I have recently discovered Asian smashed cucumber salads and I’m hooked. It’s the combination of the cucumber with a creamy sesame dressing with coriander and ginger which is fantastic. I paired the salad with prawns fried in chilli and coconut oil and garnished it all with sesame seeds, fresh coriander and crispy onions… perfect for a summer dinner or date night, or in the winter when you miss the summer like me.

Recipe

Serves 2-3

Ingredients

12 jumbo prawns, I use the ones with the shells on and peel the body and leave the head and tails on, but you can use peeled ones

1 tablespoon of grated ginger

1 clove of garlic minced

2 tablespoons of coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil

1 red chilli finely sliced (you can add more if you prefer)

2-3 tablespoons of crispy fried onions which are optional because they are not gluten free but are available in the supermarket (optional)

To make the cucumber salad:

1 cucumber

A small bunch of coriander chopped with whole leafs for decoration

2 spring onions, chopped or julienned

1 tablespoon of black sesame seeds

To make the dressing:

1 tablespoon of toasted sesame oil

3 teaspoons of maple syrup

2 teaspoons of rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar

1 lemon juiced

3 tablespoons  of tahini

1 tablespoon of soya sauce

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How:

Firstly make the salad. Keep the cucumber in it’s wrapping and smash with a rolling pin on all sides. Take out of the wrapping and cut into 1/2-1 inch pieces and put in a big bowl.

Make the dressing by whisking all the dressing ingredients together and pour over the salad.

Prawns

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the garlic, half the chilli and the ginger. Add the prawns and stir fry till they are cooked through and opaque. Sprinkle with sesame the sesame oil, spring onions and the rest of the chopped chilli.

Place on a serving plate with the cucumber salad and garnish with the sesame seeds, coriander and crispy onions.

I shop at:
Waitrose
Sainsbury’s
Tesco
Lidl