Quick Cucumber Pickles
These pickles make a super fast side dish or condiment to all sorts of dishes, but go particularly well with Asian foods. I like to flavor these with a little fresh ginger and a couple of drops of toasted sesame oil, but they are just as good plain. Toss a handful across some noodles or fried rice or have a pile alongside your next sandwich. No matter what you choose to use these for, they’ll add a refreshingly tangy crunch to your meal.
Quick Cucumber Pickles
Ingredients:
2 English cucumbers
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp minced ginger (optional)
1/8 tsp toasted sesame oil (optional)
pinch of red chili flakes (optional)
Directions:
Slice the cucumbers into 1/8 inch thick rounds (a mandoline is perfect for this if you have one). Combine the sugar and salt in a large bowl and toss the cucumber slices with your hands to coat with the sugar/salt mixture. Add any additional spices or flavoring you wish to use and toss to incorporate. Allow cucumbers to sit for at least 20 minutes and taste for seasoning. If they are too strong you can rinse them a bit, if they aren’t strong enough you can add more salt or sugar.
Notes:
-These should keep for a few days in the fridge, but you will want to check from time to time to make sure they aren’t getting too strong for your taste, assuming they last that long.
-You can scale this up as you so desire, just use a mix of 1 part salt to three parts sugar. If the brine is too concentrated you can dilute it with some water or rinse the pickles to take off some of the excess salt.
-Fresh or dried dill, tarragon and mustard seeds are also good flavorings to try.
