Smashed cucumbers with garlic and sesame
Pai huang gua: irregular pieces of cucumber that catch a lively dressing of garlic, soya sauce and toasted sesame. A cool, crisp starter.
Method
- Wash and dry the cucumbers. Put on a board, cover with a clean tea towel and hit a few times with the base of a small saucepan: they should split without turning to a purée. Cut into irregular 3 cm pieces.
- Toss with the 2 g salt in a colander set over a bowl. Refrigerate for 10 minutes to draw out moisture. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a small dry frying pan over a medium heat for 1–2 minutes, stirring, until they smell nutty. Tip into a small dish to stop the cooking.
- Grate the garlic into a mixing bowl. Add the sugar, vinegar and soya sauce, whisk for 30 seconds to dissolve the sugar, then whisk in the sesame oil. Drain and pat the cucumbers dry without squeezing them into a pulp; discard their juices.
- Toss the cucumbers with the dressing just before serving, then add the toasted sesame seeds. Divide between two small bowls. The pieces should stay cold and crisp, with dressing caught in the cracks.
On your plate
Recipe
117 kcal · protein 3 g · carbs 10 g · fat 7 g
Quantities per person
- 200 g Cucumbers
- 4 g Garlic
- 11 g Unseasoned kosher rice vinegar
- 6 g Soya sauce
- 4 g Toasted sesame oil
- 5 g Sesame seeds
- 3 g White sugar
- 1 g Fine salt
Cooking tips
Prepare the dressing and cucumbers separately a few hours ahead and refrigerate. Dress at the last moment; left for a long time, the cucumber releases water and dilutes the dressing. For a spicy starter, add 0.3 g chilli flakes to the dressing. Choose soya sauce and vinegar certified kosher pareve.
Chinese home and restaurant cooking; proportions and kosher adaptation by Menutov.
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