Cucumber Pickles

Thai cucumber pickles are one of those condiments that make an entire meal better without needing a single ingredient that isn’t already in your kitchen. Thin slices of cucumber and chopped onion toss with red wine vinegar, sugar, salt, seeded red chiles, and a bit of cilantro. That’s the whole recipe.

Most versions of this appear at Thai tables as a cooling balance to heavy curries or grilled meats, a little sweet, a little sharp, just enough heat to keep it interesting. The cucumbers soak in the brine for about 10 minutes and are ready to eat straight up.

For a proper Thai version, rice vinegar would replace the red wine vinegar, but the red wine version works beautifully and has a deeper, fruitier acidity that many prefer.

Kitchen Tips

• Slice the cucumbers thin, around ⅛ inch. Thicker cuts don’t pickle fast enough to be ready in 10 minutes.
• Use English or Persian cucumbers for less seedy flesh and crisper pickle.
• Chop the red chiles fine and taste as you add. Spice tolerance varies wildly.
• Best within a few hours. These are not keeper-pickles. The cucumbers go limp by day two.

Variations

• Swap red wine vinegar for rice vinegar for classic Thai flavor.
• Add a crushed garlic clove and grated ginger for a Vietnamese slant.
• Top with chopped peanuts just before serving for crunch.