Sesame Lemon Cucumber Salad
September 25, 2002

From The Best Recipe by the Editors of Cook's Illustrated magazine

1/4 C. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbs. juice from 1 small lemon
2 Tbs. Asian sesame oil
2 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. dried red pepper flakes plus more to taste
1 Tbs. sesame seeds, toasted
3 medium cucumbers, sliced, salted, and drained

Whisk all ingredients except cucumbers in medium bowl. Add cucumbers; toss to coat. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Keckler's Komments:

Used Bill Lucianovic's homegrown and homemade Powdered Fire as the red pepper flakes.

Omitted sugar after the first making. Could do without a sweetening agent. I like it strong and refreshing. Might use the sugar again but in decreased amounts as it does tend to bring out other flavors.

Added various combinations of chopped carrots, match sticks of endive, thin slices of red onion, and sliced scallions to bulk up the salad and served it as a main.

Skipped the salting and draining of cucumbers as it takes too much time and is fussy.

After peeling cucumbers, I sliced them in long translucent strips, using a vegetable peeler. A mandoline might be more effective, less time consuming, but I do not have one yet. Piling up the cucumber strips in the middle of the plate is attractive and Asian-inspired.

Hungry? Get a menu pushed
under your door when I update:
email:
Powered by NotifyList.com
Copyright © 2002-2006 Stephanie Vander Weide