My Cucumber Carrot Salad is a pure delight to eat. It consists of long strands of crunchy carrots and juicy cucumbers, creating a noodle-like texture, that’s tossed with an umami-rich dressing made with toasted sesame seed oil, tamari, and nutritional yeast. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice and ume plum vinegar offers some brightness, and toasted sesame seeds provide some additional texture and flavor. The final dish is vibrant, refreshing, and does not last long!
PREPPING THE VEGETABLES
You might be familiar with this recipe already, as I first shared it in my debut cookbook, Mississippi Vegan. In the book, I recommend one of my favorite tools in the kitchen: a hand-held julienne peeler (linked below). That is how the beautiful noodles you see up above are created. Here are some tips when using it for this recipe:
When it comes to carrots and cucumbers, I like to use rainbow carrots because they are super pretty and I love the variation in color. As for the cucumber, you can use whatever large variety you can find but I do recommend that you peel them and avoid the seeds when cutting the strips. That way you are left with pure cucumber flesh that mimics the texture of noodles. (I find that the skin and seeds can get in the way!)
MAKING THE DRESSING
Ume plum vinegar is the secret weapon ingredient in the dressing for this Carrot Cucumber Salad. It is very strong and a little goes a long way, so if you invest in a bottle, just know that it will last you a good amount of time. Becuase it is both sour and salty, it has the magnificent ability to make a dish really pop. You cannot make this recipe without it!
COMBINING THE SALAD
One important thing to remember with this salad is to only prepare the vegetable noodles when you are ready to serve. They do not like to sit for too long and will become soggy once they are combined with the dressing, so make this right before serving. Next, you can make the dressing in the same serving bowl. Simply prepare the dressing and then carve the noodles and add them to the bowl. Toss to mix and you are ready to serve.
SERVING OPTIONS
Once the noodles are tossed with the dressing, you can serve it as is or add the optional toppings. Toasted sesame seeds work wonderfully here, in addition to Thai basil or fresh cilantro. (Green onions or chives would also be very nice). I add flaky salt to everything I eat, so I like to sprinkle some on top, but you don’t have to! An additional squeeze of lemon would also be welcome. Give it a taste and adjust to your liking!
SHOP FOR THIS CARROT CUCUMBER SALAD
Here are some of my favorite ingredients and items from my Amazon Storefront that you can use for this recipe. If you click these affiliate links and make a purchase, I will make a very small commission. This is no extra charge to you! This will help to support my business and allow me to continue sharing recipes, so thank you in advance:
Hand-held Julienne Peeler: This tool is essential to every kitchen, in my opinion. It allows you to carve noodles out of so many different vegetables. I cannot recommend one enough!
Ume Plum Vinegar: The all-star ingredient to this salad, ume plum vinegar is salty, sour, tangy, bright, and savory. It really wakes everything up!
Toasted Sesame Seed Oil: This adds real depth to this dish and this brand makes amazing oils.
Tamari: This is my favorite brand of tamari, which is bascially a gluten-free soy sauce. It is amazingly savory.
ENJOY THIS CUCUMBER CARROT SALAD
I hope that y’all love this refreshing salad! I like to make it in the summer when cucumbers are abundant and it really hits the spot on a hot day. If you do make it, please leave a review and comment below. I’d love to hear from you. Talk soon, friends.
-Timothy
IF YOU LIKE THIS RECIPE, CHECK OUT THESE:
Creamy Cucumber Salad
Chickpea Avocado Salad
Easy Vegan Recipes
Dressing 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice Salad 2 large or 3 medium carrots Optional Toppings ½ cup chopped fresh Thai basil or cilantro Make the dressing: In a large serving bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, tamari, nutritional yeast, sesame oil, and black pepper to taste. Make the salad: When ready to make the salad, prepare the carrot and cucumber noodles*. First, peel both the carrots and cucumbers. Then use a hand-held julienne peeler to carve the carrots. Next, carve the cucumbers, making sure to stop once you hit the seeds. (Simply rotate the cucumber and continue to carve around the seeds.) Place the noodles on top of the dressing. Serve the salad: When ready to serve, toss the noodles thoroughly. (Give it a taste and add more tamari or a pinch of salt, if needed.) Enjoy as is or garnish with optional toppings. Serve immediately! You can use a hand-held julienne peeler to prepare the carrots and cucumbers (it is linked in the blog post!). You could also use a mandolin or a sprializer, if you have one. Lastly, a sharp knife can get the job done, if that is all you have, but you may not get beautiful thin strands like in the picture, which wouldn't be the end of the world. I bet you could simply roughly chop the cucumbers and carrots and it would still be delicious.
Ingredients
2 teaspoons ume plum vinegar
1½ teaspoons tamari
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon olive oil
Freshly cracked black pepper
2 large cucumbers
Toasted sesame seeds or toasted peanuts, roughly chopped
Flaky saltInstructions
notes
I love to use rainbow carrots, in particular the yellow and white varieties, along with the more traditional orange carrots, for a lovely variation in color.
This salad is best served immediately! The longer it sits, the juicer it becomes which is not ideal. It is still edible but fresh is best for this recipe, y'all. You could make the dressing in advance, if you'd like, which you can store in the fridge for up to 5 days, tightly sealed.
Food styling, photography, recipe, and text by Timothy Pakron
