Chinese Pickled Cucumber Salad

This is a simple starter but it needs to be prepared half a day in advance.

Serves 4

Level of difficulty: easy

Ingredients

3 oriental cucumbers
1/2 medium-sized carrot
2 tablespoons white rice vinegar
5 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 chilli pepper, sliced
3 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar

Method

Scrub cucumber skin well (do not peel).
Cut cucumbers lengthways into quarters. Cut crossways into finger-length pieces.
Slice carrot into matchstick-sized slivers.
Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of salt over cucumbers and carrot. Mix in.
Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours (longer time equals more tender vegetables).
Rinse off salt and drain.
Add remaining teaspoon of salt, rice vinegar, garlic, chilli pepper, sugar. Mix well.
Refrigerate for a further 3 to 4 hours, mix and serve.

Notes: For a variation add a teaspoon of finely diced ginger. You can substitute the cucumber with other vegetables, such as kohlrabi, cabbage or Chinese cabbage.

Stephen Jack lives in Taiwan and writes about Chinese food.

Complementary Wines: Chardonnay, Icewine, Icewine: Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Vodka

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