Sunday, July 02, 2006

Super-easy Japanese Cucumber Salad

The weather is warm and you want to munch on some snacks while watching TV. What is better than chips and cookies is a quick, easy, refreshing and healthy cucumber salad! It is super-easy to make. Plus, it's cucumber season so they're selling like a dime each. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
5 Medium cucumbers (seeded)
2 tsps Salt
1/2 cup Lemon juice
1/2 cup Sugar
1/4 tsp MSG (optional)
1 tbsp White wine vinegar
2 tsps Sesame seeds (toasted)

Preparation:
1. Peel cucumbers lengthwise, leaving thin green stripes. Slice very thinly into a large glass or stainless steel bowl. Add salt and mix with hand until cucumber slices are quite limp. Set aside in fridge for 45 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, mix lemon juice, sugar, MSG and white wine vinegar. Transfer cucumbers to a strainer and squeeze as much liquid as possible out of the cucumbers. Discard salt water.
3. Add cucumbers to the lemon juice mixture. Ground the toasted sesame seeds and stir into the salad. Serve.

Comes out perfect each time. You can't go wrong with such a crowd-pleaser. ENJOY!