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Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts

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By Jenn Segal
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Peanuts add welcome crunch to this tangy and refreshing Thai cucumber salad.

Thai cucumber salad with peanuts in a bowl.

This fresh and crunchy Thai cucumber salad adapted from Food & Wine is one of my favorite salad recipes. The juice from the cucumbers seeps into the tangy and sweet dressing, giving it a refreshing cucumber flavor, while the peanuts add protein and crunch. The salad is satisfying on its own for lunch, and it also pairs nicely with my grilled Thai curry chicken or honey lime sriracha chicken.

What you’ll need to make Thai cucumber salad with Peanuts

Salad ingredients including red onion, fish sauce, and lime.

  • The recipe calls for English/hothouse cucumbers, long, slender cukes with tender skin and tiny seeds. They’re a little pricier than garden variety cukes, but you can usually find them on sale in three-packs. Happily, they don’t need to be peeled, as they aren’t treated with a wax coating like regular cucumbers.
  • Fish sauce is a salty, savory condiment often used in East Asian cuisine. It has a pungent smell, but when used in moderation, it adds rich umami flavor to sauces, marinades, and salad dressings. You can find it in the Asian food section of most supermarkets.
  • Use good quality Virginia peanuts if you can find them. Grown primarily in Virginia (but also in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas), Virginia peanuts are large in size, flavorful, and extra crunchy. They are often referred to as “ballpark peanuts” because they are the kind sold at baseball games.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Begin by placing the red onions in a bowl of cold water. Let them soak while you prepare the rest of the ingredients — this will mellow them out and rid them of that sharp, raw onion taste.

Sliced red onions in a bowl of water.

Next, seed the cucumbers by cutting the cucumbers it in half lengthwise and scooping out the seeds and the pulpy matter with a teaspoon.

Seeded cucumbers on a marble countertop.

Make the dressing by combining the lime juice, oil, fish sauce, sugar and garlic in a medium bowl.

thai cucumber salad dressing

Drain the onions, then add the sliced cucumbers, minced jalapeño, cilantro and peanuts to the bowl with the dressing.

Thai cucumber salad ingredients added to dressing

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.

mixed thai cucumber salad

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Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts

By Jenn Segal
Adapted from Food & Wine

Peanuts add welcome crunch to this tangy and refreshing Thai cucumber salad.

Servings: 4
Total Time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

For the Salad

  • ½ medium red onion, very thinly sliced
  • 2 large English cucumbers, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced crosswise ¼-inch thick
  • ⅓ cup packed chopped fresh cilantro
  • ½ cup salted peanuts
  • 1 large jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (or use 1-2 Thai chiles for more heat)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt (optional)

For the Dressing

  • ¼ cup fresh lime juice, from 2-3 limes
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1½ tablespoons fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 garlic clove, minced

Instructions

  1. Place the onions in a small bowl of cold water. Let sit for ten minutes, then drain well and pat dry with a paper towel.
  2. Make the dressing: In a large bowl, whisk the lime juice, oil, fish sauce, sugar, and garlic.
  3. Add the drained red onions, cucumbers, cilantro, peanuts and jalapeño pepper to the dressing. Taste and add the salt if necessary. Serve the salad within 30 minutes.

Nutrition Information

Powered by Edamam

  • Per serving (4 servings)
  • Calories: 238
  • Fat: 16g
  • Saturated fat: 2g
  • Carbohydrates: 21g
  • Sugar: 12g
  • Fiber: 3g
  • Protein: 6g
  • Sodium: 660mg
  • Cholesterol: 0mg
Nutritional Data Disclaimer

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Gluten-Free Adaptable Note

To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.

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Comments

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  • Made it last night. My hubby and I loved it.

  • Made this for dinner as a side for Bahn Mi- really delicious and simple. I used small diameter cukes (what I had) and didn’t seed them- we didn’t have a problem with sogginess, but we also ate it all with that first meal.

    • — Rebecca Conable
    • Reply

  • Only thing I would change is to up the amount of peanuts!! Perhaps one cup. love the crunch!!

    Delicious salad. I used regular cucumbers (because they were four large ones for $1) and took out the seeds and sliced up and tossed a bit of salt on top for 30 mins and moisture comes out.

  • Another Awesome recipe. I live in CA and we are having a heat wave and Spare the Air Day – which means we can’t BBQ. I didn’t want to turn on the stove/oven creating more heat inside the house. I made the Cucumber with Mint salad last night and this Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts tonight. Everybody loved tonight’s salad more. I will be making this again.

  • This was the perfect complement to the Thai Curry Chicken with Coconut-Peanut Sauce (also on this site). I wouldn’t change a thing about the recipe.

  • Is there a substitute for the fish sauce?

    • Sorry, Janet — there is no good substitute for fish sauce. You can leave it out and add more salt (fish sauce is very salty) but the salad won’t have a Thai flavor.

      • Try anchovie paste…not quite the same…but a reasonable substitute.

        • Thank you, Glen, my concern is shellfish specifically as I do not eat shellfish.

  • I was just looking at a container of Persian Cucumbers in my frig and wondering what to do with them. Voila! Made it! Absolutely love the dressing. Salty, tangy, with a hint of sweet – dressing cool cukes and crunchy peanuts! What a winning combination. I’ve never soaked red onions before. What a great tip to reduce their “bite.” The cukes come from Trader Joe’s. I usually just eat them with a bit of salt and lime. They do not require peeling or seeding. I slice on an angle which makes for an attractive presentation. Thanks for another great recipe! This site has become my go-to for no-fail recipes.

    • How many of the little Persian cucumbers did you use?

  • Hello. looks great.
    What ca I pot instead of the fish sauce?
    Thx:) Sharon

    • Hi Sharon, Unfortunately, there is no good substitute for fish sauce — it has a very distinct and salty flavor. You can leave it out and just add more salt, but the dish won’t have a real Thai flavor.

  • I have the same problem with cucumbers! I have gotten into the habit now of buying the tiniest one so I don’t waste it, but I think this is a great idea, and I love the flavor combination you are suggesting. While we were in China we found a similar dish made with peanut sauce, rice vinegar and scallions. This brings back many fond memories and the longing to try this appetizing and summery dish!

  • Fish sauce? Help me here. What exactly is it? Any substitutions? Thanks! 🙂

    • Hi Martha, You should be able to find fish sauce in the Asian section of your regular supermarket. It has a very distinct flavor and is used like soy sauce in Southeast Asian cooking. I have many recipes on the site that call for it. Unfortunately, there’s no good substitute.

      • Can you sub soy sauce for fish sauce?

        • Hi Fran, You can, but they’re not really the same. Unfortunately, there’s no perfect substitute for fish sauce. You can leave it out and add more salt (fish sauce is very salty). The salad just won’t have a Thai flavor.

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