This cucumber salad is perfect for the hot summer! Crispy fresh cucumbers with a sharp bite that brings you back for more. Pair this with any BBQ dish as a refreshing cleanser or enjoy on warm rice! Delicious, fresh, healthy, and low cost!
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What this recipe means to me
This is one of my go to dinner side dishes. The sour cucumber slices go so well with almost any rich dish because it is such a great palate cleanser. Tonight I ate this with a 12 1⁄2 hour long smoked brisket, and my dearly beloved soft scoop cornbread. I made it a few days ago to compliment white rice and smoked salmon, so it is quite a versatile sidekick. Definitely a beginner recipe as well as an awesome and quick test of our knife skills.
I make this recipe before I start dinner and by the time everything is ready the cucumbers are ready to consume. Lastly, I love this recipe because not only is it so versatile, its so low calorie and healthy. Cucumbers in particular hold beta carotene, one of many different types of antioxidants that help our body (Mikstas, RD, LD). Here is a deep dive into the benefits of cucumbers from WebMD.
Detailed directions
Step 1: Preparing the vegetables. Rinse the cucumbers and the thai red chili pepper. Slice the cucumbers. The 1⁄8 inch thickness on the cucumbers plays a key role for this dish. Sliced too thin, and the slices will become flappy with no crunch. Sliced too thick, and it will be crunchy and less flavorful. If I was planning on consuming the entire salad within one day, I would slice them thinner than 1⁄8 inch thickness to speed up the soaking process. I discard the red chili stem but I might keep the seeds for a dish I want spicy later. Dice the thai red pepper. After removing the outer layer, slice the onion in half vertically, then lay it flat on the cutting board to slice in half again with the grain. Then I slice the entire onion against the grain as thin as I can.
Step 2: Toss all ingredients into a large bowl. I recommend letting the flavors soak into the cucumbers for at least 20 minutes. However, you can enjoy it immediately! Serve in the large bowl with a slotted spoon. You can strain the salad from the vinegar at any time but I really enjoy how strong the cucumber slices get overtime! Enjoy.
Storage
Safe to keep in the fridge for 2 weeks. However, I consume it within 5 days and don’t enjoy it once the cucumbers lose its crunch.
Recommended tools
If you don’t want to slice with a knife, no problem! I completely understand that. Here is a handy mandolin for perfect slices every time https://amzn.to/3Sl8MZX
This is a Pyrex set of glass mixing bowls https://amzn.to/4jGgFFm
Zingy fresh cucumber salad
Recipe by
Servings
4 servings
Prep time
10 min
Cooking time
20 minutes
Calories
30 per serving
This cucumber salad is perfect for the hot summer! Crispy fresh cucumbers with a sharp bite that brings you back for more. Pair this low calorie salad with any BBQ dish as a refreshing cleanser or enjoy on warm rice!
Ingredients
- 2 cucumbers
- 1 onion
- 1 red thai chili pepper (seeded)
- 1⁄2 cup vinegar
- 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions
- Prepare the vegetables: rinse and slice both cucumbers at about 1⁄8 inch thickness slices. Slice the onion into fourths then against the grain. Discard the thai pepper seeds and stem. Dice the thai pepper.
- Combine and serve: add all ingredients to a large bowl. For best results let flavors soak for 20 minutes but can be served immediately. Serve out of the bowl with a slotted spoon. Enjoy!
Notes
I omit the red thai chili seeds in this recipe because the spice is intensifies exponentially. If you’d like yours spicy you can keep the seeds. I recommend consuming within one week! Or remove the cumbers after a few days. After 4 days soaking the cucumber slices will become soft and lose their crunch.
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Recommended tools (continued)
If you don’t want to slice with a knife, no problem! I completely understand that. Here is a handy mandolin for perfect slices every time https://amzn.to/3Sl8MZX
This is a Pyrex set of glass mixing bowls https://amzn.to/4jGgFFm
A very similar to mine, quality chef knife from a trusted brand, Mercer https://amzn.to/4lWLibr I personally use a 6 in knife and it is important for all of us to own a comfortable one if we are to use it properly.
Closing
Thank you so much for reading! Later on this week I intent to showcase my strawberry banana smoothie. Why is this important? Because its going to be a banger. Also, making drinks has been my profession for years. Anyway! Good luck and have fun my friends.
Let Conrad Cook 
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