Salt and Vinegar Cucumber

The combination of salt and vinegar is a classic and can be found in various snacks, especially as a topping and seasoning for fish and chips! Although those might be deemed junk food, one cannot say the same for this cucumber recipe! Salt and Vinegar Cucumber is such a refreshing and welcome change! Made with malt vinegar and sea salt, these cucumbers are a great side for almost any main!

This recipe was a no-brainer for me. You have all heard me say more than once that when it comes to snack foods, I will always choose salty snacks over sweet snacks. And, one of my favourites is salt and vinegar kettle chips. So, it should come as no surprise that this Salt and Vinegar Cucumber Potatoes is my newest obsession!

Salt and Vinegar Cucumber is made with malt vinegar and sea salt. Those are the two main ingredients that will give you that salt and vinegar kettle chip taste. However, to round out the flavours, I’ve also added a little bit of ground black pepper for warmth, some sugar to lessen the vinegary sting, and a drop of oil to keep the cucumbers shiny and delicious! Let’s get into it!

THE BEST TYPE OF CUCUMBERS FOR SALADS

To be honest, you can use any type of cucumber you like the most. In this particular case, I’m using the pickling cucumbers that I grew in my garden this summer. It was my first time growing cucumbers and to be quite honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of eating the pickling cucumbers raw – even though they are totally fine that way! I’m not a huge cucumber lover, but John.e is, so I asked him. He thought that pickling cucumbers was fine, but the skin was thicker, which he didn’t care for.

So, if I had to make a recommendation, it would most certainly be English cucumbers here. These are sometimes known as hothouse cucumbers as well. English cucumbers are usually a little more expensive, but because there are so few ingredients in this salad, it would be wise to use the best. Unlike other generic cucumbers, English cucumbers are seedless, which means they will release much less water when sliced – this will keep your salad from getting too watery!

You will know English cucumbers by three criteria – they are a really deep green colour, the one end looks rather pinched instead of evenly rounded like the end of most cucumbers, and lastly, English cucumbers are almost always wrapped in plastic at the grocery store.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS RECIPE

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this Salt and Vinegar Cucumber recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Cucumbers – You can use any cucumber that you prefer, although, as previously mentioned, I would recommend English cucumbers.
• Malt Vinegar – You must use malt vinegar in this recipe. I’m sorry, but no other vinegar flavours will work in terms of developing that kettle chip flavour.
• Salt – In this recipe, I’m using flaked sea salt. Do not attempt this recipe with regular table salt, it will not work. You must use sea salt, however, it does not need to be the flaked type; ground sea salt will work too.
• Vegetable Oil – This will help marry the vinegar, salt and ground black pepper together and make sure the flavour is evenly distributed.
• Ground Black Pepper
• Sugar – This adds just a little bit of sweetness and helps to balance out the acidity.

ONLY MALT VINEGAR WILL DO

Now, let me be the first to tell you that I cannot stand the smell of malt vinegar! Just a few days ago, John.e was eating fish and he literally asked me if it was okay to use malt vinegar. You see, I have been very vocal about it over the years! (Just ask my ex-wife! She loved it and would use it quite often. I complained about it every time, which I think is the reason she used it so much! Ha!)

Years ago, I used to live in Kitchener, and there was this fish and chip place called Granny Bonn’s. It had the best fried fish I had ever eaten. We used to go there at least once a week. The fish was so good that I would force myself to ignore the smell of the malt vinegar, even though it was so strong, you could smell it from the street!

When I set out to make Salt and Vinegar Cucumber, I knew I had to use malt vinegar. Nothing else will do, because that is the only vinegar that will give you the smell and taste of what these cucumbers are supposed to smell and taste like! Now, keep in mind that many years have passed since my last run-in with malt vinegar. Much to my surprise, the smell wasn’t as bad as I remembered! I’ve just written all of this to say that you must use malt.

HOW TO MAKE SALT AND VINEGAR CUCUMBER

Unless your cucumber-slicing skills are exceptional, it might be best to use a mandolin. It will certainly make it much faster and easier. Slice the cucumbers into 1/8th of an inch slices and pile them into a mixing bowl. Set that aside.

Measure the vinegar, oil, sugar, salt, and black pepper in a separate bowl and whisk well to combine. Pour the dressing over the sliced cucumbers and toss them well with the dressing until well coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down below the recipe card to find my Follow Me on Social Media box and never miss another recipe!