Sweet-Sour Cucumber Salad

This is the kind of cucumber salad that shows up at every German, Hungarian, and Scandinavian table, and for good reason. Three ingredients, zero cooking, and the result is crisp, tangy, and refreshing enough to cut through the richest main dish.

The salting step is what separates this from a basic cucumber toss. Sprinkling salt over the thin slices and letting them sit draws out excess water, so the cucumbers turn flexible and slightly translucent without going limp. After rinsing the salt off thoroughly, they absorb the sweet-sour dressing much better than raw slices would.

Slice the cucumbers as thin as you can manage. A mandoline or the fine side of a box grater (or a Mouli, as the recipe suggests) gives you those paper-thin rounds that really soak up the dressing.

Chef Tips

• Rinse the salt off completely. If you skip this step or rush it, the salad will be inedibly salty.
• Let the dressed cucumbers chill for at least an hour before serving. The flavor improves as they sit.
• Squeeze handfuls of the salted cucumbers gently before dressing them. Less water means a more concentrated sweet-sour flavor.

Variations

• Add thinly sliced red onion and fresh dill for a Scandinavian-style version.
• Stir in a spoonful of sour cream for a creamy Hungarian take (tejfölös uborkasaláta).
• Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds and a dash of rice vinegar for an Asian twist.