Dressed Cucumbers | Sybaritica

This dish was inspired by a cucumber salad I had in a Japanese restaurant not long ago. I haven’t tried to reproduce the exact dish (it was quite a spicy affair), but I did borrow the idea of using very thick slices rather than the much thinner ones you commonly see in Japanese cucumber appetizers…

The Ingredients

• 2 – 3 Baby Cucumbers;
• 1 ½ tsp. Coarse Sea Salt;
• 1 tsp. Sugar;
• 1 tbsp. Rice Wine;
• ½ tsp. Sesame Oil;
• 1 tsp. Plain oil;
• 1 tsp. Rice Vinegar;
• ½ tsp. Light Soy Sauce;
• Sesame Seeds for garnish.

Cut the cucumbers into slices about ¾ of an inch thick then toss with the salt and leave to sit for 30 minutes or so.

Drain off any juices that have accumulated then rinse well. Next, squeeze the slices well to expel as much water as possible. Doing it between two pieces of paper towel works well but be careful as it is easy to make thick slices split.

Mix together the remaining ingredients (except the sesame seeds) and toss the cucumber in the mixture. Allow to sit for 30 minutes to an hour. When ready to serve, plate and garnish with sesame seeds.

NOTES

This turned out quite nicely but I might make a few changes next time. The restaurant version peeled the cucumbers before slicing and I would try that next time (or partially peel for a striped effect). Also, the restaurant dressing, while spicy, also seemed to have dashi in it and I think that would work well here too.

• Experiment: Bitter Melon Salad