The cucumber salad is a dish I’ve been eating since childhood. It’s one of those easy dinner rotation dishes that my mom makes all the time, especially when it’s hot and humid outside and she doesn’t want to turn on the stove to cook stir fry.
This cucumber salad only takes 5 minutes to prepare. It’s refreshing and tasty. The salad goes very well with pretty much any Chinese dish. Stir-fry, braised meats, noodles, and deep-fried goodies. You name it! It even goes very well with some Western-style food, such as bread and cheese. I consider it one of the easiest side dishes to make on a busy weekday, to add color and nutrition to your dinner table.
The secret to making the best cucumber salad
1. Use English cucumbers
English cucumbers have a thinner skin and crispier texture. They work so much better in this salad than the dark-skinned American cucumbers. The smaller cucumbers (usually for making Japanese dishes and/or pickling) also work well.
I didn’t peel the cucumber skin, in order to give the dish a nice color. Plus, the skin adds more fiber to the meal. If the cucumber is fresh, the skin shouldn’t be too chewy or dry. You could choose to only remove the tough skin at the lower end of the cucumber. However, if you don’t like the skin, feel free to peel and discard it.
If you use the American cucumber that has waxy and thick skin, do peel the skin before making the salad.
2. Smash the cucumber before cutting
The secret to making delicious cucumber salad is to give the cucumber a coarse texture so it holds more sauce. Instead of chopping the cucumber, smash it with a cleaver first. Then tilt the cleaver to cut the cucumber into diamond-shaped pieces. This method will increase the surface area of the cucumber and create nooks and crannies, allowing it to absorb more sauce. If you do not own a cleaver, a meat pounder works just as well.
3. Use Chinkiang vinegar
Chinkiang vinegar (Zhenjiang vinegar, 镇江香醋) is a type of Chinese black vinegar. It is made from various grains and is aged until the color turns dark brown or inky black. It has a rich, pungent, and tart flavor, sometimes with a hint of sweetness. It has a fermented malty taste and woody character that distinguishes it from the light-colored and fruity rice vinegar.
It’s a key ingredient in this recipe that gives the sauce an extra tangy and rich taste.
4. A bit of chili oil goes a long way
I love to drizzle a bit of homemade chili oil onto my cucumber salad. It adds a nice smoky aroma to the dish and really enhances its taste.
If you happen to have a jar of Lao Gan Ma Chili Crisp, that’s even better! It is a famous (and extremely popular) Chinese brand that sells their chili oil that’s filled with crispy onion, chili peppers, and garlic. It’s not the healthiest ingredient, but it will make your salad addictively tasty. If you’re hosting a dinner party, serve the cucumber salad with some Lao Gan Ma Chili Crisp. Your side dish might be gone faster than your main dish!
More easy delicious Chinese veggie recipes
- Steamed Eggplant in Nutty Sauce
- Stir-Fried Pea Shoots with Garlic
- Spinach and Peanut Salad
- Traditional Chinese potato salad
- Stir-Fried Water Spinach – Two Ways
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
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Easy Chinese Cucumber Salad (拍黄瓜)
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumbers (about 11 oz / 300 g) , tough skin removed
- 3 cloves garlic , crushed and minced
- 1 tablespoon Chinkiang vinegar (or rice vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons Homemade chili oil (or store-bought chili oil), or to taste (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon Lao Gan Ma Chili Crisp , or to taste (Optional)
Instructions
- Dry the cucumber with a paper towel. Place the cucumber on a large cutting board and carefully use a cleaver to crush it. If you don't own a cleaver, a meat pounder will work as well. Then cut it into bite-size pieces and place them into a bowl.
- Add the garlic on top of the cucumber.
- Combine the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, salt and sesame oil in a small bowl and mix well.
- Right before serving, pour the sauce mixture over the cucumber and mix well. (Do not add the sauce beforehand. It will cause the cucumber to lose water, and the sauce will be diluted.
- (Optional) To give the salad an extra kick, you can drizzle some chili oil or add a spoonful of chili crisp. It makes the dish addictively good.
Video
Nutrition
Have a question or feedback? Add a Comment
Did you make this? I want to see! Tag @OmnivoresCookbook on Instagram, and rate the recipe below.
Kendra J
Favorite dish of the night!
Ronald
I added a hand full of roasted peanuts,,,
Mina
Excellent recipe for summer! I used the bottom of a cast iron pan to smash the cucumber since I didn’t have a large cleaver, which worked perfectly. I included chili oil and Lao Gan Ma chili crisp on my first try, which ended up being a bit oily for my personal taste. I’ll omit the chili oil next time. Great flavor otherwise and will definitely repeat this recipe.
su z
tasty
Adeline Ma
i love this easy hot weather appetizer
In Hong Kong where I live it gets very hot and humid so its perfect to have in summer
I often add some Japanese seaweed for extra texture and nutrition.
Bunbun
I’m usually sceptical of things containing anything vinegar but I sourced the recommended brand + chili paste and made a decent batch of this salad alongside a couple other dishes for a bigger dinner party. Like advertised, almost all was gone very quickly! I was careful to add the sauce at the very end but we happily enjoyed the ‘well-marinated’ leftovers the day after too. The only minus of the whole recipe was that the neighbours were probably not too happy with my hammering of the poor and defenceless cucumbers, but this is definitely a side I’ll be making again. Thank you for the recipe!