Description
A well-balanced salad, snack, or side, this tahini and chilli cucumber salad recipe is refreshing, rich, and nutty in flavour. It’s easy to prepare, allowing you to spend less time in the kitchen and more time with your date this Valentine’s Day.
Ingredients
Units
- 1/4 cup / 60g Tahini
- 1 large Garlic clove, grated
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 3–4 tbsp Iced water
- 1 large English cucumber
- 20g Butter
- 1–2 tsp Chipotle or Chiu chow chilli oil
- Salt and pepper as needed
- Bread of choice to serve – we love paratha!
Instructions
- Grate the garlic, and place it int a small bowl. Pour over the lemon juice and set aside. The lemon will mellow the raw garlic over time.
- Prepare the cucumber by halving it and scraping out the seeds with a teaspoon. Discard the seeds. Cut the cucumber halves into long strips, then cut the strips into uneven bite sized chunks.
- Sprinkle a generous pinch of salt over the cucumber, toss, then place in a colander and set aside for 10 minutes to draw excess water from the cucumbers.
- Add the tahini to a bowl, then pour in the lemon garlic mixture. Mix until the tahini thickens. Slowly mix in the iced water a little at a time, stirring well between each addition. Once the tahini reaches a thick and creamy, yet soft consistency, stop adding water. Season well with salt and finely ground black pepper to taste.
- Once ready to serve, melt the butter and add a little of the chilli sauce to taste. Warm your bread, if necessary.
- Spoon the tahini onto two small serving plates to form the base of the dish. Drizzle over the chilli melted butter, then top the dish with the seasoned cucumber. Spoon the remaining chilli sauce over the cucumbers (If using chipotle the paste may be a little thick for this step. To resolve this simply add a few drops of water to the chipotle paste to think it into a drizzly consistency).
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- I like to alternate the direction of the knife to make the cucumber pieces have a more interesting shape, which looks impressive on plating up.
- Plating up this dish is relatively quick. If looking to get ahead on dinner the tahini sauce can be made 1-2 days before. The cucumber can be made and kept refrigerated for up to a few hours before serving.
- Category: Quick and easy
- Method: No cook
- Cuisine: Starter