$\"cucumber$ <\/p>\n

My life has been crazy lately, an absolute whirlwind of activity. All exciting events in various ways, but I’ve barely had a chance to catch my breath. As a matter of fact, I am writing this from an airport terminal as I wait to board a flight to Istanbul (where I’ll be presenting at a conference – and getting ideas for new cooking projects, of course). It can be hard, amidst a flurry of events, to keep cooking, to eat well (both in terms of health and taste). So that’s why I’m posting a simple recipe today, one you can throw together in a matter of minutes. And one that’s quite tasty, to boot. This Asian-inspired cucumber salad can work as a quick lunch (especially if served over greens) or a side and would work amazingly at a picnic. Black sesame seeds add crunch, flavor, and great visual effect. Even when your life feels overwhelming, you should find a little time for this salad.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nCucumber Sesame Salad<\/span><\/strong> (adapted from Vegetarian Times<\/a>)
\nYield: 4 – 6 sides<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
1 lb cucumbers, thinly sliced in half moons<\/span><\/li>\n
1\/2 tsp kosher salt<\/span><\/li>\n
4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar<\/span><\/li>\n
1 Tbsp soy sauce<\/span>*<\/li>\n
2 tsp mirin<\/span>**<\/li>\n
2 tsp grated fresh ginger<\/span><\/li>\n
1\/2 tsp crushed red pepper<\/span><\/li>\n
1\/2 Tbsp black sesame seeds<\/span>***<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
*As always, using a good-quality soy sauce is best – personally, I like Kimlan “Super Special” soy sauce – but you can also do okay with the low-sodium version of a more ubiquitous brand, such as Kikkoman. If you can’t eat gluten, make sure you’re using a gluten-free soy sauce.
\n**Or substitute sugar.
\n***Regular sesame seeds will work, too, but the black ones provide a great visual effect.<\/p>\n
Method:
\n<\/p>\n
\n
In a colander, toss together 1 lb cucumbers, thinly sliced in half moons<\/em> and 1\/2 tsp kosher salt<\/em>. Let drain over a bowl for at least 10 minutes.<\/li>\n
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together 4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar<\/em>, 1 Tbsp soy sauce<\/em>, 2 tsp mirin<\/em>, 2 tsp grated fresh ginger<\/em>, and 1\/2 tsp red pepper flakes<\/em>.<\/li>\n
Gently squeeze the cucumbers to remove excess water, then transfer to a medium bowl and toss with the dressing.<\/li>\n
Sprinkle with 1\/2 Tbsp black sesame seeds<\/em>, and toss briefly to combine. Serve chilled or at room temperature.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>
Related Posts:<\/h3>
Roasted Cabbage with Soy-Glazed Shiitake Mushrooms<\/a><\/li>
Black Bean Kimchi Quinoa Salad<\/a><\/li>
Quinoa Bibimbap<\/a><\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
My life has been crazy lately, an absolute whirlwind of activity. All exciting events in various ways, but I’ve barely had a chance to catch my breath. As a matter of fact, I am writing this from an airport terminal as I wait to board a flight to Istanbul (where I’ll be presenting at a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":""},"categories":[3,120,11],"tags":[294,465,464,276,156,51,463,72,368,121,272,425,86,89,104,106],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1OY2q-Dv","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2449"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2475,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449\/revisions\/2475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seletsucre.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}