{"id":206679,"title":"Asian Cucumber Salad","modified":"2026-11-14T20:01:24+01:00","plain":"Very thin cucumber slices, salted to draw out their water and then squeezed, in a dressing of rice vinegar, soy sauce, ginger and toasted sesame oil.\n\n\n\nA plate of grilled meat, a bowl of rice, and you\u2019re missing something fresh and crunchy on the side. This cucumber salad fills that gap: thin slices that crunch between your teeth, glistening with a tangy dressing that smells of toasted sesame and ginger. \n\n\n\nThe raw garlic has a little kick, and the scallion adds its freshness. You keep coming back to it between bites, and the salad bowl empties faster than you\u2019d expect.\n\n\n\nAnother fresh little salad, this time from Japan: wakame salad\n\n\n\nWhat Is Asian Cucumber Salad?\n\n\n\nIt\u2019s a salad of cucumber cut into very thin slices, salted to draw out the water, then squeezed, and tossed in a dressing of rice vinegar, soy sauce and toasted sesame oil, perked up with ginger and garlic. Scallion, toasted sesame seeds and, if you like, a little fresh chile finish it off. It\u2019s served as a side dish with sushi, rice or grilled meat.\n\n\n\nIts name describes the seasoning rather than a region: soy sauce, rice vinegar and toasted sesame oil are condiments used in several Asian cuisines. In Germany, it\u2019s known as asiatischer Gurkensalat, \u201cAsian cucumber salad.\u201d\n\n\n\nA Homemade Salad Between Europe and Asia\n\n\n\nNo date or inventor is attributed to it. It\u2019s a home-cooking recipe, made with a supermarket cucumber and a few easy-to-find Asian condiments.\n\n\n\nAnother little Korean salad: kongnamul muchim, made with mung bean sprouts\n\n\n\nCutting the cucumber into rounds sets it apart from Sichuan pai huang gua, a Chinese smashed cucumber salad with irregular pieces. Oi muchim, one of the Korean banchan, is also salted to draw out its water before being spiced up with gochugaru chile pepper, which turns it red.\n\n\n\nThe Main Ingredients in Asian Cucumber Salad\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nA single cucumber is enough for four people as a side dish. European cucumbers hold a lot of water: the salt draws some of it out, and you then squeeze it out by hand. Skip this step and the water dilutes the dressing and the salad loses its flavor.\n\n\n\nRice vinegar brings a gentle acidity. Light soy sauce, so called for its color, seasons the dressing with salt and gives it umami. Sugar or honey mellows the vinegar and the raw garlic. Toasted sesame oil, dark and very fragrant, is used sparingly: a single teaspoon flavors the whole salad. Grated ginger adds a gentle heat.\n\n\n\nCucumber is also eaten Indian-style, in a yogurt raita\n\n\n\nThinly sliced scallion and toasted sesame seeds finish the salad. The fresh chile is optional: adjust the amount to its heat. Rice vinegar, soy sauce and toasted sesame oil are sold in Asian grocery stores and many supermarkets.\n\n\n\nKey Techniques for a Really Crunchy Salad\n\n\n\nSlice the cucumber very thin on a mandoline. Let the slices sit with the salt for 10 minutes to release their water, then squeeze them firmly with both hands and discard the liquid.\n\n\n\nLet the salad marinate for 10 minutes before serving. It\u2019s best eaten the same day: over time, the cucumber keeps releasing water into the dressing.\n\n\n\nThe crunch of the cucumber goes beautifully with piping-hot chicken karaage\n\n\n\nServe it with quick and easy Asian dishes, maki or grilled meat, such as chicken yakitori.\n\n\n\n\n\n\tAsian Cucumber Salad\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\tCucumber1 cucumber ((about 400 g), very thinly sliced)1 teaspoon salt, (to draw out the water)Dressing2 tablespoons rice vinegar1 tablespoon soy sauce (light)1 teaspoon sugar, (or honey)1 teaspoon sesame oil (toasted)1 teaspoon ginger, (grated)1 clove garlic, (minced)To Finish1 scallion, (sliced)1 teaspoon sesame seeds (toasted)1 small chili (fresh, chopped, optional)\t\n\t\n\t\tCucumberSlice the cucumber very thinly with a mandoline.Put the slices in a salad bowl.Add the salt.Toss to distribute the salt evenly.Let sit for 10 minutes to draw out the water.Squeeze the slices by the handful to press out the water.Discard the released water.DressingGrate the ginger.Mince the garlic.In a bowl, combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sugar (or honey), and sesame oil.Add the ginger and garlic.Stir to combine.To FinishThinly slice the scallion.Chop the chili, if using.Pour the dressing over the squeezed cucumber.Add the scallion, toasted sesame seeds, and chili.Toss everything together.Let marinate for 10 minutes before serving.\t\n\t\n\t\tWhy salt and squeeze the cucumber: once its water is drawn out, the cucumber stays crunchy and soaks up the dressing much better, and the dressing doesn't get watered down.\nUse toasted sesame oil, which is dark and fragrant, not cold-pressed sesame oil.\nServe as a side with Asian dishes, sushi, or grilled meats.\n\t\n\t\n\t\tSaladeAsiatique","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=206679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206679\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=206679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=206679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=206679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}