Spicy Cucumber Salad RECIPE

Spicy Cucumber Salad in a white bowl on a wooden background

I make this spicy cucumber salad a lot when I just don’t know what else to make. It’s super easy, quick, and cost-effective.

Personally, I like to use mini cucumbers because they’re easy to work with and don’t require much prep. You just basically chop and salt the cucumbers and toss them in oil and vinegar.

It’s the perfect side dish for when you just can’t be bothered by vegetables.

Spicy Cucumber Salad RECIPE

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Ease: Super Easy

Cost: Cost-Effective

Spicy Cucumber Salad Ingredient List

1. Mini Cucumbers

2. Sesame Oil

3. Chili Oil

4. Rice Vinegar

Spicy Cucmber Salad Instructions

Step 1: Rinse & chop mini cucumbers

Step 2: Salt cucumbers to taste

Step 3: Add sesame oil & chili oil to taste

Step 4: Add rice vinegar to taste

How to Make Spicy Cucumber Salad

There are only three steps to making this cucumber salad. Chop the cucumbers, add some salt, and toss everything in oil and vinegar.

Rinse & Chop Mini Cucumbers

I like to use mini cucumbers because the seeds are super tiny, and you don’t need to peel them. Reduce prep time? Yes, please!

Salt the cucumbers

Add salt to taste to cucumbers. This will help draw out the moisture.

Season With Oil & Vinegar

Add about a half a tablespoon of sesame oil, a half a tablespoon of chili oil, and a tablespoon of white rice vinegar to your cucumbers. I try to do this about 30 minutes before I plan on eating the cucumber salad for best flavor, but sometimes the day gets the best of me, and I just end up throwing the whole thing together right before I eat it.

Choosing Ingredients for your Cucumber Salad

You don’t need to put a lot of thought into the ingredients of a cucumber salad (which is partially why I enjoy making this recipe). I’ve included some notes below on why I chose the ingredients I did, but you can substitute whatever you have on hand or to your preference.

Mini Cucumbers

Again, I find mini cucumbers the easiest to work with of all the cucumbers — especially when I’m cooking for one or two people. You can chop up as many as you want, and you don’t need to peel anything.

The only downside is that I find mini cucumbers spoil faster than ones with a thick skin (kind of like people).

You could always substitute English cucumbers for mini cucumbers, but I also find these spoil pretty quickly too.

Sesame Oil

I like to use sesame oil in this recipe because it adds a nice depth of flavor. Sesame oil is a little nutty, and the smell reminds me of a dumpling shop, which gives me a serotonin boost.

You could use whatever oil you have on hand if you don’t have sesame — especially since sesame oil can be a bit pricey.

Chili Oil

The chili oil is what makes this cucumber recipe spicy. I like adding chili oil to recipes because I can control the spice level by adding a little (or more often than not, a lot).

If you can’t find chili oil at the store (or if it’s too expensive), you could always buy the Huang chili sauce or simply add red pepper flakes.

Rice Vinegar

I love the delicate flavor of rice vinegar, but you can use whatever vinegar you have on hand, including white vinegar or apple cider vinegar.

What to serve With Spicy Cucumber Salad

This five-minute recipe makes a great side dish. I eat cucumber salad when I don’t have time to think about making anything else.

Dumplings

I usually eat a cucumber salad as a side dish for dumplings. They go great with Mila soup dumplings from Costco, Laoban dumplings, or pretty much any other dumpling you’d find in the frozen food aisle, including gyoza and Korean dumplings.

Steak

This recipe would make a great side dish for any grilled meat, including steak, chicken, and pork. I’ve eaten it with the Kirkland sliced sirloin grass-fed beef (you could even cut up the meat and just add it to the top of the salad).

Seafood

If you can serve this salad with meat, why not seafood? Serve it alongside a piece of salmon. I like the Kirkland frozen sockeye salmon, but you can use whatever you’ve got in the fridge or freezer already. If you’re using the sesame oil, chili oil, and rice vinegar, I’d recommend cooking the salmon in a soy honey glaze.

Moral Dessert

You’ve made it to the end of this cucumber salad recipe, and you haven’t bailed on me yet! Congratulations, you’re now rewarded with a little moral dessert. Please enjoy this quote by Gloria Steinem:

“The art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us.”

SPICY CUCUMBER SALAD FAQs

  • This salad lasts for up to a few days, depending on the freshness of your cucumbers.

  • Add as little or as much spicy chili oil or sauce as you’d like to control the spice level of this salad.

  • This recipe takes less than 5 minutes to prepare; you may want to let the salad marinate in the fridge for about 30 minutes before serving.