Cucumber ideas

[carlotta]

Three ideas:

Indian style spicy cucumber wedges (a Madhur Jaffrey recipe)
1 cucumber, cut in half lengthwise and into wedges 3-inches long and 1/2 an inch wide
1/2 tsp kosher salt
pinch cayenne pepper
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground, roasted cumin seeds
juice of 3/4 lemon

Combine all ingredients in a non-reactive mixing bowl. Toss to combine. (or sometimes I just sprinkle cuke wedges with spices/lemon)


Japanese style cuke salad-- toss cukes with sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, soy to taste (I add scallions if I have them, and sometimes either bonito flakes or crab meat if I'm feeling fancy and want to make it more than a side). Sesame seeds are a good addition too.


Smoothies-- one of my all time favorites is basically honeydew melon and cuke, tons of water, refreshing and not too sweet.

[withm]

Three ideas:

Smoothies-- one of my all time favorites is basically honeydew melon and cuke, tons of water, refreshing and not too sweet.

This sounds great - what proportion of melon to cucumber, and how much water do you add?

[carlotta]

This sounds great - what proportion of melon to cucumber, and how much water do you add?

Oops, kind of mis-worded there. I don't add water beyond the water content of the cuke/melon-

Basic recipe is ~2 parts melon (I like honeydew, but I think most any type would be good), ~1 part cuke. Blend.

Additions: mint, lime juice (I sometimes add a little honey if I add lime), yogurt. I've never tried it, but I think it would also be really good with more savory herbs (thyme/basil/cilantro).

I don't have a hefty enough blender to make good smoothies with ice cubes, but I could see adding them if your blender pulverizes them well. I usually just freeze the melon and/or the cuke so my smoothie is cold