This Spicy Mini Cucumber Salad is crisp and refreshing, and wonderful as a summertime side dish.
These mini cucumbers are flavored with a chili crisp, rice vinegar, and sesame oil dressing, giving them an Asian-inspired flavor. This salad goes so well with grilled meats, seafood, and poultry. It's also a great side for braised meats such as short ribs or brisket.
This salad is made with mini cucumbers, which have a thinner skin and fewer seeds than standard-sized cucumbers. They are also easier to digest and are considered "burp-free" for those who are more sensitive to cucumbers. I love to add them to salads and even eat them on their own drizzled with a bit of balsamic dressing or seasoned rice vinegar and sesame oil for a quick and easy salad.
Ingredients in this Spicy Cucumber Salad:
Cucumbers: I used mini cucumbers from Melissa's Produce. They've been so fun to play with. These cucumbers are also sometimes called Persian cucumbers. To prep them, I gently smashed them with a small meat mallet to just crack them a bit, and then chop them before salting to draw out some of the water.
You can also use baby cucumbers (perfect for snacking), which are super tiny and seedless, English cucumbers (the ones that come wrapped in plastic), or standard cucumbers. The total weight should be about one pound.
Keep the skin on the cucumber pieces. The peel contains most of the fiber and nutrients, including Vitamin K and antioxidants. Plus, the skin adds a great crunch!
Chili Crisp: I used the Lao Gan Ma brand but there are many brands available with varying levels of heat and garlic. If you'd like to keep your salad vegan or vegetarian, be sure to check out the ingredient list. Sometimes, some chili crisps include a powdered chicken or beef bouillon base.
Agave Syrup: You can also substitute honey.
Rice Vinegar.
Soy Sauce.
Fresh Lime Juice.
Sesame Oil.
Olive Oil.
Green Onions.
Cilantro: Chopped.
Toasted Sesame Seeds: You can toast them yourself, or buy them already toasted.
To Make This Spicy Cucumber Salad:
First, salt the smashed and chopped cucumbers and place them in a colander to draw out and drain any extra liquid.
While the cucumbers are draining. whisk together the dressing ingredients.
Next, toss together the drained cucumber slices and the dressing and chill everything in the refrigerator for ten minutes.
Finally, garnish the salad with the chopped scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds and serve.
Make-Ahead and Storage:
You can make this salad a few hours in advance and keep it in the fridge. In addition, leftovers are fabulous on their own or added to salads.
Sunday Funday:
- Dacquoise Fraisier from Culinary Cam
- Farro Salad with Tomatoes and Charred Peppers from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Fresh Corn Mixed Bean Salad from Food Lust People Love
- Mediterranean Salad from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
- Protein Rich Quinoa Bowl from Mayuri's Jikoni
- Pumpkin leaf dal from Mildly Indian
- Spicy Mini Cucumber Salad with Toasted Sesame Seeds from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Vegan Danish Flødeboller from A Messy Kitchen
- Vegan & Gluten Free Thai Tofu Red Curry from Sneha’s Recipe (our host)
- Vegan Mango Chia Pudding from Cook with Renu
Spicy Mini Cucumber Salad with Toasted Sesame Seeds
This Spicy Mini Cucumber Salad is crisp and refreshing, and wonderful as a summertime side dish.
Ingredients
- 8 Persian/Mini cucumbers (about one pound), gently smashed and then chopped.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili crisp
- 1 tablespoon agave syrup or honey
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 medium lime, juiced
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 scallions, green parts, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 to 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Place the chopped and sliced cucumbers in a colander and toss them with the salt. Set the colander in the sink to drain any excess water for about 20 minutes. Toss the cucumbers every five minutes to help the process.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the chili crisp, honey or guava syrup, rice vinegar, soy sauce, lime juice, sesame oil, and olive oil.
- In a large bowl, toss together the cucumbers and the dressing. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
- Serve the salad garnished with the green onions and the sesame seeds.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
75Fat (grams)
4 gSat. Fat (grams)
1 gCarbs (grams)
10 gFiber (grams)
1 gNet carbs
9 gSugar (grams)
6 gProtein (grams)
2 gCholesterol (grams)
0 mg