Best 4 Cool Oriental Cucumber Salad Recipes

ASIAN CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• Put the cucumber slices in a colander and sprinkle with salt; set aside to drain for 1 hour.
• Whisk the vinegar and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved; add the sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and sesame seeds; stir.
• Rinse salt off the cucumber slices by running under cold water; place in a large bowl with the sliced red chile peppers. Drizzle the dressing over the vegetables and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

CHINESE SMASHED CUCUMBERS WITH SESAME OIL AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Rinse cucumbers and pat dry. Cut crosswise into pieces about 4 inches long. Cut each piece in half lengthwise.
• On a work surface, place a piece of cucumber (or several) cut side down. Lay the blade of a large knife flat on top the cucumber and smash down lightly with your other hand. The skin will begin to crack, the flesh will break down and the seeds will separate. Repeat until the whole piece is smashed. Break or slice diagonally into bite-size pieces, leaving the seeds behind.
• Place the cucumber pieces in a strainer and toss with a big pinch of salt and a big pinch of sugar. Place a plastic bag filled with ice on top of the cucumbers to serve as a weight and place the strainer over a bowl. Let drain 15 to 30 minutes on the counter, or in the refrigerator until ready to serve, up to 4 hours.
• Make the dressing: In a small bowl, combine salt, sugar and rice vinegar. Stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Stir in sesame oil and soy sauce.
• When ready to serve, shake cucumbers well to drain off any remaining liquid and transfer to a serving bowl. Drizzle with grapeseed or olive oil and toss. Add half the dressing, half the garlic and the red pepper flakes to taste, and toss. Keep adding dressing until cucumbers are well coated but not drowned. Taste and add more pepper flakes and garlic if needed. Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro and sesame seeds.

ORIENTAL CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• Blend together sesame oil, honey, soy sauce, vinegar, and pepper flakes.
• Stir cucumbers and onions into the mixture, and pour all into a ziploc bag, removing excess air, so salad marinates well.
• Marinate salad several hours or overnight.

COOL ORIENTAL CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• For dressing, mix first 8 ingredients in a container and shake well.
• Refrigerate for a couple of hours to blend the flavors.
• Slice onion very thin and place in ice water for half hour.
• Dry onion with paper towels before using.
• Peel cucumbers and slice thin.
• Place in a bowl, pour on dressing and mix well.
• Peel and slice avocado.
• Arrange cucumbers (don't pour out the dressing), onion, and avocado individually on a plate (they can be mixed but I like the way they look individually).
• Drizzle the remaining dressing on the onion and avocado.
• Sprinkle with sesame seeds or peanuts.