Sweet and Sour Cucumber Slices

Submitted by Hey Jude

"I love these cucumbers. This recipe comes from 'A Spoonful of Ginger' by Nina Simonds who says that cucumbers eaten during the summer dissipate heat. They also are considered to have diuretic and laxative effects. I can't really attest to all that but I can tell you that these slices are really tasty."

 

• Ready In: 10mins
• Ingredients: 5
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 1 1/2 lbs pickling cucumbers or 2 seedless English cucumbers, rinsed
• 1 cup clear rice vinegar
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

directions

1. Trim the ends of the cucumbers and slice them lengthwise in half, then run the tines of a fork several times down the length to creat a slight decoration on the skin.
2. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and cut the cucumber halves into 3-inch sections; cut the sections, along the length, into almost paper thin slices and place in a bowl.
3. Mix the remaining ingredients; add to the cucumbers and toss lightly to coat the slices.
4. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes; serve cold.

Reviews

[Gandalf The White]

Back in the 80's I actually was able to take Chinese cooking classes with Nina Simonds ... wonderful teacher. She has expanded to focus on the medicinal value of foods and is now an adjunct professor at the Harvard School of Public Health as well as an Ayurvedic practitioner. "A Taste of Ginger" is her IACP award winning book on how to use food to keep your body in balance ... and this recipe is an excellent example. The ginger and vinegar combination provide flavor enhancement, but also serve, along with the cucumbers as a yin balancing food, excellent in the hot summers. I've made this reciple many times and along with Chia, I tend to adjust the sugar down and ginger up, but that's for taste and not for its medicinal value.

 

[chia2160]

this dish is very sweet. i couldn't taste the ginger at all. i would cut the sugar in half in the future and double the ginger, for our taste. on the other hand my guest loved this and said her mother used to make sweet cucumbers all the time. she requested the recipe.