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If your fridge has a cucumber and you have 10 spare minutes, then you, m'deary, are dangerously close to making this ensaladang pipino recipe. We're layering crisp cukes with sharp vinegar, a tiny touch of garlicky heat, and calamansi.
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Cucumber salads are beloved all around the world. Japan has sweet-tart sunomono with rice vinegar and wakame, Korea fires it up with gochugaru in oi muchim, beoth Vietnamese cucumber salad and Thai cucumber salad balances sweet, sour, and heat with peanuts and herbs, and Middle Eastern cucumber salad brings the freshness with cucumber beet salads laced with lemon and olive oil. But ensaladang pipino? This bad boy is the simplest and most straight to the point, keeping things lean and mean with just citrus, umami, and heat doing their thing.
No stove, no grill, no flame-just pure and simple cutting-board wizardry. The dressing pulls its weight with umami from vegan fish sauce and enough acidity from calamansi to wake you up from your deepest nap. This is not your grandma's Filipino cucumber salad, unless she was a flavor anarchist in the best way possible.
This stuff is ADDICTIVE! Hubby's been packing it for lunch like it's some kind of gourmet snack attack. Can't blame him - it's ridiculously good!
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🥰Why you'll adore this Filipino cucumber salad recipe
✊ Vegan AF & GF: Like all my vegan Filipino recipes, this one's free from the usual offenders and still goes absolutely feral. No shrimp paste, no anchovy funk, certainly no pork, just full-throttle flavor without harming anyone. It's about to slide into the leaderboards of your fave gluten-free vegan recipes without even trying.
🥗 The Flavor Is Loud: Calamansi juice, garlic, and vegan fish sauce pack a flavor combo that punches way above its weight class.
✅ Tested and Approved Worldwide: Like all of my vegan recipes, this one's been tested and loved by a massive team of recipe testers across the globe.
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🥒Ensaladang pipino ingredients
The Cucumbers
Persian cucumbers are my top choice for this recipe. They're prized for their ultra-thin skin, minimal seeds, and unbeatable crunch with zero prep needed. If you can't find them, Kirby cucumbers or any seedless variety will work just fine. English cucumbers are also a solid backup, but keep in mind they're about 3-4 times the size of Persian ones, so adjust accordingly if you're subbing them in. Avoid standard waxed cukes unless you're planning to peel and deseed; they tend to be bitter and watery.
Shallots
Shallots offer a mellow, subtly sweet base that won't overpower, perfect for soaking up the acidic punch of the dressing. They're a staple in Southeast Asian salads like sambal dabu dabu and sambal matah for good reason. If you can't find shallots, red onion steps in with more bite and color. Just slice them thin so they mellow out and blend into the salad instead of taking it over.
Bird's Eye Chili
Bird's eye chilies are fierce little flavor bombs, also known as Thai chilies, the same ones I love using to garnish pad ba mee and Thai eggplant curry. They bring fiery heat that cuts right through acidity and sugar like they've got a vendetta. If you're out, thinly sliced cayenne or serrano peppers are excellent backups. Just remember, a little goes a long way unless you're into crying with your cucumbers.
Calamansi
Asian grocery stores often carry bottled calamansi juice or frozen calamansi packets, and both work great if you can't get your hands on the fresh stuff. Lime juice does a solid job, too, especially when calamansi is hard to find. Just make sure to use fresh-squeezed ones. If you want this to be a little more salty and complex, you can sub in toyomansi.
Vegan Fish Sauce
Vegan fish sauce brings deep, savory umami and salt without any fishy business. My go-to brand is Ocean's Halo; it's balanced, not overly salty, and brings the funk in a good way. If you want to kick things up, you can swap in a splash of my vegan nuoc cham or spoonful of my vegan bagoong instead.
White Pepper
White pepper adds subtle heat and a mild, slightly smoky pepperiness to your cucumber salad. It blends smoothly without dark flecks, keeping the salad's appearance clean. Black pepper can be used instead, if that's all you have on hand. If you have some left over after making this, white pepper is also crucial in a ton of other Southeast Asian recipes like Thai som tam, and Indonesian bihun goreng.
