Sesame cucumber salad
Cool, crunchy cucumbers in a sweet-tangy rice vinegar dressing with toasted sesame, ready in twenty minutes and even better after a rest in the fridge.
- 20 min total
- 10 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $1.08 a serving
- 70 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: It’s ready in 20 minutes, start to finish.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 2 English cucumbers
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 green onions
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
From your pantry
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- ¼ cup rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
Each serving has about 70 calories, 2 g protein, 11 g carbs and 2 g fat, and costs about $1.08 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No English cucumbers? Cucumbers or mini cucumbers work.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the cucumbers into rounds and them in a colander with ½ teaspoon salt.
Thinly slice. Thinly slicing means cutting slices about an eighth of an inch thick, roughly two coins stacked. Thin slices cook in seconds and soften fast, which quick dishes need.
How you’ll know: A slice bends a little when you hold it by one edge, and slow, steady cuts beat fast ones.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Let them sit in the sink for 10 minutes, then press gently with your hands to squeeze out the water.
Timer: 10 min
Dolly’s tip: Salt pulls water out of the cucumbers, so the salad stays crunchy instead of turning soupy.the vinegar, sugar, sesame oil and the rest of the salt in a large bowl until the sugar dissolves.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
the green onions.
Thinly slice. Thinly slicing means cutting slices about an eighth of an inch thick, roughly two coins stacked. Thin slices cook in seconds and soften fast, which quick dishes need.
How you’ll know: A slice bends a little when you hold it by one edge, and slow, steady cuts beat fast ones.
Add the cucumbers, green onions and pepper flakes to the bowl and .
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and serve, or chill up to 4 hours.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
When you host a dinner, Dollop builds the menu around your guests’ allergies, works out a cooking timeline back from when everyone sits down, and puts it all on one grocery list.
