Sunomono - Japanese cucumber salad

Japanese cucumber salad, sunomono, is a super simple salad combining thinly sliced cucumber slices with a sweetened vinegar dressing and a little seaweed. It's really easy to prepare and a classic side dish for many a meal.

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I have had this salad many times over the years, but it was a huge favorite when we were recently in Kyoto. The weather was so incredibly hot and humid while we were there that we needed light, simple foods particularly during the middle of the daytime heat. This fits the bill perfectly. 

This cucumber salad is refreshing, easy to make and perfect with lunch, dinner or whenever you choose. And with no cooking needed and just a few ingredients, it's easy to make at home.

What does sunomono mean?

"Su" means "vinegar" and "sunomono" literally translates as "vinegared things". Technically, it's a style of Japanese salad that uses vinegar as the main seasoning. In practice, most people understand it to mean this Japanese cucumber salad. 

The main ingredients are cucumber and the seasoned vinegar dressing. Beyond that, you can have a few different additions. Most versions also include wakame seaweed, though not all. Some also include seafood like shrimp, crab or octopus, or add some thin, cold rice noodles.

Personally, I like to keep it relatively simple, though with a little wakame for texture and color. But feel free to add to it as suits.

What kind of cucumber should you use?

Traditionally, this is made with Japanese cucumbers that are smaller than English cucmbers, fairly thin and with a thin skin. However if you can't find them, you could also use Lebanese or Persian cucumbers that are a bit smaller but otherwise relatively similar. If you use those, you probably need around 1 ½ times as many cucumbers for the same overall quantity.

Mini cucumbers also work, as I have here - you probably need about double the quantity of those relative to Japanese cucumbers.

If you can't find any of those, you could use English cucumbers though they are not ideal. They tend to have a higher water content and thicker skin, so you'll want to peel them first, at least partly, then either halve and remove some of the seeds or squeeze out a bit after salting so that they are less watery. 

The smaller, thicker cucumbers that are often called pickling cucumbers are probably the least good as they have thick skins, big seeds and also larger slices, so I would try to avoid those.

Dressing variations

The main ingredient in the dressing for this salad is rice vinegar, which you sweeten slightly to take the edge off the acidity and make it more balanced. But how you do that can vary.

Many use simply sugar - use plain white sugar so you don't add any additional flavor that may distract. You can add a dash salt though I feel there's enough from salting the cucumber.

Alternative versions swap in all or part mirin which is a slightly sweetened wine-based seasoning for the sugar. Some add some soy sauce for a little flavor, but only a little as you don't want it to take over. If possible use light soy, usukuchi. Though these both seem less traditional, so I've kept it simple here.

How to make Japanese cucumber salad

This comes together in a few easy steps:

• Rehydrate the wakame by pouring hot water over it and leaving it to soak.
• Meanwhile, trim the ends from the cucmber and thinly slice. To make evenly thin slices, a mandolin or wide peeler works best, though take care using these.
• Salt the cucmber slices and leave them a few minutes so that liquid droplets form. This salting helps draw out liquid to stop the salad being watery, as well as drawing out bitterness.
• Mix the vinegar and sugar in a small bowl. Warm slightly in the microwave to then and stir so the sugar dissolves.
• Squeeze the wakame to drain and gently squeeze the cucumber to drain the liquid without breaking the slices.
• Place cucumber, wakame and dressing together in a bowl then toss to combine. Optionally, top the salad with toasted sesame seeds and serve.

Sunomono salad is super simple, light and refreshing. It pairs well with simple, lighter dishes like onigiri and/or kani salad for a light summery meal, or alongside a broader range of dishes like miso soup, sashimi, chirashi sushi or chicken karaage and rice for a fuller meal. Delicious no matter when you enjoy. 

Try these other simple vegetable sides:

• Pressgurka, Swedish pressed cucumber salad (another simple and tasty way to prepare cucumber)
• Urap sayur (Indonesian vegetables with coconut topping)
• Vichy carrots (rich with butter and so easy to make)
• Miso glazed eggplant (easy, tasty and would pair well with this, too)
• Plus get more side dish recipes and Japanese recipes in the archives.

See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

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