A fresh and light cucumber salad recipe that is the perfect side to everything!
Cucumbers! Who doesn’t love a fruit (yup, a fruit!) that can be used as a vegetable, which is a good source of Vitamins A, C and folic acid, and that can reduce eye puffiness? That’s right! Did you know that you can place cucumber slices on your eyes, lay back for about 5 minutes, and then look 10 years younger. It’s true! Now, that last little bit of information could be credited to the fact that during your do-it-yourself spa treatment cucumber juice seeps into your eyes, blurring your vision temporarily…but whatever.
In our parents’ garden there is a special place devoted to growing cucumbers, and it is probably the most tended part of their garden. That’s because cucumbers seem to be a little finicky, at least when you are trying to grow them in Canada, or at least in our family’s garden. Everything else seems to grow like weeds, but cucumbers are hit or miss. Some years, our parents are lucky to harvest a few, and other years they have more cucumbers than they know what to do with. During those times we all look exceptionally youthful…and we eat plenty of salads like this one.
Helpful hints
There are lots of cucumbers out there, with some varieties more common than others. Some cucumbers are meant for pickling, others for slicing and eating raw. Within each of these broader categories, there are also variations. The English cucumber (also called a European cucumber) is the one we most often use, and is the variety often growing in our parent’s garden. This type of cucumber has a thin skin without any pointy spines and a mild flavour. You could definitely use another type of cucumber variety in this cucumber salad recipe if you like.
We like to partially peel our cucumbers, particularly when they come from our gardens as we know that they have not been sprayed with anything. You can choose to either partially peel your cucumber as well, or peel it completely…or even not at all. The choice is yours. In fact, you have a lot of choices!
We like to prepare this salad by slicing the cucumber in rounds, however you can decide that you would prefer to have cubes of cucumber, or any other shape. We would never presume to tell you the correct way to handle your cucumbers.
This salad is incredibly refreshing and goes well with a side of grilled meat, or even a roasted main meal. During the hot summer months it is also a great light lunch or snack.
Mia Kouppa: Cucumber salad
Author: miakouppabbbwpc.wpcomstaging.com
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumber
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup red onion, sliced into thin strips
- 1 green onion, white and green part, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon white wine vinegar
Directions
- Wash and partially peel your cucumber. Slice it into thin rounds and place in a colander set over a large plate. Sprinkle salt over your cucumber slices and allow them to rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
- Using a paper towel, dab your cucumber slices to remove any excess water that has been drawn out of them due to the salt.
- Place your cucumbers into a medium size bowl and mix in the red onion, green onions, parsley and mint.
- In a small bowl mix together the lemon juice, olive oil and vinegar. Pour the dressing over the salad. Toss gently. Enjoy.
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