Asian Cucumber Salad Recipe (Din Tai Fung-Inspired)

I’ll take my Asian Cucumber Salad Din Tai Fung style anytime of the year Thanks! Crunchy refreshing Chinese cucumber salad recipe with a garlicky and tangy honey chili vinaigrette literally goes well with everything! This Chinese style cucumber salad is super simple and addictive, and is just the dish to keep you cool all summer long!

Asian Cucumber Salad with Honey Chili Vinaigrette

Cucumber is probably one of my favorite vegetables in summer months. It’s a super versatile vegetable that pairs literally with any salad dressings. I’ve used it in many of my recipes – from Chinese smashed cucumber salad and Japanese potato salad to Chinese stir-fry dish – Moo shu chicken.

Today’s Asian-style cucumber salad is inspired by Din Tai Fung. What makes this dish so good is a terrific honey garlic vinaigrette which you can make it spicy or not spicy to the juicy, crisp cucumber.

What you need for Asian easy cucumber salad recipe

• Persian or mini cucumbers
• Coarse sea salt

Honey Chili Garlic Vinaigrette – Asian Cucumber Salad Dressing:

• Garlic
• Rice vinegar
• Honey or keto honey (product link in recipe card)
• Toasted sesame oil
• Garlic chili sauce, or store-bought Sichuan chili oil

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What type of cucumbers to use

I recommend using Persian cucumbers, Japanese cucumbers, or Mini cucumbers. Persian cucumbers are small, have thin skin, and are nearly seedless. They are super crunchy, snappy, a little sweet, and less watery. Because the skin is thin you don’t need to peel it.

Asian Cucumber Substitute

If you can’t find Asian cucumbers, the next best substitute is English cucumbers. English cucumber also has thin skin so you don’t need to peel it but it tastes less sweet and a bit more watery so make sure you block the water well with a paper towel, following the instructions below.

How to make Chinese Cucumber Salad

1. Salt: Dice the cucumbers to ½-inch thick cylinder shape pieces. Toss with salt and let rest for 30-45 minutes.
2. Dressing: Combine the salad dressing in a bowl.
3. Rinse: Rinse the cucumbers to remove the salt.
4. Dry: Pat dry the cucumbers with a clean towel.
5. Combine: Pour the dressing over the cucumber. Toss well and serve!

Why need to salt the cucumbers

For this Asian cucumber salad recipe, the salt does two things –

1. It draws water from the cucumbers and therefore they remain crunchy
2. Salt seasons the cucumbers and therefore they are tastier.

How long does the cucumber salad keep in the fridge

If the cucumbers are mixed with the dressing, I recommend finishing it the next day.

How to make ahead

If the cucumbers haven’t mixed with the dressing and are patted dry after salting, you can store them in a container, lined with clean paper towels in the fridge for 2 days. Just toss them with the dressing before serving. This is the best way to make ahead Chinese cucumber salad!

What to serve with Asian Cucumber Salad Recipe

To keep it cool and easy, here are some great ideas – pair the Shirataki cold noodles with paleo “peanut” sauce with cucumbers, low-carb kimchi pancake, Whole30 bang bang shrimp, Din Tai Fung green beans air fryer with Din Tai Fung shrimp and egg fried rice, or crispy rice paper dumplings for a delightful homemade meal.

If you have extra cucumber at home, my cucumber noodles with Thai peanut sauce or Korean cucumber salad is another fantastic choice!

More Asian Cucumber Recipes

• Asian pickled cucumbers
• Japanese cucumber salad!
• Chinese smashed cucumber salad

Recipe Card

Asian cucumber salad recipe

5 from 19 votes

By ChihYu Smith

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Resting time:: 30 minutes mins

Total: 15 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings

Asian Cucumber Salad Ding Tai Fung style with honey garlic chili vinaigrette is the best Chinese cucumber salad for hot summer!

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Ingredients 

USMetric

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 12 oz. Persian cucumbers about 6- 7 mini cucumbers
• ▢ 1 tsp coarse sea salt

For the honey chili garlic vinaigrette:

• ▢ 2.5 tbsp rice vinegar
• ▢ 0.3 oz garlic grated
• ▢ 2 tbsp keto honey or 1.5 tbsp regular honey
• ▢ 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• ▢ 1-1.5 tsp Garlic chili sauce optional

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Instructions 

• Dice the cucumbers to ½-inch thick cylinder shape pieces. In a large mixing bowl, toss with salt and let rest for 30-45 minutes.
• In the meantime, combine the salad dressing in a bowl. It should taste garlicky, tangy, and a little sweet. Store it in the fridge.
• Rinse the cucumbers 2-3 times to remove the salt. The cucumbers should taste a little salty but not too salty.
• Pat dry the cucumbers with a clean towel.
• Place them in a large serving plate and stack the extras on top to make a little tower.
• Pour the dressing over the cucumber. Toss well and serve immediately!

Notes

• How long does the salad keep in the fridge?
  If the cucumbers are mixed with the dressing, I recommend finishing it the next day.
• How to make ahead –
  If the cucumbers 1) haven’t mixed with the dressing and 2) are patted dry after salting, you can store them in a container, lined with clean paper towels in the fridge for 2 days. Just toss them with the dressing before serving. This is the best way to make ahead Chinese cucumber salad!
• Tip:
  The cucumbers will continue to leak water after you pat them dry so only combine them with the dressing before serving.
• The total prep time does not include rest time to salt the cucumbers.
• The nutritional label is estimated with keto honey.
• You can also use store-bought chili oil. This is the brand I recommend. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 59kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 1mg, Sodium: 594mg, Potassium: 134mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 90IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 18mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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