No point beating around the bush. There’s not really a civilised way of asking the question.
Do cucumbers make you burp?
Surprisingly common problem, actually.
So common that there’s even a variety of cucumber called “Japanese Burpless”. And I’m happy to admit that even the tiniest slither in a sandwich has me burping for hours. So 4 o’clock cucumber sandwiches wouldn’t be a good idea for me in polite company…
Anyway, I had an interesting email from Chris today asking:
Does soaking a cucumber in water and salt for 1 hour take out the matter that makes a person burp?
And I haven’t got a clue!
I could imagine the water might make the cucumber a bit soggy for sandwiches though…
Cucumbers are 90% water, so it must be something in the remaining 10% that causes burpiness.
I have tried peeling them before using them, but I can’t remember if that helped.
Soaking aubergines and courgettes in salt (no water) does draw out the water and in aubergine it draws out the bitterness. I sometimes do the “salt soak” for grated cucumber if I’m making tzatziki (this stops it going insipid when you add the yoghurt – see How to draw water out of cucumbers). But I have no idea whether it affects the “burp factor”.
Does anyone else know? Can you help Chris? Have you tried this? Does “Japanese Burpless” really fix the issue?
I’m on a quest now to get to the bottom of this burpy business.
Please share your comments and any recipe suggestions for cucumbers would also be gratefully received!
Thanks,
Clare x
P.S.
Hi
My father suffered from wind after eating cucumber but now swears by peeling the skin off. My grandmother also did this. Other people soak the cucumber in a little vinegar and sugar. hope this helps!
I recently had the same question put to me about the cucumbers, and after numerous discussions with friends we all agreed that if you peel the skin off the cucumber that should stop the ‘burping’.
With regards to cucumber recipes I have a simple, quick recipe for readers to try:
Cucumber Salad Recipe (Serves 2)
1/2 fresh cucumber
2 tablespoons of Greek-style yoghurt
1 handful of shredded fresh mint
salt and pepper
good squeeze of lemon juice
Finely slice the cucumber as thin as possible and place in a bowl. Next add the shredded fresh mint, Greek-style yoghurt and salt and pepper to the bowl and finish off with a good squeeze of lemon juice. Mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Hi you can now grow burpless cucumbers
i have heard the seeds cause this problem.
an experiment- eat only a certain part of the cucumber each day, and monitor for burping.
I suffer from cucumber burps for a few hours after I eat it. Tsatsiki doesn’t affect me, and I’ve found if I add vineger to cucumber sandwiches it doesn’t affect me either. But if I want to just munch on some cucumber sticks, it’s best to keep away!
Peeling the skin of a cucumber does not help. I will only eat them without the skin – but I burp like crazy.
I have been experiencing burping lately. I eat cucumbers every day without the skin and seeds with a fat free balsamic vinagerette and still experience burping. I will now look into buying and growing burpless cucumbers if I can find them. I also like spicy foods which does not help much either.
The burpless varities of cucumbers have thinner skins and smaller seeds which is suppose to minimize the gases that promote burping.
Thanks “Cucumber”! Great website, by the way! In your opinion, are home-growers in the UK able to grow cucumbers? Do they fare best in greenhouses, would you say?
I have a juicer and generally juice my cucumbers. I did have a few burping issues when I first started juicing and some stomach discomfort but I think my body has adjusted now. I’m not sure which vegatable may have caused the burping but I do juice a lot of cucumbers…
I’ll confess that I’ve not ever added cucumbers when juicing. Is there a cucumber-y taste, Joe?