This Smashed Asian cucumber salad recipe is light, refreshing and perfect for the summer, but packed with flavor from a zingy dressing, garlic, and cilantro. It only takes 10 minutes to make – and there are other benefits of this perfect summer salad so just read on!
In our family, I’m the resident whacky Chinese medicine enthusiast—I drink the elixirs (check out Sarah’s experience from way back when here), read the most books, and enjoy the healing powers of a good Chinese foot massage. So I’ll start this recipe by saying, everyone knows that cucumber salad is a great summer dish, but do you know about its health benefits?
According to TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), cucumber cleanses and detoxifies, it helps reduce high blood pressure, and, with its “cooling” element, also eases the internal heat of the body. In short, eat plenty of cucumber this summer!
In the US, you might find the odd tabbouleh salad, a dill pickle here and there, and perhaps a pitcher of cucumber water, but people in China take eating cucumbers to a whole new level. For example, we Americans would probably enjoy an ice cream cone (or gnaw on a turkey leg if you’re at Disney World) when visiting a park or a zoo in the US, but in China, you can see people crunching on mini cucumbers as they walk around, riding on the train, or taking a rest on the Great Wall. It’s an everywhere, anytime snack. Fruit peddlers peel them for you and they’re only RMB 1.00 (16 cents) a piece. A bargain!
This Asian cucumber salad is also a popular appetizer/cold dish (凉菜）on most restaurant menus. Besides the fact that it’s so easy to whip up, it’s crunchy, crispy, and its health benefits have won over many diners. We make this on a weekly basis during the summer because it’s so simple and refreshing!
Asian Cucumber Salad: Recipe Instructions
Note: if you prefer to omit the chili oil, heat up a tablespoon of oil in a pan and drizzle it over the cucumber. Seems weird, but in Chinese cooking, uncooked vs. cooked oil have different flavors and are treated as such!
Wash the cucumbers and pat them dry with a clean towel. Make the salad dressing by combining the salt, sugar, sesame oil, light soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Stir until the sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Set aside.
On a cutting board, lay a large knife flat against the cucumber, and smash it lightly with your other hand. The cucumber should crack open and smash into four sections.
Repeat along its full length. Once the whole cucumber is completely open (usually into 4 long sectional pieces), cut it at a 45-degree angle into bite-sized pieces.
In a large bowl, mix the cut cucumber with the prepared dressing, garlic and chili oil (or cooked plain oil), and toss it well. Serve, garnished with toasted sesame seeds and cilantro.
To stay healthy and keep cool this summer, check out some of our other delicious salads.
Smashed Asian Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 2 seedless cucumbers (about 1 to 1 1/2 lbs; 600g)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 3 teaspoons light soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2-4 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
- 1-2 teaspoons chili oil (optional)
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
- a small handful of chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Note: if you prefer to omit the chili oil, heat up a tablespoon of oil in a pan and drizzle it over the cucumber. Seems weird, but in Chinese cooking, uncooked vs. cooked oil have different flavors and are treated as such!
- Wash the cucumbers and pat them dry with a clean towel. Make the salad dressing by combining the salt, sugar, sesame oil, light soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Stir until the sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Set aside.
- On a cutting board, lay a large knife flat against the cucumber, and smash it lightly with your other hand. The cucumber should crack open and smash into four sections. Repeat along its full length. Once the whole cucumber is completely open (usually into 4 long sectional pieces), cut it at a 45-degree angle into bite-sized pieces.
- In a large bowl, mix the cut cucumber with the prepared dressing, garlic and chili oil (or cooked plain oil), and toss it well. Serve, garnished with sesame seeds and cilantro.
This looks fantastic and I want to give it a whirl this week—summer came suddenly to my neck of the woods and this looks so refreshing and delish—but I’m super curious as to why you smash the cuke rather than halving or quartering it lengthwise. Is there a reason, other than the fact that smashing things is a good stress reliever?
Hahaha…it’s a good stress reliever with the added benefit of creating a lot of rough surfaces to “catch” more sauce.
Thanks, Judy! This is on today’s menu and I can’t wait to try it. *flexes smashing muscles*
Hahaha…hope you like the recipe.
I have a question. I’m making this salad later today and I wondered if I should make it earlier so it can absorb more flavor or just go ahead and make before serving? I hope you can answer today and thank you!
Sorry, Carol, I did not answer you on time. BTW, don’t make any salad ahead of time, as it will release too much liquid with the dressing on. :-)
Just made this, and it’s amazing! I didn’t have any chili oil on hand and I was being lazy, so I subbed in 1.5 tsp of sambal oelek. Turned out great, but I’ll be sure to try it with chili oil next time so that I can know the real taste!
Thank you for trying our recipes, Rose. Happy wokking :-)