Lightly Pickled Cucumbers
Lightly Salted Cucumbers
This is quickly becoming a staple around our dinner table. Especially if you make a trip back from a Japanese market with Japanese cucumbers. If not, Persian cucumbers are an awesome and cheaper equilivant. Best if you're able to get a pack of shiso in there, along with some nice dashi-shoyu (broth-soy).
So simple, so light, so crunchy, so flavorful.
Instructions:
With a little bit of table salt in your hands, rub cucumbers well all around.
Rinse quickly and towel dry well.
Trim the ends of the cucumbers, and slice crosswise all to 1/4" thickness.
Place cucumbers in a bowl, add 3/4 tb of the best quality sea salt you have, and massage into all of the cucumbers. They should immediately start to sweat a little and you should feel a few granules of salt here and there. Insert a plate into the bowl, and find any object that will rest comfortably on top to provide weight. Water containers, a rock? Set aside in fridge or outside for a couple hours.
Meanwhile, take pack of shiso leaves, cut out the bottom stems, roll up in a tight roll, and thinly cut to make julienne strips. In the palm of your hand, take a pinch of salt and rub it around into the shiso. Set aside in a bowl for 15 min. The salt will take the grassy edge off of the shiso, making it very palatable when eaten with the cucumbers. Pull shiso out when partially wilted, rinse in a bowl, squeeze all moisture out, and set aside.
When ready, remove weight from cucumber bowl, add shiso, and mix together well. Serve in a bowl and drizzle some dashi-shoyu (Japanese broth-soy sauce).