Name: German Cucumber Ribbon Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 2 cucumber; 3 tbsp distilled vinegar; 5 vegetable oil; salt and pepper to taste; 1 dash granulated sugar; 1 tsp ground cardamom; fresh chopped dill

Discover > Texas Recipes > German Cucumber Ribbon Salad Recipe

Cucumber salad is a cold, fresh salad that's very quick and really delicious. It's a great time to buy cucumbers (how long do cucumbers last?); when they're in season they're more delicious and more importantly, more nutritious. When you're looking to buy cucumbers, look for ones that are firm without any soft or yellow spots.

Ingredients

The ingredients in this salad are super simple and perfectly balance each other out. They go as follows:

Cucumbers are 95% water and have only around 15 calories per cup without their skin. 1 11-ounce cucumber contains 11 grams of carbs, 2 grams of protein, 2 grams of fiber, 14% of the RDI (recommend Daily Intake) of vitamin C, 62% RDI of vitamin K, 10% magnesium, 13% potassium, and 12% manganese.
Vegetable Oil (how long does vegetable oil last?) helps balance the flavor while adding some nice texture. Don't be too generous with it; One tablespoon has around 120 calories. Feel free to use a different kind of oil (sunflower, canola, vegetable, olive), you make the salad more nutritious that way.
Distilled vinegar is very generic and hardly a must. Try white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar (how long does apple cider vinegar last?), or rice (how long does rice last?) vinegar (how long does rice vinegar last?). Obviously, raw vinegar can be very overpowering, add it sparsely, one tablespoon at a time.
Sea salt (how long does sea salt last?) goes a long way in any dish you cook. It tastes much better than generic table salt because of the size of the crystals. Add a pinch to the salad for a nice bite.
White pepper is common in French and German cooking, It's slightly spicier than black pepper. White and black peppercorns (how long do black peppercorns last?) come from the same green peppercorn plant, the difference comes in the processing. Black peppercorns are fresh, green corns that are sundried. White peppercorns (how long do white peppercorns last?) have their outer layer removed.
Granulated sugar is a great addition because it balances out the spiciness of the pepper and cardamom, as well as the salt and strong vinegar. Just a pinch goes a long way.
Ground Cardamom has a minty, spicy, and citrusy taste with a hint of earthiness.
Fresh dill (how long does dill last?) has an anise-like licorice (how long does licorice last?) flavor kind of similar to caraway. Remove the smaller stems from the large one, then just use your knife to chop it into small pieces.

If you can’t find these ingredients in your local markets, you can order vegetable oil, distilled vinegar, sea salt, white pepper, granulated sugar, and ground cardamom online!

How to Make the Salad

Start the cucumber salad by making these beautiful ribbons with the cucumber. Top and tail the cucumber, peel off all the skin, then choose one side to slide the peeler across to make beautiful, thin ribbons. Set the ribbons aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Combine the cucumber ribbons with the wet and dry ingredients and give them a toss so all the ingredients are evenly distributed.

If you've made the salad beforehand simply cover it with cling film and place it in the fridge. Once you're ready to serve it, give it another mix and plate it by twisting the ribbons around some tongs then carefully sliding it onto a plate.

If you also happen to love Beef Brisket, (What wine goes well with beef brisket?) don’t miss to check out this article for more details.

Yield: 4

Author: Mariano Clement Gupana