Smashed cucumber salad with a spicy dressing, fresh herbs and a tangy garlic ginger oil is my twist on this classic Chinese dish. Inspired by recipes from - The Woks of Life, Recipe Tin Eats and Serious Eats.
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I am a huge fan of crisp, crunchy cucumber salads, especially once the heat gets turned up in summertime. I usually stick to kimchi cucumbers since its a recipe I know by heart, or I make my version with mango and pineapple. I wanted to try something new with this recipe.
This smashed cucumber salad has it all a little sweet, a little salty, a little umami and some nice heat. I could eat this every day easily.
Ingredients for this cucumber salad:
- Japanese or English cucumbers
- Salt
- Sugar
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Olive or avocado oil
- Soy Sauce
- Rive Vinegar
- Sesame Oil
- Gochugaru - Korean chili powder
- Sesame Seeds
- Cilantro
- Scallions
- Numbing chili oil (I like La-Yu brand)
I commissioned an illustration of some of the ingredients of this salad from my older daughter. She is working on her art school portfolio so I figured why not have her work on food illustrations. I will be having her make more of these for future recipes because this is so cute!
How to make smashed cucumber salad
- Start by trimming off the ends of your washed cucumber then quartering long ways.
- You can either smash this way or cut each quarter in half then smash each piece with the side of a cleaver or meat mallet/tenderizer. I usually do this part under either paper towel or plastic wrap as I tend to smash rather vigorously and spray cucumber seeds everywhere.
- Cut the cucumbers in to bite sized pieces. I like to cut slightly on the diagonal but really any shape you want is fine.
- Add salt and sugar to the cucumbers and let sit for at least 10 min.
- Drain the cucumbers and they are ready to season.
- Have your minced garlic and ginger in a bowl ready for the hot oil to be added to them.
I will whisk together the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl leaving out the cilantro, green onion.
Next, make the hot ginger garlic oil to stir into the cucumbers before adding the dressing and herbs.
I had some ginger scallion oil leftover from making Hainanese chicken rice and after reading about adding hot oil to smashed cucumbers from The Woks Of Life, I figured why not heat it up and add it to this salad.
I liked it but since this salad already has a good amount of scallions in it I thought to swap out the scallions for ginger in the oil instead.
A good decision on my part since it totally elevates the salad. It is optional if you don't want to add it that is fine.
Chinese Style Smashed Cucumber Salad with Garlic Ginger Oil
Ingredients
- For the Cucumbers:
- 3 English cucumbers 900-1000 grams total
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- For the oil:
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- Pinch of salt
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- For the dressing:
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (or gluten free Tamari)
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, seasoned or unseasoned
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 ½ teaspoons sugar (white sugar)
- 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon Gochugaru (Korean Chili Flakes)
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds, roasted
- To finish:
- 2-3 bunches, about 16 scallions Scallions, dark green parts only, diced
- 1 bunch cilantro, diced
- 3-4 drops Chili oil (numbing chili oil)
Instructions
- Prep the cucumbers:
- Wash and trim the ends off the cucumbers. Slice in half width wise then slice each of those in half then into quarters. Smash with the side of a heavy knife such as a cleaver ( I will place the knife on top of two or three cucumber quarters then smack the flat side of the knife with a fist to really give them a good smash. This is a great way to get out some aggression) and repeat with the rest of the cucumbers. Once smashed I cut into bite sized pieces and place in a large bowl.
- Sprinkle the cucumber pieces with sugar and salt and let sit at least 10 minutes up to 30. Drain the liquid well.
- Make the oil:
- In a metal or glass bowl add the minced garlic and ginger and a pinch of salt. Heat up the oil in a small pan or metal measuring cup and once very hot pour over the garlic and ginger and give it a stir.
- Make the dressing:
- Whisk together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, water, sugar, gochugaru ( start with two teaspoons and add more if you want it spicier) and the sesame seeds. Give it a good whisk.
- Lets put it all together:
- Pour the garlic ginger oil over the cucumber pieces ( after they have been drained) and toss well. Add in the dressing and again toss or stir well to get fully coated. Add in the diced scallion and cilantro and mix again. You can save some scallions and cilantro to garnish over the top if you like.
- Add in a few drops of numbing chili oil if you want some more heat or wait and add in the chili oil to individual portions.
- Chill the cucumber salad for about 30 minutes to let all the flavors come together well and then sit at room temperature for a few minutes. Stir then serve .
- This salad lasts up to a week in an airtight container - such as a deli container. I wouldn’t freeze this unless you like mush.
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