There I was, flipping through recipe books and scrolling through my All-Star board on Pinterest, looking. Looking for something to make. We were getting ready for trip to Happy Jack in the cool pines of Arizona and I was stumped. I’m not liking the scale right now so I was looking for something that was good and wouldn’t bust the button on my jeans. I feel like my life right now is the meme “For the love of God woman, eat a salad.”
I found it! I’ve made them before. This is a dish that got me through the low-iodine diet prepping for my radioactive iodine treatment for my thyroid cancer. I’m not sure why it fell to the back of my recipe mind. It ticks all my boxes, easy and delicious. All I needed to add to the grocery list was cucumbers and a purple onion. Done.
Guess what?! Mark not only tried it but he liked it! Now I have to resist the urge to make it every single trip because I don’t want to burn him out on it. I need to tread carefully so he’ll eat it for years to come. Oh, the struggle.
This is as easy to make in the RV as it is at home. I made it before we left because it does need to be refrigerated a few hours and I wanted to eat it with our burgers on arrival night.
Slice your cucumbers thinly. This is where I use my OCD powers for good and use the mandolin slicer to get nice equal slices. I’m just not good enough with the knife to do it and since Mark said he was game to try it, the last thing I wanted him to get was a big ‘ol fat slice.
After cutting beautifully even slices, place them in a colander situated over a bowl. Add the salt, give them a nice stir and put them in the refrigerator for an hour, stirring them a few times. You’ll be amazed by how much water ends up in the bowl.
While the cucumbers are hanging out in the refrigerator, make the sauce. Combine water, rice vinegar, sugar and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan and stir to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a boil then let the mixture simmer until you have about 1/3 cup. It’s about 10 minutes. If you happen to get distracted crying while you chop the onions and all the liquid almost boils away, not that it’s happened to me, you can add more water. When it’s ready, remove from heat and stir in the chopped onion.
Give the cucumbers a good pat down with some paper towels and toss them in a large mixing bowl. Add the sauce and give it a good stir. Cover with foil or transfer to a bowl with a lid then refrigerator for a few hours before serving.
Sweet & Spicy Cucumbers
Recipe Credit: Our Best Bites
- 1.5 pounds cucumber (about 3 medium), thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 1 tsp. table salt)
- ½ cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup water
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 Tablespoons finely diced red onion
Place cucumber slices in a colander over a bowl. Sprinkle salt and toss well. Refrigerate for one hour, tossing a few times while they drain.
Combine vinegar, water, sugar and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then simmer until mixture reduces to about a 1/3 of a cup, about 10-12 minutes. Add water if it boils down too far. Remove from heat and add onions.
When cucumbers are done resting, pat dry with a paper towel and place in large bowl. Pour vinegar reduction, stir and cover. Chill for a few hours.