Han Dynasty-Inspired Sichuan
I sometimes dream of food. The spicy garlic cucumbers at Han Dynasty fit into this category. Whenever I have an abundance of cucumbers (which is right now with our garden), I like to make a batch of these. Better than pickles you can eat a whole bunch since it’s not just soaking in vinegar. I changed some elements of the original recipe I used which can be found here. Some things I changed were I doubled the vinegar and soy sauce because I felt like it was too oily, used honey instead of sugar, doubled the garlic and added sichuan peppercorns. If you can’t find sichuan peppercorns you can use regular ground pepper.
Ingredients
3 large cucumbers, washed and seeds removed if desired
1 salt
8 Tbsp rice vinegar
4 cloves garlic, grated to a paste
2-3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp unrefined sugar
1 TBSP toasted sesame seeds
1-2 TBSP hot chili oil
Few tablespoons diced red onion, scallions, or shallots if you have them
What To DO
Slice cucumbers into bite sized pieces and place into a bowl. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over cucumbers. Serve immediately. Will last in fridge for a few days.
