Sesame Spiral Cucumber Salad
This Sesame Spiral Cucumber Salad recipe turns your cucumbers into a nourishing crunchy salad. Nutty, saucy, umami-packed spiralized cucumber salad goes well with any dish. I love to enjoy this easy Asian cucumber salad over rice. If you like viral Asian spicy cucumber salad, this is a great recipe to expand your spiral cucumber salad horizon.
How to Spiral Cut Cucumbers
Whether spiralized, spiral cut, accordion, or whatever you call it, it’s by far the most fun and yummiest shape cucumbers ever get.
Like fusilli pasta, spiral cucumbers hold on to sauce so well. And this sesame sauce is simple yet takes cucumber salad to the next level.
First, trim off both ends of the cucumbers.
To make an accordion shape, we’re going to give thin slices to the cucumbers but keep the slices together on one side. Place a cucumber between chopsticks to prevent slicing off the cucumber.
Slice more than half of the depth of cucumbers. In case you accidentally cut further, chopsticks will prevent fully cutting off the slices.
Flip and thinly slice on the other side diagonally without cutting off. Again, using chopsticks helps prevent fully cutting off any pieces.
The cucumber will be stretchy like this!
You can make this salad with whole long accordion cucumbers(isn’t it so fun?). Alternatively, you can cut the spiral cucumbers into bite-size lengths, about 1 inch each, so that they’re more easily picked up with chopsticks.
How to Make Sesame Spiral Cucumber Salad
First, let’s start with massaging cucumbers.
In a medium-sized bowl, add spiralized cucumbers and a pinch of salt. Gently massage the cucumbers. Rest them for 15 minutes to tenderize.
After 15 minutes, the cucumbers start to sweat. So gently squeeze cucumbers to drip off excess water. Transfer them to the clean bowl.
Next, we’re going to make the sesame seed sauce.
Toast the sesame seeds in a skillet over medium heat until aromatic. Remove from the heat and let cool.
To make the sauce, add sesame seeds in a mortar and pestle and grind until mostly ground and aromatic. Stir in rice vinegar, tamari, garlic powder, and maple syrup and mix with a spatula or spoon.
You can alternatively use a coffee mill to grind sesame seeds. If you have a small blender, add all the ingredients to it and blitz until mostly ground and mixed well.
Pour the sesame sauce over the cucumber and drizzle the sesame oil over it.
Toss and refrigerate for 15 min. Serve and enjoy!
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Sesame Spiral Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 3 Persian cucumbers
- 1 Tablespoon white sesame seeds toasted
- 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons gf tamari or soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ Tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- Pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Trim off both ends of the cucumbers. Place a cucumber between chopsticks. Thinly slice crosswise without cutting off. Chopsticks help prevent fully cutting off the slices. Flip and Thinly slice on the other side diagonally without cutting off. Again, using chopsticks helps prevent fully cutting off any pieces.
- In a bowl, toss cucumber and a pinch of salt. Gently massage the cucumber. Set aside for 15 minutes to tenderize. Gently squeeze cucumbers to drip off excess water. Transfer to the clean bowl.
- Using a mortar and pestle, grind sesame seeds until mostly ground and aromatic. Stir in rice vinegar, tamari, garlic powder, and maple syrup. You can alternatively use a coffee mill to grind sesame seeds or a small blender to grind all the ingredients.
- Pour the sesame sauce over the cucumber and drizzle sesame oil. Toss and refrigerate for 15 min. Serve and enjoy!
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