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Active Time
15 minutes
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Total Time
50 minutes
Sprinkle salt and sugar on produce like cucumbers, tomatoes, or berries (hold the salt!); let stand for 20-40 minutes. This process, also called maceration, draws out the juices, creating a natural sauce.
Ingredients
Makes 6 servings
Step 1
Combine cilantro sprigs, ginger, garlic, and chiles in a resealable plastic freezer bag; seal. Lightly pound with a skillet or rolling pin until ginger and garlic are well mashed.
Step 2
Add cucumbers, 1 teaspoon salt, and sugar. Seal bag; shake to mix. Squeeze bag firmly to slightly mash cucumbers, 1-2 minutes. Place bag in a large bowl; let macerate at room temperature, turning halfway through, until juices form, about 35 minutes.
Step 3
Empty contents of bag into bowl; turn bag inside out and scrape out any small bits. Discard cilantro sprigs. Mix in celery, juice, and oil. Season with more salt, if desired.
Step 4
Divide avocado among plates; spoon salad over. Garnish with chopped cilantro and basil.
Nutrition Per Serving
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Reviews (16)
Back to TopA nice fresh salad for a summer dinner, but it's a lot of work for a cucumber salad. I followed the recipe exactly and found it a little too salty and very watery.
cjmedich
Pleasanton, CA
7/5/2013
Lots of raves with this salad. Really refreshing
luvnfun
Toronto, ON
2/18/2013
Really loved the flavors of ginger, garlic and coriander together. The first time I made it I followed the recipe. Now I substitute the avocado with whatever I have at home. Tried it with mango and loved it as well.
sissy_eder
Vienna, Austria
6/28/2012
This is a very good salad. A strong garlic-ginger flavor (that we like) offset by the freshness of the cucumber and avocado. The first time I made it I followed the recipe perfectly except I used some crushed red peppers in place of the chiles and I diced the avocado and mixed it in the salad. It held up great for leftovers the next day (the avocado didn't get brown or too mushy). The second time I made it I didn't bother with the plastic bag. I finely diced the garlic and ginger then mashed them with the red pepper flakes and cilantro springs in a bowl using a potato masher. I macerated the cucumber in the same bowl and mashed it a bit with a potato masher. Stirred it up well, covered the bowl, and let it sit (stirring once or twice). Turned out perfectly. I love serving this with cold sesame noodles- a great combo. Will make regularly!
alipali
Santa Barbara, CA
6/6/2012
Loved this. Didn't have the chiles, so used crushed red pepper instead. Delicious combination of flavors - even my 11yo loved it.
Anonymous
San Luis Obispo, CA
6/3/2012
Loved the strong flavors of this salad. It was much better the second day and I found out that the basil is essential in balancing the flavors. Next time I will do a fine mince of the garlic and ginger.
jenk08
Indpls
6/1/2012
My ginger was bad, so I left it out. Despite my shortcomings, it was the perfect spring and summer salad as I was able to pluck several of the ingredients from my garden! Oishii desu!
Anonymous
nagasaki, japan
5/25/2012
This was ok not great. I made as written except for removing the skin from the cukes. I guess I expected more with the combination of ingredients.
Anonymous
5/24/2012
This recipe is a little heavy on ginger and garlic. I cut the flavor by serving it in a pita, and that turned out to be a very good solution.
csleslie13
minneapolis, mn
5/23/2012
I was not so thrilled with this salad. I found it a bit bitter having left the skin on the cucumber. If I make it again, I would dice the veggies and serve on a small portion.
Anonymous
Montreal
5/22/2012
YUMM! Followed the recipe (except for the chilies - omitted) and it was sooo good. Also great the next day for lunch.
Anonymous
San Francisco
5/21/2012
Served this at two functions one day apart and everyone enjoyed the unique flavors. It is important to finely dice the garlic and ginger. Used 2 tsp Sriracha because I could not find the chiles noted in the recipe and substituted lemon juice instead of lime juice. This is a great summer side salad, unique contrasts of veggies! B.J. Harrick
crewmom
5/21/2012
Okay, since when is it okay to serve cucumbers with the skin on? Even the English ones are a little toothsome with the skin on. I liked the recipe though....with the skin off.
fmc_sonoma
San Francisco, CA
5/21/2012
Apologies in advance for being one of those annoying people who review the recipe but didn't make it as written. I had to adjust based on what I had on hand and it was soooooo AMAZINGLY GOOD that I thought I'd share the info. All I had on hand were cucumbers, celery, avacados and limes. I added garlic powder since I was clean out of the real thing and tossed in about 2 T of chopped chives I had in the fridge. I mixed everything but the avacados in a bowl and let it sit for about 1/2 hour then added the avacados. I will definately make this again and since I really dislike Cilantro - I think I'll just keep things as I made it today. IT WAS DELICIOUS! Everyone in my family loved it!
Anonymous
San Francisco
5/17/2012
These flavors combined beautifully! I also used red pepper flakes instead of the chile. The celery gives a refreshing crisp!
MichaelGP
San Francisco, CA
5/15/2012
