This fresh and crunchy Thai cucumber salad adapted from Food & Wine is one of my favorite summer recipes. The juice from the cucumbers seeps into the tangy and sweet dressing, giving it a refreshing cucumber flavor, while the peanuts add protein and crunch. The salad is satisfying on its own for lunch; it also pairs nicely with my Grilled Thai Curry Chicken, Honey Lime Sriracha Chicken, or any simply grilled meat or fish dish.
What You’ll Need To Make Thai Cucumber Salad With Peanuts The recipe calls for English/hothouse cucumbers, long, slender cukes with tender skin and tiny seeds. They’re a little pricier than garden variety cukes, but you can usually find them on sale in packs of three. Happily, they don’t need to be peeled, as they aren’t treated with a wax coating like the regular cucumbers.
Fish sauce is a salty, savory condiment often used in East Asian cuisine. It has a pungent smell, but when used in moderation, it adds rich umami flavor to sauces, marinades, and salad dressings. You can find it in the Asian food section of most supermarkets.
Use good quality Virginia peanuts if you can find them. Grown primarily in Virginia (but also in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas), Virginia peanuts are large in size, flavorful, and extra crunchy. They are often referred to as “ballpark peanuts” because they are the kind sold at baseball games. Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by placing the red onions in a bowl of cold water. Let them soak while you prepare the rest of the ingredients — this will mellow them out and rid them of that sharp, raw onion taste….