Sesame Cucumber Salad

Today, I’m sharing one of my favorite salads we’ve been enjoying lately — sesame cucumber salad!  With how hot and muggy it’s been in Maryland pretty much all through May, we’ve been all about fresh things that’ll help us feel a little cooler.  I don’t know if it’s just because winter seemed to go on forever this year and then it immediately turned into hot weather with no real in between, but this year I can’t seem to handle the heat so far.  This sesame cucumber salad is SO perfect for that!  It’s sweet, savory, tangy, and full of the crisp coolness of fresh cucumbers.  SUCH a great way to beat the heat!

This salad is based on a recipe that was included in one of our Hello Fresh boxes.  We tried Hello Fresh for a couple of weeks when we were pretty busy, and out of all the recipes we tried, this was the only one we really wanted to have again.  I made it a couple more times till I found my perfect combination of sweet and savory for my perfect sesame cucumber salad!

I always love an Asian inspired salad — or really, give me anything with sesame oil, and I’m game.  I love the savory flavor that sesame oil lends to this cucumber salad.  All you need is some very finely sliced cucumbers, sesame oil, white wine vinegar, minced onions, sesame seeds, and a little bit of sugar and salt, and you’ve got yourself one heck of a salad.

This is the perfect recipe to take to summer picnics!  Such a nice change from your standard coleslaws that are usually served up.

I’ve made this using both mini cucumbers and Persian cucumbers, and I prefer the Persian cucumbers because they’re bigger and easier to slice up super thinly.  My knife cutting skills are not the GREATEST, but get yourself a sharp enough knife, and you’ll have no trouble with super thin sliced cucumbers!

What is your favorite fresh salad to eat when it’s super hot outside?!  I’d love to get more ideas!