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Korean cucumber salad in white bowl with red chopsticks

Korean Cucumber Salad

Beth Lee
Korean cucumber salad, a type of pickled cucumber, is so refreshing. Serve this as part of a spread of banchan (Korean small plate dishes) or on its own to compliment a protein and rice.
5 from 7 votes
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Resting Time for Cucumbers 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Korean
Servings 6
Calories 19 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 - 3 Persian cucumbers about 1 pound (Korean, Japanese or English cucumbers also good choices)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 1 green onion finely minced
  • 1 clove garlic finely minced
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon reduced sodium soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds plus extra for garnishing
  • ½ teaspoon gochugaru

Instructions
 

  • Prep the cucumbers into half moons by cutting the cucumbers in half lengthwise, then slicing. You can speed the prep along by just slicing the cucumbers whole. Slice the cucumbers as thin as you want - mine were about ⅛" thick. You can remove some of the skin of the cucumber to create a "design" but this is purely optional, unless you think the cucumber peel is too thick and you want to remove it partially or completely.
    Cutting cucumbers for Korean cucumber salad on a wooden cutting board with a Japanese knife.
  • Place the sliced cucumbers in a strainer and add the salt and sugar to the cucumber, mixing it in with your hands. Let the cucumbers sit for at least 15 minutes.
    Sliced cucumbers in a strainer over a sink.
  • While the cucumbers are resting, finely chop the garlic and green onion.
    Finely chopped garlic and green onions on a wooden cutting board.
  • In a small bowl, mix together the garlic, green onion, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and gochugaru.
    Seasoning mixture in a red bowl.
  • Squeeze the water out of the cucumbers (no need to rinse). I just used my hands to do the squeezing. You can also find a plate that fits in the strainer and press down to release the water.
  • Add the cucumbers to a medium bowl, pour the rice vinegar mixture over the cucumbers and mix well. Your hand are a good tool for this.
    Seasoning mixture poured on cucumbers in white bowl ready to be mixed to create the Korean cucumber salad..
  • Taste for flavor - the amounts in the recipe create a mild version of this salad. If you like more punch, feel free to increase the gochugaru, add more sesame oil, punch up the garlic. Whatever tastes good to you!
    Bowl of Korean cucumber salad with red chopsticks.

Notes

  • Use whatever cucumbers you have or can find. If the seeds are large, just cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and use a spoon to scoop the seeds out.
  • I've made this salad at the last minute and skipped the draining of the water from the cucumbers. Ultimately, if you don't finish the salad right away, you may get some extra water in your bowl which will dilute your flavors. But it is a reasonable step to skip if you are in a hurry.
  • This Korean cucumber salad can take on a more Japanese pickled cucumber feel by eliminating the garlic, using togorashi instead of gochugaru and furikake instead of sesame seeds.

Nutrition

Calories: 19kcalCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.3gSodium: 422mgPotassium: 84mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 118IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 0.3mg
Keyword banchan, cucumber, pickled cucumbers
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