Recipe by David Tannis
Total Time: 20 minutes, plus 30 minutes’ chilling/ Servings: 4-6
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 tablespoon palm sugar or dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 2 small Thai chiles (not bird’s-eye), very thinly sliced, or substitute 1 serrano chile
- 1 Fresno chile, thinly sliced crosswise
- 1 pound cucumber, preferably Persian, sliced ¼ inch thick
- 3 or 4 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced on a long bias
- Salt
- ¼ cup fresh mint leaves, some whole, some torn
- ¼ cup small basil leaves (preferably Thai or cinnamon basil)
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro
- ⅓ cup salted peanuts, crushed using a rolling pin or mortar
Directions:
- Make the dressing: Put lime juice and sugar in a small bowl. Stir to combine, allowing sugar to dissolve. Stir in sesame oil and fish sauce. Add the Thai and Fresno chiles. Set aside.
- Put cucumbers and scallions in a serving bowl. Sprinkle very lightly with salt and toss. Add the dressing and toss well to coat. Refrigerate to chill, about 30 minutes.
- Top with mint, basil and cilantro. Sprinkle with crushed peanuts.