Sunomono is a traditional Japanese cucumber salad made with crisp cucumber slices tossed in a sweet-and-tart rice vinegar dressing. This simple side dish complements almost any meal, adding a refreshing flavor and crisp bite.
Sunomono is traditionally served as a palate cleanser in the Japanese teishoku-style meals. It's commonly made with cucumber and wakame seaweed, but it's also a great base for seafood like shrimp and crab. This recipe is naturally sweetened with maple syrup.
With sunomono as a side dish, you can build a simple Japanese-style meal with dishes like Shio Koji Chicken, Kabocha Squash Miso Soup! And also try other refreshing cucumber salads like Spicy Asian Spiral Cucumber Salad and Mango Cucumber Salad.
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What is Sunomono
Sunomono (酢の物) is a popular traditional Japanese side dish made with vegetables and sometimes seafood, dressed in a tangy, sweet komezu (rice vinegar, 米酢) based dressing. Cucumbers, wakame seaweed, and seafood like shrimp and crab are commonly used. It's served as a refreshing side dish in Japanese-style meals.
The dressing used in sumonomo is called Awase-zu (合わせ酢), a general term for Japanese rice vinegar-based dressings. Awase-zu has many variations and is typically sweetened with sugar or mirin and lightly seasoned with soy sauce and salt.
In this recipe, the Awase-zu is naturally sweetened with maple syrup and balanced with a drizzle of soy sauce to round out the tartness of rice vinegar with umami. Tossed with crunchy cucumbers and mineral-rich wakame, it creates a refreshing, palate-cleansing side dish.
Why You'll Love This Sunomono
- Light and Refreshing: The tangy rice vinegar dressing is naturally sweetened with maple syrup and balanced with soy sauce for umami.
- Crisp Bite: Sliced cucumbers are massaged with salt to make them crisp-tender and soak up the flavorful dressing.
- A Simple, Elegant Japanese Side Dish: Made with just a few ingredients, but full of depth and tradition.
- Great Palate Cleanser: A popular side dish for Japanese teishoku-style meals.
- Easy to Customize: Add shrimp, crab, or tuna to make it your own.
- Authentic Flavor with a Modern Touch: Authentic flavor with a modern touch
Ingredients
- Persian cucumbers: Traditionally made with Japanese cucumbers, but I find it very hard to get my hands on them in the US grocery stores. Persian cucumbers have a tender texture, perfect for recreating the delicate crunch.
- Wakame seaweed: Wakame is a nutritious edible seaweed often used in soups and salads in Japanese and Korean cuisine. It often comes in dried form, and it expands 10 times in volume when rehydrated. You can find it in Asian grocery stores or on Amazon.
- Rice vinegar: The base of the dressing. You can also use apple cider vinegar.
- Maple syrup: Naturally sweetens the dressing. You can also use granulated sugar.
- Soy sauce: Season the dressing and add umami.
- Sesame seeds: Optional.
How to Make Sunomono (Step-by-Step)
- In a small bowl, add dried wakame and cover with water to rehydrate for 5 minutes. Drain well.
- In a medium bowl, add cucumber slices and sprinkle a pinch of salt. Gently massage to evenly coat cucumbers with salt. Let it sit for 5 min. Then use your hand or a kitchen towel to squeeze out the excess moisture.
- In a clean bowl, toss together cucumbers, drained wakame, rice vinegar, maple syrup, soy sauce, and sesame seeds.
Spiral Susumber Salad
Cucumbers are sliced into coins in this recipe, but you can also make it spiral! Spiral-cut cucumbers have a satisfying crunch and hold on to the dressing very well(just like fusilli, spiral-shaped pasta!)
I have a detailed method for how to spiral cut cucumbers in the Sesame Spiral Cucumber Salad recipe, so make sure to check it out!
Types of Sunomono
This recipe is a basic cucumber and wakame sunomono, but it's highly customizable! Use cucumber as a base, and add fresh vegetables to make it a colorful side, or add protein to make it even more fulfilling.
