With our almost Spring like weather during the day, I’ve been slowly introducing more Summery foods into the diet in the hopes that the weather should stick around. At our visit to Spice Temple several months ago, Christie recommended me a recipe for Neil Perry’s Cucumber with smashed garlic. I’d meant to make these for months and it wasn’t until I made another batch of the cucumber pickles that I was reminded of these. They’re easy and fantastically healthy and the perfect cooling side dish or precursor to a Chinese meal.
She pointed me to the Gourmet Traveller website where they featured a few of Perry’s recipes and the best pasrt? The time taken to make these is negligible and most of it is in waiting for it to drain. I loved the cleansing sensation of cucumber and the garlic lends a richer tone to it. It was gobbled up in no time by Mr NQN. I had intended to keep some in a jar to pick at for a healthy snack but he liked it so much that late one night I opened the fridge to snack on some to find the empty container in the fridge. Yes he had stuck the empty container back in the fridge. Luckily for him it was his birthday so I couldn’t get mad at him and he probably knew it.
So tell me Dear Reader, what’s your flatmate’s/husband’s/wife’s worst habit?
Cucumber with Smashed Garlic
Serves 4
Cooking Time Prep time 10 mins (plus 1 hour standing)
- 4 Lebanese cucumbers, halved lengthways, seeds removed plus 2 teaspoons of salt
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed in a mortar and pestle
- 7 gm (1½ cm) piece of ginger, cut into julienne
- 1½ tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil or 1 sesame seeds
Draining cucumber
1. Coarsely chop cucumber into rough 4cm lengths, and combine in a non-reactive bowl with 2 teaspoons of sea salt, tossing to coat. Stand for 1 hour, then drain. Combine with garlic and ginger and set aside.
2. Combine vinegar, sugar and oil in a small bowl, drizzle over cucumber mixture, stir to combine and stand for 10 minutes to allow flavours to combine. Serve as a condiment.
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37 Comments | Add your own
Hubby’s worst habit is leaving just a teensy weensy bit of anything and putting it back in the fridge! From ice cream.. to sauce.. to leftovers!
Lovely recipe and the story about Mr NQL made me laugh
My hubby and sister shared the love for sweets so I constantly find the ice-cream box and home-made cookies disappear!
)
Love the sound of a quick dish. Which leads to me bad habits. My partner has a passion for cooking. I am out of the kitchen. But I do share the burden of preparation in other ways. Clean up. He uses nearly every single pot and pan and bowl and dish and stirrer and spoon to prepare an evening meal. It’s always very elaborate. I love that, but not the cleaning up that follows!
A wonderful combo!
Cheers,
Rosa
Lovely and simple Lorraine…I definitely want to make this! Thanks for sharing. Somehow it’s the Nutella jar that keeps on being emptied out in my fridge!
Simple, elegant snack!
this sounds very much like the pickled carrot and radish you get in Vietnamese restaurants which i love.
I love cold pickled cucumbers – so refreshing especially on a hot day.
What an excellent side dish. I do love cucumber
My boyfriends worst habit would have to be him throwing his socks absolutely everywhere! We live in a tiny studio & his socks end up in the oddest places – what’s wrong with the washing basket? Lol!!
yum that sounds fascinating – i hate the habit of an empty container in the fridge – it is up there on my bad habit list with a dribble of dink left in the bottom of a bottle in the fridge
When I lived in Australia, Lebanese and apple cukes were freely available. Now I live in the US, not so much. They have the plain cucumber variety, the continental style, and a pickling cucumber they call kirby. It’s tasty, but not as sweet skinned as the lebanese. What would you suggest would work with this recipe?
For some reason I’ve never thought to put garlic w/cucumber. Good stuff.
Worst habit of flatmate (I of course am fastidious male): putting used cups, plates, cutlery etc. ‘just’ to the side of the sink, unrinsed, rather than in with other meal ‘washing ups’… (which of course is only slightly better than same components being left variously around house.)
Ooh! Cooling! This would go well with congee. And kimchi
Well, I used to have a roommate who ate all my stuff…and when I went to get more, she ate them all again.
She also used all my earrings and now I have none! >:-(
This cucumber dish looks so light and refreshing…I love it! My husband’s worst habbit is his incessant nut-eating. It’s not the nuts that are are the problem, actually. It’s the fact that despite his best efforts at cleaning up, I find shells everywhere! Aaah!
I love this salad of Neil Perry’s. For some reason you’ve made me crave for this now. Great photo too!
What a refreshing and easy recipe. I love cucumbers usually I eat them raw. but dressed like this they re surely yummy
My boyfriend s worst habit is leaving empty bottles and containers every where.
Looks very refreshing and perfect for this totally barmy days we have been having of late.
My husband’s worst “food” habit is when we go grocery shopping together and it is time to proceed to the checkout I find anywhere from 5 to 10 totally unnecessary items in the trolley, which he has sneakily snuck in along the way!!!
What a great way to use cucumber — I am never inspired and end up just putting it in salads.
Very refreshing! A little bit of chilli would be good!
What a refreshing salad! That kind of a salad is perfect for the kind of weather we have now here in Israel!
