In the original, it is prepared from trepang, which is also a sea cucumber, but of a different kind. Meat, vegetables and spices are added to the bracket to taste. Chefs here are advised to take the type of meat fatter, and with seasonings to be as accurate as possible. It turns out a delicious nutritious dinner. Before serving, brackets can be decorated with fresh herbs.

Ingredients:

• pork – 500 g;
• frozen cucumaria – 400 g;
• onion – 1 pc.;
• bell pepper – 1 pc.;
• carrots – 2 pcs.;
• garlic – 2 cloves;
• soy sauce – 100 ml;
• cream – 50 ml;
• tomato paste – 1 tbsp. the spoon;
• salt to taste;
• bay leaf – 1-2 pcs.;
• ground black pepper to taste;
• oil – for frying.

Cooking method:

1. Defrost boiled cucumaria, rinse and cut it into pieces.
2. Wash the meat, cut and fry.
3. Transfer to a deep-bottomed saucepan. Add cucumaria to it, fill it with broth or cream water. Salt. Put out the stew.
4. Grind onions, carrots and peppers. Fry the vegetable in a pan and toss in a saucepan.
5. Pass the garlic through a press and mix with soy sauce. Transfer the mixture to other ingredients..
6. Add spices and tomato paste. Stew for another 20 minutes. Squire is ready.

Cucumber salad

• Time: 20 minutes.
• Servings Per Container: 6 servings.
• Calorie content: 100 kcal / 100 g.
• Purpose: salad.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty: Easy.

Sea cucumber goes well with products with which squid is “friendly”, so if you want to surprise guests, then prepare a salad, which originally included these representatives of the underwater fauna and replace them with holothurians. It will turn out unusual and very tasty. This salad is very simple, in addition to cucumaria, there are no other specific products..

Ingredients:

• boiled frozen cucumaria – 350 g;
• fresh cucumber – 1 pc.;
• red onion – 1-2 pcs.;
• garlic – 1 clove;
• basil greens – a small bunch;
• parsley – a small bunch;
• soy sauce – 1/3 tbsp .;
• chili pepper – to taste;
• ground black pepper – to taste;
• vegetable oil – 2-3 tbsp. spoons;
• salt to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Cut the carcasses of the underwater cucumber into large slices. Divide the onion into half rings. Sauté these ingredients. Put chopped garlic, salt and spices.
2. Chop the fresh cucumber. Add onions and cucumaria to it..
3. Season the salad with soy sauce and sprinkle with herbs.
4. Serve boiled rice or appetizer.

Risotto

• Time: 1 hour.
• Servings Per Container: 8 servings.
• Calorie content: 300 kcal / 100 g.
• Purpose: lunch, dinner.
• Cuisine: Italian.
• Difficulty: medium.

Seafood goes well with rice. Sea cucumber is no exception, so it is often used in the preparation of risotto. This dish is very common in northern Italy. Vegetables, a “sea cocktail”, meat, mushrooms are taken for cooking, but the main ingredient of this culinary masterpiece is arborio rice, carnaroli or nialo vialone and a good broth.

Ingredients:

• rice with the mark “risotto” – 300 g;
• onion – 1 pc.;
• carrots – 1 pc.;
• boiled cucumaria – 200 g;
• peeled boiled shrimps – 150 g;
• dry white wine – 0.5 tbsp .;
• broth – 1 tbsp .;
• saffron – 1 pinch;
• olive oil – 2 tbsp. spoons;
• salt to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Grind onions and carrots into cubes. Fry.
2. When the vegetables have a golden hue, pour rice into them in a circular motion (it cannot be washed), mix and leave for 30 seconds.
3. Pour in dry wine. When the alcohol evaporates, add the broth. Not all, but little by little, a new portion every few minutes.
4. Three minutes before ready (remember that rice should go al dente), drop the sea set.
5. In the last portion of the broth, add saffron and pour into rice. When the liquid has evaporated, risotto can be served on the table..