These Spicy Cucumber Noodles are an easy, refreshing, and versatile recipe that you will surely enjoy making again and again.
Lately, I’ve been enjoying slicing my cucumbers thinly so it becomes noodle-shaped, and it makes me feel like I’m not really eating vegetables. I truly enjoyed High Protein Cucumber Noodles as well as Cucumber and Chicken Salad, now it’s time to make a spicy version!
The sauce for these noodles is a harmony of sweet, savory, and spice, which strikes a perfect balance to be paired with the refreshing and crisp cucumber. It’s simple but extremely delicious and can instantly add life to any of your meals.
Dishes like this help me in my fitness journey because they go so well with something as simple as grilled chicken breast, samgyeopsal, or thinly sliced beef. It’s a great summer side dish, but you can combine it with a little bit of noodles, which truly satisfied my bibimyeon cravings.
What are you waiting for? If you loved my Spicy Cucumber Banchan recipe, this is another one you must try for a light yet umami-bomb side dish!
Spicy Cucumber Noodle Ingredients
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- Cucumber – The main ingredient. Use English or Asian cucumbers as they are long (perfect to make it noodle-shaped) and contain the fewest seeds (so it’s not too watery). But you still use other types depending on what’s available to you.
- Onion – Optional, just for freshness and crunch, but soak this in water to reduce the sting and spice.
- Salt – This will help draw out the moisture from the cucumber so they do not get soggy.
Cucumber Noodle Sauce
- Fish Sauce – For the umami. You can also swap this with soy sauce.
- Gochujang – For the savory spice
- Vinegar – For the acidity, which complements the other two sauces above. Use any sweet vinegar available to you.
- Gochugaru – For additional spice, but this is optional
- Allulose – For the sweetness that will bring balance to the savor and tang, making the sauce well-rounded. I used allulose as a sugar alternative, but you can use other sweeteners you prefer.
- Sesame Oil – This adds nuttiness that complements the other sauces
- Garlic – For freshness and a bit of spice
- Sesame Seeds – For garnish
How to Make Spicy Cucumber Noodles?
Prepare the Cucumber: Using a mandolin or a julienne peeler, slice the cucumber into julienne. Do not include the seeds. Add salt, mix it well, and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. Drain and pat dry the remaining moisture.
Prepare the Onion: Slice the onion julienne and soak them on cold water for 5-10 minutes to reduce spice. Drain, pat dry, and combine with cucumbers.
Season the Veggies: Once the cucumber and onion are combined, season them with fish sauce, vinegar, gochujang, gochugaru, allulose, sesame oil, and garlic. Mix this well.
Finish the Salad: Plate, garnish with sesame seeds, serve it chilled, and enjoy!
Recipe Notes:
- Try as much as possible to slice the cucumber into long strands. My wife says this makes all the difference, but do be careful as you handle the mandolin!
- Salting the cucumber is the key to retaining its crunch and keeping it from getting soggy.
- I like to mix the salad using a gloved hand so it can be done gently while ensuring everything is sauced up.
- You can make this recipe ahead, but they need to be stored separately to keep the cucumber from getting soggy. Combine once ready to consume.
Serving and Storage for Spicy Cucumber Noodles
If you want to level up the salad, mix it with some soba or somyeon noodles. The refreshing cucumber juice and the spicy sauce make the noodles so delicious. My wife loved it so much, she says it’s 10/10 and even went for seconds!
This is one of those sides you will enjoy with Thai Grilled Chicken, Braised Pork Belly, Soybean Paste Pork Belly, or LA Galbi. It’s an easy day-to-day add-on to meals, but you can also share this with everyone. I’m sure this will be a hit with you at your next BBQ!
The noodles are best enjoyed fresh, but for any leftovers, you can store them in the fridge for up to 2 days. I highly recommend it be consumed right away, as the texture and flavor may change as the cucumber may continue to draw out water.
Other dishes that helped with my fitness journey:
- Chicken Fried Rice
- Korean Fresh Spring Rolls
- Egg Tteokbokki
- Perilla Leaf Salad Dressing
- Shirataki Noodle Salad
- Shirataki Noodles Stir Fry
Make sure to leave a rating, a comment, or tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok when you chop them up! Yeobosayo!
Spicy Cucumber Noodles
Ingredients
- 300 grams Cucumber Around 2 pcs
- 1/4 of whole Onion Thinly Sliced
- 1/2 tbsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Gochugaru
- 1/2 tbsp Allulose
- 1/2 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 1/2 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1 tbsp Vinegar
- 1/4 tbsp Garlic
- 1/4 tbsp Gochujang
- 1/4 tbsp Sesame Seeds
Instructions
- Slice the cucumber into long strands using a mandolin or julienne peeler. Do not include the seeds.
- Add salt, leave for 5-10 minutes, then drain and pat dry the excess moisture.
- Slice the onion, soak it in water for 5-10 minutes, then drain and pat dry as well. Combine this with the cucumber noodles.
- Season the veggies with gochugaru, fish sauce, vinegar, allulose, gochujang, sesame oil, and garlic. Mix this well.
- Plate, garnish with sesame seeds, serve chilled, and enjoy!
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