Smacked Cucumber Salad With Sumac- Pickled Onions

Ingredients

½ c Sumac-Pickled Onions

1 tsp white sesame seeds, toasted

1 lb Lebanese or Persian cucumbers from about 6 to 8 cucumbers)

Salt

20 g parsley leaves

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

5 tbsp olive oil

Directions

Make the Sumac-Pickled Onions (see page 16).

In a medium frying pan set over medium- high heat, toast the sesame seeds for 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside.

Place the cucumbers onto a chopping board and trim off the tops and bottoms.

Use the side of your knife to smack the cucumbers until they're slightly bruised and breaking apart. Use a spoon to scoop the seeds out of the middle of each half and discard. Roughly chop the cucumbers into 1-inch pieces. Transfer to a bowl and season with 1 teaspoon of salt, tossing to combine, then set aside for 30 minutes. Drain the cucumbers through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the salty water.

Meanwhile, make a parsley oil. Add the parsley, garlic, ¼ teaspoon of salt, and the olive oil to a food processor and blitz until completely smooth.

Add the drained cucumbers, Sumac- Pickled Onions, and a few tablespoons of parsley oil to a bowl and toss well to combine. Transfer to a serving plate and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

Transfer any leftover parsley oil to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Notes

Serves 4 ° All around the world, cucum- bers are used to balance heavier starch or meat-centric dishes. In Eastern and Northern Europe, they're sometimes mixed with dill and some cream. In Asia, they're often mixed with sesame oil and rice vinegar. And in the Middle East, they're key ingredients in the chopped salad. Smacking the cucumbers here is a great stress reliever, but breaking them up also allows them to absorb the fla- vor of the parsley oil more easily. Salt- ing them for about half an hour before dressing draws out any excess moisture, resulting in a salad with a more concen- trated flavor and texture. You can use English or hothouse cu- cumbers if you prefer them to Lebanese or Persian cucumbers, and removing the seeds is not absolutely essential. Play around with making oils out of other herbs, too-Yotam uses parsley here, but cilantro or dill are just as refreshing.