This light and refreshing Cucumber Salad has the perfect dressing of rice vinegar, sesame oil, and a dash of honey to balance all the ingredients together and topped with sesame seeds for added crunch. A crisp, refreshing, and quick vegetarian side salad that can be made in no time, you won’t be disappointed.
This deliciously crunchy Cucumber Salad is so light and refreshing and just perfect for a hot summer picnic day. It’s a new favourite, that I’ve made over and over again.
I’ve had many recipes for cucumber salads made with vinegar, but this combination of thinly sliced crunchy cucumbers and crisp red onions is so refreshing. Plus, the dressing of rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and honey is more complex, almost Asian-inspired but also Western-style. The addition of sesame seeds adds a subtle nutty taste that mingle with all the flavours so deliciously.
can cucumber salad be made ahead
Cucumber salad is a great side dish to make hours before a big party or even the day before. It just gets better in the fridge, giving all that crunchy cucumbers time to marinate with the vinegar dressing. It’s best eaten within 2 hours, but it’s still good for a couple days.
what to serve cucumber salad with
Cucumber salad is the perfect side for just about any grilled meat – chicken, fish or steak or any meatless main dish. I love to pair this with another favourite of mine – carrot fritters. It’s super simple to assemble you can bring it to a summer BBQ or a picnic or cookout, but it’s actually good any time of the year, try it for an ultra healthy light snack pre-workout or late at night while watching a movie.

Cucumber Salad With Red Onion and Vinegar
Ingredients
- 1 large cucumber thinly sliced
- 1/2 a small red onion thinly sliced
- 1 tsp sesame seeds toasted
- 2 tsp coriander chopped, cilantro
- 1 clove garlic grated
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 2 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp honey or agave syrup
Instructions
- Combine the cucumber, chopped coriander and red onion in a bowl and toss to combine.
- Add the rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, garlic and honey in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Add to the salad and toss to coat evenly in the dressing.
- Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds just before serving.