This is possibly one of the simplest side dishes for Asian food I know. It’s particularly good if you have spicy or oily food and you want a side that is going to lighten and freshen everything up. It’s also great with sushi.

 I often have this pickled cucumber dish when I am too lazy to make anything elaborate or I am short of time. It’s also an easy one to pull together when you just want to add an additional vegetable element to your meal. For me a meal just doesn’t feel like a rounded meal unless there is something green or at least vegetable on the plate and so I find I make it again and again as it’s just so easy!

This pickled cucumber dish is also healthy and low calorie yet packed with flavour, in large part due to the sesame oil, great when trying to cut back a bit!

Feel free to adjust the quantities to your tastes e.g. you could reduce the sugar, up the vinegar to make it sharper etc. Have a play around you, can’t go wrong!

Ingredients

• ½ large cucumber sliced thinly, I usually slice mine a little thinner than is pictured here

• 2 tbsp rice vinegar

• ¼ tsp sugar

• 1 tsp soy sauce

• 1 tsp sesame oil

• 1 spring onion chopped

• Approx ½ tbsp toasted sesame seeds (I used a mix of black and white, but anything goes)

Method

1. Slice the cucumber to your preferred shape and thickness.

2. Mix the rest of the ingredients except the sesame seeds together in a bowl and then add the cucumbers and mix thoroughly so the cumbers are coated.

3. Allow to pickle for at least a few minutes, I like to serve this chilled and so just place it in the fridge until ready to eat.

4. Garnish with the sesame seeds when ready to serve.