Korean Cucumber Salad (오이무침)

• servings: 2 sides worth / cucumber
• active time: 5 minutes
• total time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

1 cucumber, thinly sliced into ~⅛” slices (doesn’t really matter what type, just season to taste if it’s huge)

2 green onions, finely sliced (both the white and greens)

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sugar

½ tsp gochugaru (or other chili powders, increase this to taste)

¼ tsp sesame seeds

Directions

Mix the soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar in a bowl. Stir / whisk to combine and ensure the sugar is fully dissolved.

Add the rest of the ingredients (cucumber sliced, green onions, chili flakes, and sesame seeds) into the bowl and toss to combine. Taste a slice and adjust the chili flakes for your desired spice.

Serve cold as a side dish. It’s recommended to serve this dish right away for a cucumber-forward crunchy experience, but making them in advance also works well for what’s essentially a lightly pickled dish.

Notes

With a name literally translating to ‘cucumber coated in sauce’, this Korean cucumber salad is a refreshing side dish that can provide temperature and textural contrast alongside other dishes. This dish is a part of Korean banchan culture, which is a really fascinating thing to explore with friends if you have the time. This side dish comes together quickly and can be tuned to your tastes, less or more acidic, less or more spicy, etc. Makes enough for 2-3 people’s side dish.