Fresh Gherkin, Color : Green

Gherkins are traditionally served cold, as cooked gherkins lose their intense flavor rapidly. Pickled gherkins are served to accompany other foods, often in sandwiches. They are historically associated with Central European and, occasionally, Eastern European cuisine, but are now found more widely. Sometimes also called a cornichon (the French word for gherkin), they have historically also been called horned cucumbers, true gherkin has palmately lobed leaves with toothed edges, small flowers, and furrowed, prickly fruits about five centimeters (two inches) long that are borne on crooked stalks.Although its fruit is also pickled, the plant is frequently grown only as a curiosity. Gherkins are grown only in South India, where the ideal soil type and the desirable temperatures of not less than 15 degrees centigrade and not more than 35 degrees Centigrade. These are found mainly in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. The climatic conditions which are prevalent throughout the year, render this region ideal to take up three crops of gherkins annually.