I decided to make this after paying about RM5 for a puny plate of chopped 1/2 a cucumber at a chinese restaurant. Well, with RM5 I could get about 10 quality Japanese cucumbers (kyuri).
I can’t believe people (myself included) are actually paying RM5 for something that doesn’t even need cooking. I’m starting to sound like a major tight fisted housewife….but that’s exactly who I am!
This recipe is entirely my own conception, based on how I like to eat it. The marinade is savoury with just a tad of tartness from the Worcestershire sauce and kick from the chillies. I guess you can use ordinary cucumbers (with the seeds removed) but for best results, do use the Japanese sort as they’re more crunchy.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoon of sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon of light soya sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon of Chinese rice wine
- 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
- 1 red chilli, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 – 2 Japanese cucumbers, chopped
# – First of all, cut the cucumbers into the shapes you want. By the way, you know how sometimes cucumbers can taste really bitter? There’s this trick that a senior in high school taught me….cut off the end of a cucumber and then rub the surface with it till tiny bubbles form around it, like this….
And you won’t have bitter cucumbers anymore. Honestly, I have no scientific or logical explanation for it, but it works!
# – I soaked the cucumbers in iced water for 10 minutes to crispen them up. Set aside. Honestly I don’t know if this works but psychologically I feel that it does :D So feel free to omit this step.
# – In a bowl, mix the sesame oil, light soya sauce, Chinese rice wine, Worcestershire sauce and chillies.
# – Throw the drained cucumbers into the mixture. Mix. Cover with cling wrap and stick it in the fridge to chill for a minimum of 2 hours. Don’t put in the fridge uncovered as this will dry out the cucumbers.
You could even marinade them in a freezer bag so that all the cucumbers could absorb the marinade more evenly and thoroughly.
# – Serve as an appetiser or even as a vegetable dish of its own to go with rice.
Very tasty, very refreshing and best of all….very accommodating to my purse ;)