This crunchy, savory cucumber salad recipe brings the wonderful flavors of Japanese cooking easily into your dinner routine. It would be a great side for Takikomi Gohan with Chicken, Japanese Meatballs with Ponzu Glaze, or Miso Salmon.

Making the salad is as easy as it gets — sliced cucumbers plus a dressing. It just draws upon some ingredients common in Japanese and other Asian cooking.

There are many other Japanese ingredients worth exploring, but this is a great start. Sometimes you just need a light and crunchy salad as part of an Asian meal — this is a 10-minute perfect answer. (Also, check out one of our all-time favorites: Japanese Restaurant Salad Dressing.)

This clean fresh cucumber salad is the perfect simple side for any Asian meal – and takes less than 10 minutes to make.

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Japanese Cucumber Salad Ingredients

For the Salad:

• Rice vinegar – I prefer to use unseasoned but seasoned will work well in this recipe as well.
• Soy sauce – I prefer less-sodium soy sauce.
• Sugar – A little sweetness balances out the acidity in the dressing.
• Mirin – Mirin is a lower-alcohol version of rice wine, with a bit of sweetness. It’s great in dressings.
• Wasabi – This Japanese horseradish paste is often blended into soy sauce and used as a dipping sauce for sushi, but it can add heat to dressings and sauces. Sometimes, it is sold powdered, and you need to add a bit of water to turn it into a paste.
• Sesame oil – Sesame oil adds a wonderful toasty flavor to dishes, though it should be used sparingly as it can be quite potent. Keep sesame oil in the fridge, especially after you open the bottle, as it can start to turn rancid at warmer temperatures.
• Scallions
• Cucumber – I love using baby cucumbers in this salad.

To Serve (optional):

• Sesame seeds – Toasted sesame seeds are a common and delicious way to finish Japanese dishes with a bit of extra flavor and crunch, not to mention visual appeal.
• Toasted nori – These thin sheets of seaweed are most often used to roll sushi.
• Pickled ginger slices

How to Make Japanese Cucumber Salad

1. Mix the dressing: In a medium bowl, mix together the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, salt, mirin (if using), wasabi paste, sesame oil, and scallions.
2. Toss and serve: Add the cucumbers to the dressing and toss to coat. Transfer to a shallow serving bowl and serve topped with nori, sesame seeds, and pickled ginger slices, if desired.

What to Serve With Japanese Cucumber Salad

Mongolian Beef

Teriyaki Chicken and Beef Skewers

Chicken Katsu

More Cucumber Salad Recipes

• Thai Cucumber Salad
• Tomato, Avocado and Cucumber Salad
• Pork Schnitzel with Quick Pickley Cucumber Salad
• Greek Tomato and Cucumber Salad