Thursday, August 22, 2013

Sweet tart Thai cucumber salad

My dear friend Elyse reminded me to share this recipe... Based on a common Thai relish served with satay, this salad is also great with grilled salmon or grilled chicken breasts.


Serves 4 as a side dish

1/2 cup rice vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 medium cucumbers , sliced, salted, and drained (see directions)
1/2 medium red onion , sliced very thin
2 small jalapeño chiles , seeded and minced (or more, to taste)

To prepare the cucumbers: Peel, halve lengthwise, and scoop seeds from cucumbers. Stack halves flat side down; slice diagonally 1/4-inch thick. Toss with 1 tablespoon salt in strainer or colander set over bowl; weight with water-filled, one-gallon-sized zipper-lock freezer bag, sealed tight. Drain for at least 1 hour, and up to 3 hours. Transfer to medium bowl and refrigerate while finishing the recipe.

1. Bring 2/3 cup water and vinegar to boil in small nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Stir in sugar to dissolve; reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

2. Meanwhile, mix cucumbers, onions, and jalapeños in medium bowl. Pour dressing over cucumber mixture; toss to coat. Serve chilled.



4 comments:

Elyse said...

The variation I made this week takes this beauty from a side dish to the main course:

- Add 2 packages of very firm tofu to cucumbers before draining

- Triple the dressing (so that the tofu has enough to bathe in) YUM

- Tiny minced red bell pepper

- Cilantro (you know, if that's your thing)

Unknown said...

I'm still trying to figure out where I put the Sweet Tarts in this!

Stephen Kim said...

Hrm sounds like a good filler to keep me from breaking my diet when i'm hungry. I might have to substitute in some korean ingredients because I'm in Seoul right now. I'm afraid it will all end up tasting korean... Adding cilantro sounds great but for some reason it's crazy expensive here.

Stephen Kim said...

Sounds tasty, I'll have to give it a try. I want to put cilantro in too, but for some reason it is crazy expensive here in Korea. I think most of the koreans here don't like that soapy flavor for some reason. I love it though.