Give Your Cucumbers Korean-Inspired Flavor For A Zesty Snack

In the summer, it's hard to find relief from the heat without snacking on some cucumbers. They're filled with water, making them perfectly refreshing for the sweltering heat. Although we love the mild flavor of cucumbers, it never hurts to amp up their flavor a little more. To spice up cucumbers, give them a Korean-inspired spin.

We're not the only ones obsessed with sprucing up our cucumbers. The habit has grown popular on TikTok, with people adding savory ingredients to the crisp fruits. The sliced cucumbers are adorned with everything from soy sauce and sesame seeds to garlic and gochujang, turning them into a delicious snack. The dish is something you can store in the fridge for later, a tip that Tasting Table recipe developer Miriam Hahn recommends. Her spicy Korean cucumber salad is also an elevated take on the ingredient, although she makes it a little differently.

Hahn cuts the cucumber into an accordion-like shape. For her, Persian cucumbers work best with the method, as she notes "they are less watery and the smaller size makes them easier to cut." Though the cucumber choice is different, the salad is delicious all the same. The real flavor, however, comes from her ingredient pickings. Hahn uses soy sauce and rice vinegar for a salty, acidic kick and sesame seeds and oil for nuttiness. The stand-out ingredient is gochugaru, a smoky sweet chili powder that completes the dish.

Opting for a good mix of sweet, savory, tangy, and spicy is a great place to start with your cucumber salad. If you can't get your hands on some gochujang, chili crisp can provide a nice dose of heat. For the tang, add in a splash of rice vinegar or white vinegar and complete the dish with some honey and miso paste.

Miriam Hahn's recipe and some TikTok variations share a few similarities with a type of kimchi known as oi sobagi kimchi. Oi sobagi typically uses Korean cucumbers, which are cut into short spears. To make it, start with covering the cucumbers in salt and allowing the water to drain, just like Hahn does in her recipe. You can then implement ingredients like diced carrots, garlic, or onions for a pungent flavor.

Ultimately, gochugaru is the stand out flavor, but there are other essential ingredients for Korean cooking in oi sobagi kimchi. Both fish sauce and fermented shrimp make an appearance, and some people like to use honey or sugar for sweetness. You can also add in Korean plum syrup for a tangy, fruity flair for the kimchi. Outside of the gochugaru, minced ginger is a great way to add a fiery kick to the cucumbers.