*See the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact quantities, nutritional info, and detailed cooking directions.
📖 How to make Filipino cucumber salad
If you're in speed mode, scroll down to the printable recipe card. If you're sticking around, here's the full step-by-step with photos and tips.
Step One
Slice Slice Baby:
Thinly slice the cucumbers, shallots, and bird's eye chili. Toss them in a large bowl.
Step Two
My Cousin Vinegar:
In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, calamansi (or lime) juice, minced garlic, vegan fish sauce, sugar, sesame oil, white pepper, and salt until fully dissolved.
Step Three
Pour Whom the Bell Tolls:
Pour the dressing over the sliced veggies. Toss gently until everything is evenly coated.
Step Four
Chill Nye, The Science Guy:
Transfer to a serving bowl. Garnish with garlic chives and extra chili if using. Chill for 15+ minutes before serving if you want it cold.
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💡Serving Ideas
Got creamy ginataang langka or laing melting into your plate? Ensaladang pipino balances heavily cooked flavors with fresh snap, citrus, and crunch to wake everything up like a gosh darn cold bucket of water to the face. Or you can rock this out as a side to one of every Filipino's fave noodle dishes: pancit bihon or pancit canton.
You can slide it next to tofu sisig as a condiment. And if you don't want to add more dishes to wash, vegan lumpiang shanghai, lumpiang sariwa, or vegan spring rolls are your pipinos' long-lost buddies.
Oh, and if you're the kind of person who casually eats dessert as a starter course to justify having to eat a salad (uh, are you my wife reading this?), you'll love this to chase down some tupig, turon, or a brain-freeze blast of buko pandan salad or sago't gulaman.
👉Top tips
- Use a Mandoline: While the traditional salad is normally made with slightly thicker rings, razor-thin, even slices help the cucumbers soak up flavor faster and look sharp on the plate. Mandolines are no joke, but they help get this done kinda effortlessly. They've sent better cooks than us to urgent care. Stay sharp, but pay attention to what you are doing if you use one.
- Don't Skip the Rest Time: Even 15 minutes of chilling makes a difference. It gives the cucumbers time to soak up all that punchy flavor and stay super crisp.
- Use Non-Reactive Bowls: Vinegar and metal sometimes result in weird flavors. Go with glass, ceramic, or stainless steel bowls to keep your dressing clean and sharp.
🤷♀️ Recipe FAQs
Not really. The texture peaks early, and by day 2, the cucumbers start losing their crispness. It's more of a make-it-and-eat-it situation.
Totally. Toss in some pan-seared tofu, edamame, or even grilled seitan. It turns from a side dish into a full-on power bowl vibe.
Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days. The cucumbers will soften slightly but still taste great. Stir well before serving to reintegrate the oil that has separated.
🇵🇭You'll love these vegetarian Filipino recipes too:
Learn to make absurdly good vegan food from the Philippines in a super-fun recorded cooking class with Chef Adam Sobel!
Ensaladang Pipino
Equipment
- Mandoline optional
Ingredients
- 4 Persian cucumbers
- ½ cup shallots or red onion, sliced
- 1 bird'e eye chili thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons calamansi juice or lime juice
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons vegan fish sauce
- 4 teaspoons sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
Optional to Garnish:
- 4 teaspoons garlic chives thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon birds eye chili thinly sliced
Instructions
- Thinly slice the cucumbers and place them in a large mixing bowl along with the sliced shallots and bird's eye chili.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, calamansi (or lime juice), minced garlic, vegan fish sauce, sugar, sesame oil, white pepper, and salt until the sugar has fully dissolved.
- Pour the dressing over the cucumbers, shallots, and chili. Toss gently until the vegetables are evenly coated with the dressing.
- Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with garlic chives and additional sliced bird's eye chili, if using. If you would like the salad cold, chill for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
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Tee Hansen says
This stuff is ADDICTIVE! Hubby's been packing it for lunch like it's some kind of gourmet snack attack. Can't blame him - it's ridiculously good!