Vietnamese Cucumber Salad
If your current salad rotation has been a tragically boring yawn-fest, this Vietnamese cucumber salad is the comeback kid you’ve been calling out to in the night. Crisp cucumbers, bird's eye chilies, and a tamarind-lime dressing that is so insanely good it's begging to be spooned directly from the jar onto my grave where I died from too much yumminess.
Servings: 3 cups
Calories: 176kcal
Cost: $4
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups cucumber thinly sliced (Persian, or English cucumbers preferred)
- ½ cup shallots or red onions, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- 2 bird’s eye chilies (or to taste) thinly sliced
- ½ cup cilantro leaves roughly chopped
- ½ cup mint leaves roughly chopped
- ½ cup Thai basil leaves thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon vegan fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons tamarind concentrate
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- ¾ teaspoon salt or to taste
To garnish:
- ¼ cup roasted peanuts chopped
- 1 bird’s eye chili sliced
- Cilantro leaves
- Perilla leaves optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the cucumbers, shallots, garlic, chilies, cilantro, and mint.
- In a separate bowl or cup, whisk together the vegan fish sauce, sriracha, coconut sugar, tamarind concentrate, lime juice, sesame oil, and salt until the sugar dissolves completely.
- Pour the dressing over the cucumber mixture and toss well to coat everything evenly. If you don’t want to eat it immediately, chill the salad sit for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to absorb into the veggies and for the cucumbers to become tender.
- Give the salad a final toss, then transfer to a serving dish. Top with the roasted peanuts, sliced chili, cilantro, and perilla before serving.
Notes
🔪 Mandolintersteller:
Use a mandoline or a very sharp knife to slice the cucumbers thin (around ⅛ inch). Thicker slices just won't absorb the dressing as well, or at least, not as quickly.
🙅♀️ No Swampy Salads:
For peak crunch, dress this salad right before serving, ideally within 10–20 minutes of eating. For meal prep, always store the dressing separately.
Nutrition
Calories: 176kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 1241mg | Potassium: 548mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 854IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 82mg | Iron: 2mg