Asian Pickled Cucumber Salad
My Asian Pickled Cucumber Salad can be made in just 15 minutes. It’s the perfect side dish for everything from bao buns, to Korean-style chicken wings, spicy tofu and more.
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A simple side dish
Pickled Cucumber Salads appear alongside a wide range of dishes across Asia. In Japan a pickled cucumber salad is called “Kyuri no Sunomono”, In Korea it’s “Oi Michum”. There are a number of variations to this simple salad across Asia.
The reason that Pickled Cucumber Salad is so popular is because they are the perfect cooling, palette cleanser. They work really well with rich, fatty meats like duck or pork or alongside fish and spicy dishes.
For my take on an Asian Pickled Cucumber Salad, you will need:
- Pickling cucumbers. Good varieties to choose include Persian, Lebanese or English Cucumbers. They should be small and thin, with thin skins and very few seeds.
- Soy sauce – or alternatively tamari.
- Rice wine vinegar – a mild vinegar often used in Asian dishes.
- Mirin – made from rice wine but with a much higher sugar content than rice wine vinegar making it sweet and complex.
- Sesame oil – for a smoky, nutty flavour.
- Sesame seeds – I like to use black and white for variety.
- Fresh coriander – for garnish.
- Red chilli – for a hint of spice, though this is entirely optional.
Once you’ve purchased this simple shopping list you can have make my Asian Pickled Cucumber Salad in as little as 15 minutes.
Step by Step
Preparing the cucumbers
The first step is to prepare the cucumbers. It’s probably most common for the cucumbers to be sliced rather than cut into batons. Though I did see them prepared as batons in China. I like to cut my cucumbers slightly on the diagonal as this creates greater surface area for the pickling vinegar to absorb into.
Sprinkling a little salt over the cucumbers will draw out some of their moisture. This keeps them extra crunchy! the pickling vinegar will replace the water rather than adding to it and making them soggy.
Making the pickling liquid
This is a quick pickle recipe. And, perhaps most interestingly, no heat is involved.
We start with the rice wine vinegar. This is readily available in most supermarkets in the UK but if you’re in a specialist Oriental supermarket, look out for Japanese “Su” or “Kome Su” which are two types of vinegar that are often used to make salad dressings, sushi, and pickles such as this Pickled Cucumber Salad.
You can also use sushi vinegar if that’s all you can get your hands on but note that this has the sugar and salt already mixed in so you won’t need to add any like I do in the recipe.
To make the pickling liquid simply whisk together the rice vinegar, mirin, soy sauce and sesame oil before pouring them over the sliced cucumber.
No need for rest
Usually you let pickles rest for a long time to allow them to soak up all of the flavour from the pickling liquid. Because we want the cucumbers to stay crisp and the flavours to be fresh and bright, you can enjoy this recipe immediately. Though, I do think letting it sit for 10 minutes is best.
I would avoid making this recipe ahead of time for this reason. It’s best to make it just before you want to enjoy it.
Add a little spice
To garnish this dish I like to add just a few thin slices of red chilli. If you’re serving this alongside an already spicy dish you may want to leave this out.
A scattering of sesame seeds and some fresh coriander is the perfect way to finish the dish.
The recipe
Asian Pickled Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 200 grams baby cucumbers
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 pinch fresh coriander leaves only
- 1 tsp sesame seeds black and white for variety
- 1 small red chilli optional
Instructions
- Thinly slice the cucumbers on the diagonal. Each slice should be roughly 2mm thick.
- Sprinkle the cucumber slices with a pinch of salt, toss them together and then let them sit while you make the pickling liquid.
- In a bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, mirin and sesame oil.
- Drain any moisture that has come out of the cucumbers then pour over the pickling liquid.
- Serve with a garnish of a few coriander leaves, sesame seeds and thinly sliced red chilli (if using).
Nutrition
More Asian inspired recipes
Global Recipe Archive
I love nothing more than exploring new cultures through their food. My Global Recipe Archive includes a range of recipes, some of which have been shared with me by people I’ve met while travelling, others are my interpretations of food I’ve tried. I hope you enjoy them!
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Hi could you please clarify if the amount of marinade ingredients specified are per each salmon fillet. Looking forward to trying this!
Hi Quinta. Thanks for your question you’re right the instructions aren’t very clear – I’ll update the recipe soon so that it makes a little more sense! The ingredients in the recipe will only be enough for 1 fillet of salmon so multiply accordingly! I hope you enjoy the recipe, it’s one of my favourites! All the best, Emma