This goes very well with such things as cured salmon, mackerel, and smoked cod’s roe, or is very happily eaten by itself.
Real quick: Eating Nose To Tail and Medieval Cooking. Go visit!
Ah, June. June in Texas.
Damn, it’s hot. Aside from a big glass of iced tea, cold salads are just perfect for this time of the year and they don’t come more refreshing than this one.
As the title states, cucumbers are the foundation of this salad. Since the outside thermometer kept rising higher and higher, I decided to throw these bad boys into the freezer for a few minutes to get them nice and cold.
When the cucumbers were frigid I removed them from the freezer, peeled their skin off and scooped out the seeds with a spoon. The pulp was reserved for use in cocktails like this one.
Next I cut the cucumber flesh on an angle in the hopes of making “strange wonderful shapes.” The little half moon slices were placed in a colander and tossed with a teaspoon of salt to draw the excess moisture out and promote a crunchy texture with a bit of give. The cucumbers were left alone for an hour to let the salt really do its thing.
Fifteen minutes before the cucumber slices were ready my wife and I started working on the dressing. We added a tiny amount of sugar to some white wine vinegar and stirred until it dissolved. Mr. Henderson stresses that the dressing shouldn’t be sweet, rather the sugar should be subliminal. A spoonful of Dijon mustard was stirred in along side copious amounts of extra virgin olive oil to create an emulsion. To finish, fresh ground black pepper helped bring a little extra heat to the party.
With a smidgen of pride, I present you some fresh dill from my tiny herb garden. The feathery leaves were picked from their stems and roughly chopped.
To compose the final dish I removed the salted cucumber slices from the colander and patted them dry with probably way too many paper towels. A few teaspoons of the dressing and a sprinkle of dill on top, a quick toss to evenly distribute everything and it was done.
What an awesome salad. I mean, simple preparation, simple construction, straightforward flavor. What’s not to like? The cucumber ended up being slightly flexible yet still gave an agreeable crunch when eaten. The salt hadn’t infused itself too deeply, but there was just enough left over for seasoning. The tart and tangy dressing and the grassy dill added new dimensions to the salad without killing the cucumber flavor. Harmony had been achieved.
If it’s hot in your neck of the woods, consider giving this salad a try. It’ll help soothe some of summer’s fiery bite.
One down, seventy seven to go.
16 Comments to “Cucumber, Mustard, And Dill”
June 8, 2009
Looks really easy and tasty!
June 9, 2009
mmm, you reminded i do like cucumber water alot, but never remember to add it. the cocktail idea- smart!
June 9, 2009
I see that and it just makes me think of a Swedish summer. Fantastic
June 9, 2009
i love this and make it all the time (I have many book marks
in Nose to tail, many many not made that I’m happy to leave to you)
keep up the good work, you are my nose to tail hero you know.
June 9, 2009
Hello Reese! You’re spot on, I felt a little bad since this update felt like cheating it was so easy. But the flavor and texture sure wasn’t simplistic!
J, try this one, it’s really tasty!
Alex, I’m really curious, why Swedish?
Hiya Rach! You’re making me blush! :)
June 10, 2009
Slightly sweetened mustard and dill are incredibly Swedish flavours. This is the sort of thing that would be served with smoked salmon at Midsummer.
June 10, 2009
I’ve learned something new today, thank you very much Alex.
June 10, 2009
What a delicious combo! I love those wonderful flavors!
Cheers,
Rosa
June 10, 2009
Thank you! I’m looking at the lemon chestnut cake with apricot coulis on your website and drooling. Great pictures!
June 11, 2009
I just discovered your site, fantastic stuff. This salad is a great summer side. One thing I learned the hard way, do not make the dressing to far in advance in that it can break. Even when you whisk it back together the salad can seem a bit oily. Complete operator error, but one I hope others can avoid. I look forward to search your achives. Thank you
June 11, 2009
My Grannie has been making a salad like this for years (although her’s is a little more simplified) I love it as a side dish to heartier meats.
I’m definitely going to have to try this version. Yum.
June 11, 2009
NWCajun, thank you very much for the compliment. That’s a fantastic point about the dressing, and I didn’t think to mention it. Thank you for bringing it up!
Hello Sydney! Did you see the link to your site at the top? I hope everything is okay on your end.
June 15, 2009
I just saw it, that’s amazing! Thank you so much!
June 15, 2009
Us nose to tail folks gotta stick together. :)
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