You don’t know until you taste them. Cucumbers may look tasty, but one bite reveals the bitterness that will not go away.
Bitterness occurs due to heredity, moisture, temperature, soil characteristics and disease. Hot temperatures typically causes bitterness via the compounds cucurbitacins B and C. The stem end is usually where the bitterness occurs, but sometimes the entire cucumber is bitter. Removing the stem end and peeling the cucumber can help reduce bitterness.
Pickling bitter cucumbers will not improve or remove the bitterness.
Learn more about bitter cucumbers from the KSRE Horticulture Information Center.
