Cucumber in Chili Oil
This kind of dish is often served as appetizer in Chinese restaurants (in Asia anyway). I served this for lunch with chicken congee as palate cleanser between rich spoonfuls.
Ingredients:
1 cucumber, cored and cut into long sticks
Salt and sugar, 1 tsp each initially, to taste thereafter
Rice Vinegar, to taste
Water
Fried peanuts, to taste
1 tbsp of chili oil
Directions:
Sprinkle the cucumber with sugar and salt (I used 1 tsp each). Scrunch gently until they leech the green juice. Rinse with water and get rid of the water as much as possible.
Adjust the seasoning with salt, sugar, and vinegar. I like this to be just a tad sour so that it stands up to the spicy chili. Chill for about 4 hours or overnight.
Before serving, throw away the excess water in the bowl and pour in the fried peanuts and chili oil. Mix well and serve cold.