Ooh this looks delish – love dill pickles so will have to give this a go too.
Bad habits? Where do I start? Leaves dirty socks on floor.. empty bottles in loungeroom.. I could write a whole blog!! lol
Yum, I love this dish when I’m in China! It’s so simple and yet so perfect. I have Neil Perry’s Balance and Harmony, which I reviewed on my blog a couple of months ago, and was just looking through it again today. It’s turning into one of my favourite cookery books and worth the investment…
I always enjoy reading your stories (and recipes too). Cute anecdote about MR NQN
An interesting and new way with cucumber at least for me…
knowing how easily cukes can take on a flavor, i think this is a terrific idea!
LOL @ Mr. NQN! Yeah, what was in the jar must have magically disappeared by its own . it happens all the time to my Krispy Kreme too.
I love it when something so simple tastes so good! I always become addicted to cucumber sticks and Moromi Miso dipping sauce!
this recipe looks so deliciously simple and what a great way to ease back into the warmer spring weather!
Oh good to know mine is not the only Mr that puts back the teensiest bit of something or finishes the last of something and puts back the empty container in the fridge/cupboard.
One of my favourite quotes about cucumbers:
A cucumber should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out, as good for nothing – Samuel Johnson
This kinda sums it up for me really!!!
Hi Min-Hehe I think it must be a universal thing!
Doesn’t make it any less annoying though does it!
Hi Anh-Thanks!
Aha the disappearing food trick! 
Hi Julia-Oh yes I’m sure that is a comon trait! Everything in the kitchen has to be used at least once doesn’t it
Hi Rosa-Thanks!
Hi Peter-Thankyou! Hehe how funny and I bet it’s eaten by the spoonful
Hi The Duo Dishes-Thankyou!
Hi Simon-It’s slightly different as it’s not pickled
Hi foodie-central-You’re right, cucumbers are hgreat on a hot day. Now if only we could have one!
Hi ESZ-Hehe yes anywhere but the laundry basket right?
Such a guy thing isn’t it!
Hi Johanna-Yup I don’t know why it’s so ahrd to throw it away or finish it!
Hi Amanda-Oh really? I had no idea the Lebanese wasn’t available there! I’d say probably the continental?
Hi Db-yes me neither!
haha really! I prefer it when things are left to soak. That makes cleaning much easier!
Hi Sophia-Ye true!
Oh no, really? That’s terrible! 
I hope you got a new roomate!
Hi Faith-Thanks, it is!
Haha oh no, I can imagine you’d find shells under all sorts of places!
Hi Trissa-Thanks so much!
Hi snooky doodle-Thankyou! This resistence to binning things is such a male thing I suspect!
Hi sandra-Yes it’s ideal for summery days and nights although it has been consumed during wintry nights here
Haha so he is a kid at heart! 
Hi Cucinista-Thanks so much!
Me too, I never thought to do this with it 
Hi pigpigscorner-Yes that’s true!
Hi yaelian-Thankyou!
Yes you’re so lucky to be having such nice, warm weather 
Hi Lulu-Definitely, please do!
Haha you should! And it sounds just like MR NQN 
Hi Helen-I haven’t actually cooked much from his cookbooks but the GT website has other recipes which I am keen to try!
Hi Jackie-Thankyou so much! What a lovely thing to say!
Hi Wizzy-Thanks, yes it was for me too!
Hi grace-Thankyou so much! Yes they’re great aren’t they!
Hi Yas-He is very naughty like that! Oh no, your precious KK!
Oooh I must seek out this dipping sauce now! 
Hi Panda-Thanks! Yes I’m hoping it with conjure up some warm weather!
Hi Shants-Haha yes I think if you sampled the men of the world, they’d all be a bit like that
Hi sissyhankshaw-Aww not a fan of cucumbers?
I did it yesterday for lunch, i became obsessed with cucumber salads last year in Beijing!
I love these types of dishes! Particularly if they’re vinegary and pickled.
Hm, where do I start about my boyfriend’s bad habits? Hehe, he’s not too bad. I think my pet hate is the inability to use glad wrap on things he puts back in the fridge.
Hi Julia-Great to hear! It’s so simple but refreshing
Hi Forager-Hehe the main thing is the presents huh?
OH no, no glad wrap? That’s rather naughty!
I just love cucumbers and have been eating them more and more lately.
Hubby’s worst habit: After spending all day cleaningm vacuuming etc, he’ll come home from work either by biking or running, and throw his sweaty clothes on the floor to “air out and dry”.
Ha! Sorry I’m late to comment on this (you’ll forgive me as I just flew into Istanbul
).
So glad that Mr NQN liked this! I gobbled a good portion of it up before I served them to The Bear. So easy and so tasty!
Hi ArtemisIII-You’re lucky in that you are having some nice, warm weather! Oh no, mine does that too! To air them? I think not!
Hi Christie-Yes of course! You have other priorities
Can’t wait to hear more about Istanbul!
That looks so tasty. I love simple dishes like this, and can imagine eating a whole jar of the stuff too, late one night (though I promise I wouldn’t put the empty jar back in the fridge!).
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