Cucumber recipes

Nigiri sushi, the hand-formed Japanese rice fingers topped with raw or cooked seafood and a touch of mustard or wasabi. Make sushi at home with just rice, fish, and a few simple ingredients.

Quick pickled green peppers with garlic and bay leaves in a simple vinegar brine. Pack into canning jars for a crunchy, tangy condiment that lasts for months.

Pork kabobs marinate in lemon, garlic, and marjoram overnight, then grill over medium coals with a cucumber yogurt sauce on the side. Greek-style skewers ready for pita and salad.

A Star Trek spin on classic tabbouleh: fluffy bulgur (aka quadrotriticale) tossed with cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, fresh parsley, mint, lemon juice, and olive oil. Boldly go where no grain salad has gone before.

Pottsfield pickles, a sweet-spiced relish of green and red tomatoes, onions, peppers, and celery in a cinnamon-clove brine. End-of-season Appalachian classic for the cellar.

Salsa Bandera is a fresh Mexican salsa with chopped tomatoes, cucumber, radishes, cilantro, and a vinegar-lemon dressing. No cooking required, just chop, mix, and serve with chips.

Authentic Lebanese tabbouleh loaded with fresh parsley, mint, cucumber, and bulgur wheat dressed in lemon juice and olive oil. A bright, herbaceous Middle Eastern salad with no cooking.

Peking duck made the traditional way, air-dried and glazed with maltose for lacquer-crisp skin, then roasted and carved thin to wrap in steamed pancakes with hoisin, scallions and cucumber.

A delicious accompaniment for any dish. Vary the number of chili peppers in the sauce according to personal taste.

Crisp romaine and baby spinach salad dressed in a creamy oil-free rouille made from toasted hazelnuts, pimientos, and white balsamic vinegar. Light, vibrant, and ready in 25 minutes.

Greek lamb souvlaki with tzatziki: red-wine and oregano-marinated lamb shoulder skewers grilled over coals, served with cool strained yogurt, cucumber, and garlic dip.

Vellirikkai thogayal is a South Indian cucumber chutney with mustard seeds, urad dal, methi, dried red chilies, and sesame oil. A tangy, crunchy condiment for rice.

Sweet pickles brine cucumber chunks overnight, then bring them to a boil in apple cider vinegar with sugar, turmeric, mustard seed, allspice, and celery seed. Eight pints of golden, crunchy pickles by tomorrow.

Pon pon chicken (bang bang chicken) shreds poached chicken over salted cucumber ribbons with a warm sesame-soy-ginger dressing. Classic Sichuan cold-plate appetizer or main.

Shrimp, chicken, water chestnuts, and Chinese ham wrapped in pork caul fat, deep-fried into crispy golden rolls, and served with hoisin dipping sauce. An impressive Chinese banquet appetizer with showstopping presentation.

End-of-the-garden pickles loaded with peppers, cucumbers, carrots, beans, and cauliflower in a sweet vinegar brine with mustard and celery seed.