Refreshing Hungarian cucumber salad recipe

Hungarian cucumber salad is an extremely refreshing side-dish, which usually accompanies traditional main courses like chicken paprikash. It is served along with the main course and not before. In Hungary many meals with meat (or meat substitutes) are served with some pickles and/or a vinegary salad on the side. These acidic salads and pickles provide a nice balance to the meal, and also help digestion. 

This cucumber salad is one of the classic Hungarian vinegary salads. It is easy to make, it needs only a few everyday ingredients, and of course, it is super delicious and refreshing. Every family has its best salad recipe. It could be made or served with or without a dollop of sour cream, fresh dill, onion, tomatoes, it is really up to you. We love this light and easy version that I am sharing with you here. I make this recipe with English cucumbers throughout the year, except late summer when I can find larger field or slicer cucumbers. These cucumbers look shorter and thicker than the English ones, and tend to have more seeds and thicker skins. As cucumbers are among the “dirty dozen” which means they contain more pesticide residue than other produce, try to get organic cucumbers whenever you can. 

You can serve the salad right after mixing the brine with the cucumbers, but I highly recommend serving it after letting it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

I dedicate this post to the memory of Marika, who loved this salad.

Hungarian cucumber salad

Ingredients

2 English cucumbers

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp salt – mostly to prepare cucumbers

1.5 cups water

3 tbsp white vinegar – 5%

2 tsp powdered (icing) sugar

1 pinch red paprika powder

1 pinch ground black pepper

sour cream for serving – optional

Method

Wash and peel the cucumbers, discard the ends, and slice into very thin slices with a mandolin.

Place the cucumbers into a bowl, add the salt, and mix. Cover and put it aside for about 30 min.

In the meantime mix the water, minced garlic, and vinegar in a small bowl. Add the sugar gradually. The brine is not going to be sweet, it is just reducing the acidic flavor of the vinegar. Add more vinegar and/or sugar if you like. Add a pinch of red paprika and ground pepper.

After 30 minutes the salted cucumber will give off liquid. Remove the sliced cucumbers one handful at a time and gently squeeze out any extra liquid (you may wear single-use gloves, or squeeze with a large spoon). Discard the liquid. 

Add the vinegar mix to the cucumbers, stir, cover, and put it into the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes. Sprinkle the top with some red paprika, ground black pepper, and serve the cucumbers with some juice in small salad bowls on the side with the main dish. Enjoy!

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Hungarian cucumber salad

Course Salad

Cuisine Hungarian

Keyword cucumber, garlic, vinegar

Prep Time 15 minutes

Resting Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

• 2 English cucumbers
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt – mostly to prepare cucumbers
• 1.5 cups water
• 3 tbsp white vinegar – 5%
• 2 tsp powdered (icing) sugar
• 1 pinch red paprika powder
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• sour cream for serving – optional

Instructions

• Wash and peel the cucumbers, discard the ends, and slice into very thin slices with a mandolin.
• Place the cucumbers into a bowl, add the salt, and mix. Cover and put it aside for about 30 min.
• In the meantime mix the water, minced garlic and the vinegar in a small bowl. Add the sugar gradually. The brine is not going to be sweet, it is just reducing the acidic flavour of the vinegar. Add more vinegar and sugar if you like. Add a pinch of red paprika and ground pepper.
• After 30 minutes the salted cucumber will give off liquid. Remove the sliced cucumbers one handful at a time and gently squeeze out any extra liquid (you may wear gloves, or squeeze with a large spoon). Discard the liquid.
• Add the vinegar mix to the cucumbers, stir, cover, and put it into the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes. Sprinkle the top with some red paprika and ground black pepper, and serve the cucumbers and some juice in small salad bowls on the side with a main dish. Enjoy!

Notes

• The salad could be served right away, but the best is to serve it chilled. 
• You can add some green or red onions cut into small pieces, some thinly sliced tomatoes as well.
• Try the chilled juice! It is extremely refreshing on a hot summer day.
• You can put some sour cream on the table when serving, for those who like adding some to their salad.
• The salad is served usually along with a main dish, like chicken paprikash, but it is just delicious by itself too, you will see. There is a high chance, that it is going to “disappear” from the salad bowls, if it is served earlier than the main course. 
• Field or slicer cucumbers are in season in Ontario and Quebec late summer – they are an awesome option for this salad. They tend to have bigger seeds, and thicker skin.

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