- Vegetable sunomono: cherry tomatoes, eggplant, okura, daikon, and carrots are popular sunomono ingredients.
- Kani sunomono: imitation or real crab meat. Canned crab lump meat is very convenient.
- Shrimp (ebi) sunomono: Use peeled and cooked shrimp.
- Octopus (tako) sunomono: Use boiled and sliced octopus.
- Shirasu sunomono: Shirasu is immature fish and a popular ingredient in Japanese cuisine.
- Tuna sunomono: Canned tuna is an easy way to add protein and make this sunomono satiating.
- Heat: Add a little heat with a dash of red pepper flakes.
What to Serve with Sunomono
Sunomono is usually served as a refreshing side dish in Japanese-style meals, balancing richer and savory dishes with its light, tangy flavor.
To build a simple and satisfying meal, follow the Japanese Ichiju Sansai principle: a bowl of rice, warm miso soup, one protein main dish, and a couple of small sides.
- Shio Koji Chicken and Shio Koji Salmon are great main dish options, adding savory depth and umami-rich flavor.
- Kabocha Squash Miso Soup brings warmth and subtle sweetness, rounding out the meal. Shio Koji Tomato Soup is another fun recipe to brighten up the meal.
- Steamed rice is the base of the Japanese meal, helping tie everything together into a balanced, nourishing meal.
- Hanami Dango, Mitarashi Dango, and Shiratama Dango are fun additions as a dessert after the meal!
If you're curious about how to make flower-shaped carrots in miso soup, like the image below, I'm explaining the Japanese carving technique in my Quick Pickled Watermelon Radish (Kazarigiri Guide) post!
Tips for the Best Sunomono
- Massage the cucumber with salt: Massaging the cucumber with salt draws out excess moisture.
- Squeeze out the excess moisture: Use your hand to squeeze out the moisture after the salt massage, helping them stay crisp and preventing the dressing from becoming watery.
- Balance the dressing to your taste: Sunomono should be light and refreshing, not overly sweet or too sharp. Adjust the sweetness and soy sauce to taste.
Storage
Keep the sunomono in the air-tight container and store it in the refrigerator. Enjoy within 2-4 days.
The sunomono tastes the best when freshly made, because cucumbers release liquid as they sit longer. Squeeze well to remove the water when you're planning to meal prep.
FAQ
Sunomono (酢の物) means Japanese dishes dressed with vinegar-based sauces. They are typically light, tangy, and refreshing.
Not necessarily. Cucumber-only sunomono is also delicious! If you want, add vegetables and seafood you already have, like cherry tomatoes and canned tuna.
Sunomono (Japanese Cucumber Salad Recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 Persian cucumbers thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon dried wakame seaweed
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup or glanurated sugar
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds (Optional)
- Sea salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add dried wakame and cover with water to rehydrate for 5 minutes. Drain well.
- In a medium bowl, add cucumber slices and sprinkle a pinch of salt. Gently massage to evenly coat cucumbers with salt. Let it sit for 5 min. Then use your hand or a kitchen towel to squeeze out the excess moisture.
- In a clean bowl, toss together cucumbers, drained wakame, rice vinegar, maple syrup, soy sauce, and sesame seeds.
Notes
- Vegetable sunomono: cherry tomatoes, eggplant, okura, daikon, and carrots are popular sunomono ingredients.
- Kani sunomono: imitation or real crab meat. Canned crab lump meat is very convenient.
- Shrimp (ebi) sunomono: Use peeled and cooked shrimp.
- Octopus (tako) sunomono: Use boiled and sliced octopus.
- Shirasu sunomono: Shirasu is immature fish and a popular ingredient in Japanese cuisine.
- Tuna sunomono: Canned tuna is an easy way to add protein and make this sunomono satiating.
- Heat: Add a little heat with a dash of red pepper flakes.
Nutrition
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