Sesame Cucumber Salad
Smashed cucumbers with rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and a little soy: a cold crunch for hot pot, BBQ, and rice nights.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 0 min
- Serves
- 2–4 as a side
- Difficulty
- easy
A sesame-forward take on smashed cucumber sides common across Chinese, Korean, and Japanese home tables. Compiled from common cold-salad methods; salt and drain keep the bowl crunchy.
This is the mild cucumber bowl: toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, a little soy, and enough sugar to round the edges. Smashing the cucumbers opens cracks so the dressing can settle in. Salting and draining keeps the bowl loud instead of watery.
It sits next to hot pot, Korean BBQ, kimchi fried rice, or anything rich that needs a cold bite. If you want chile heat to lead instead, use the chili crisp cucumbers.
Ingredients
- 1–1½ lb English or Persian cucumbers (about 2 English, or 6–8 Persian)
- 1 tsp kosher salt, for draining
- 1½–2 Tbsp unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2–3 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 1–1½ tsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- Optional: 1 garlic clove, minced (use 2 only if you like it punchy)
- Optional heat: a pinch of gochugaru, or ½–1 tsp chili crisp
Method
- 1Trim the cucumber ends. On a cutting board, lay the flat of a chef’s knife or a rolling pin over each cucumber and press firmly until the flesh cracks open along its length.
- 2Cut or tear into bite-size pieces. Toss with the salt in a colander and let drain 10–20 minutes. Shake off liquid. Rinse briefly only if they taste too salty, then pat dry.
- 3In a mixing bowl, stir 1½ Tbsp vinegar, 2 tsp sesame oil, the soy sauce, and 1 tsp sugar until the sugar dissolves. Add the cucumbers and sesame seeds. Toss hard so the dressing reaches the broken surfaces. Taste. Add the remaining vinegar, sesame oil, or sugar if you want it brighter, nuttier, or rounder. Fold in garlic or a little chili heat if using.
- 4Serve cold right away, or chill 15–30 minutes if you want the dressing to settle deeper. Eat while the cucumbers are still crunchy.
Notes
Useful details
- Skip the salt-and-drain step only if you are truly in a rush. Add a smaller pinch of salt to the dressing instead, and eat immediately.
- English and Persian cucumbers need less seeding. Thick seedy garden cucumbers can be halved and scooped first.
- Use unseasoned rice vinegar. Seasoned rice vinegar already carries sugar and salt, and it throws the dressing off.
- Two teaspoons of toasted sesame oil is enough for most bowls. A full tablespoon can taste greasy once the cucumbers weep a little more liquid.
- For a hotter plate, move to chili crisp cucumbers rather than dumping a lot of chili into this milder dressing.