Japanese Cucumber Salad (Sunomono) is light, refreshing, and packed with umami flavor. It features thinly sliced cucumbers and wakame seaweed in a tangy vinegar dressing topped with sesame seeds. Enjoy this simple 10-minute salad as an appetizer or side for any Japanese meal!
This sweet, tangy cucumber salad is our go-to appetizer for Japanese lunches and dinners. We love it chilled on hot summer days and evenings. All you need to do is soak the wakame, slice the cucumbers, then mix in the dressing, and enjoy!
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About Japanese Cucumber Salad
- Taste - The salad is a medley of sweet and sour flavors.
- Texture - The ingredients are tender with a nice crunch.
- Effort - All you need to do is prepare the wakame and cucumbers then mix in the dressing.
- Time - It takes just 10 minutes to make the salad.
What is Sunomono?
In Japanese, "sunomono" means "vinegared things" or vinegared dishes. But the term most commonly refers to Japanese cucumber salad. This invigorating salad has a signature vinegar taste and is a quintessential part of Japanese cuisine.
Ingredients
- Cucumbers or Persian cucumbers - We prefer Japanese or Persian cucumbers for their sweet crunch. They are also sweeter, thinner, and have a crispier skin than American and English cucumbers.
- Dried Wakame Seaweed - Wakame adds a light briny flavor to the salad.
- Soy sauce - Soy sauce, or shoyu in Japanese, adds umami flavor.
- Rice vinegar - Rice vinegar adds a lightly sweet and tart flavor.
- Sugar - Sugar adds a little sweetness.
- Kosher salt - Salt accentuates the other tasty flavors.
- Toasted sesame seeds - Toasted sesame seeds add a mild nuttiness. You can use black or white sesamee seeds.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Kani/Imitation Crab - Add Imitation crab meat for umami flavor with a subtle sweetness.
- Panko - Panko breadcrumbs will add a tasty crunch.
- Sugar-free - Use date sugar instead of granulated sugar in the sauce to make the recipe sugar-free.
- Gluten-free - Use tamari instead of soy sauce to make this recipe gluten-free.
How to Make Japanese Cucumber Salad
- Soak wakame - Soak the wakame seaweed in cold water to soften it, then drain and dry. Rough chop into bite-sized pieces. (Photo 1, 2, and 3)
- Salt cucumbers - Thinly slice cucumbers using a knife or a mandolin. Add thin slices of cucumbers to a bowl, sprinkle kosher salt on top, and allow to sit for a few minutes. This will help soften the cucumbers. (Photo 4)
- Squeeze out liquid - Use your hands to gently squeeze the cucumbers to remove excess water. Then remove the excess water from the bowl and place the cucumbers back in the bowl. (Photo 5)
- Prepare vinegar sauce - Add rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar to a mixing bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved. (Photo 6)
- Assemble - Add the wakame and cucumbers to a small bowl. Since the cucumbers vary in size and volume, spoon the sauce over the cucumber mixture so there is just enough sauce to coat the cucumbers without over-saturating the salad. Stir then sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve. (Photo 7 and 8)
Pro tip - If you are not serving the salad immediately after making it, chill it in the refrigerator until ready to eat so it tastes extra fresh.
Top Tips
- Be sure to slice the cucumbers thinly so the cucumber slices can absorb all of the yummy dressing flavors and match the texture of the seaweed.
- Figure out what you want to make with this cucumber salad ahead of time. If you need to cook the other dish, you can let it cook while you assemble the salad.
What to Serve With Sunomono
We love this quick cucumber salad as an appetizer or side with a Japanese main dish. Our favorite dishes to pair with this salad are main courses like Chicken Katsu, Miso Jidori Chicken Thighs, or Gluten Free Ramen. But we also love it with lighter Japanese dishes like our Crunchy Spicy California Sushi Roll or Hamachi Collars. If you are looking for a refreshing Japanese dessert, try our Strawberry Mochi or Japanese Fruit Sandos.
Storage
This salad is best enjoyed fresh or chilled. But you can refrigerate it for up to 3 days for best results. These ingredients don't stand up well to freezing.
Recipe FAQs
In order to keep the salad crisp, be sure to salt the sliced cucumbers and squeeze out any excess moisture.
No, Japanese cucumbers have a tasty and crispy skin.
We love sunomono as a refreshing appetizer or side. The vinegary taste will highlight the other delicious flavors in your meal.
Yes, this salad features simple and healthy ingredients. The main ingredient, cucumbers, are low in calories, high in water content, and high in vitamin K and minerals. The dressing is also light and can be made healthier by using low sodium soy sauce.
Yes, but we prefer Japanese cucumbers because they are slightly sweeter with a crispier skin.
No, the salad is light and vinegary with a combination of sweet and sour flavors.
In sunomono, the ingredients are dressed in vinegar whereas in namasu they are pickled in vinegar.
Related Recipes
If you are interested in other delicious salads, try these:
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Sunomono (Japanese Cucumber Salad)
Equipment
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 1 cucumber or 2 Persian cucumbers
- 1 tablespoon dried wakame seaweed
- 3 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- â…› teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Additional Mix-Ins
- Kani kamaboko sticks (imitation crab sticks) separated and chopped
- octopus (tako) thinly sliced
- shirasu
- shrimp
Instructions
- Soak wakame - Soak the wakame seaweed in cold water to soften, then drain and dry. Rough chop into bite-sized pieces.1 tablespoon dried wakame seaweed
- Salt cucumbers - Thinly slice cucumbers using a knife or a mandolin. Add cucumbers to a bowl, sprinkle kosher salt on top, and allow to sit for a few minutes. This will help soften the cucumbers. Use your hands to gently squeeze the cucumbers to remove excess water, Remove the excess water from the bowl and place the cucumbers back in the bowl.1 cucumber or 2 Persian cucumbers, â…› teaspoon kosher salt
- Prepare vinegar sauce - Add rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar to a mixing bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved.3 tablespoon rice vinegar, 2 teaspoon soy sauce, 2 tablespoon sugar
- Assemble - Add the wakame and cucumbers to a bowl, and any optional mix-ins. Since the cucumbers vary in size and volume, spoon the sauce over the cucumber mixture so there is just enough sauce to coat the cucumbers without over-saturating the salad. Stir and top with toasted sesame seeds then serve.1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Video
Notes
- Use date sugar instead of granulated sugar to make the recipe refined sugar-free.
- Use tamari instead of soy sauce to make the recipe gluten-free.
- If you are not serving the salad immediately after making it, chill it in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat it so it will be fresh.
- Be sure to slice the cucumbers thinly so the slices can absorb the yummy dressing flavors and matches the texture of the seaweed.
- Figure out what you want to make with this cucumber salad ahead of time. If you need to cook the other dish, let it cook while you assemble the salad.
- This salad is best enjoyed fresh or chilled. You can also refrigerate it for up to 3 days.
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