Prawn salad with pickled cucumber recipe

A crisp green salad with crunchy cucumber, juicy prawns, and a bit of a kick.

It's the dressing that is the secret of this simple, tasty prawn salad with pickled cucumber. A little sweetness, a little tang from the citrus, and a little heat from the chilli. Though the salad is really quick and easy to make, it does help if you can start a little ahead of time to give the cucumber time to salt for about an hour. Not only does it make the cucumber taste lovely, but it also brings out the natural water content which otherwise can dilute the dressing. The salad is only 117 calories per portion - one of our lightest low calorie lunch ideas. (opens in new tab)

Ingredients

• 1 cucumber
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 4 handfuls of baby spinach leaves
• 3 tsp sesame oil
• 280g pack raw tiger prawns

For the dressing:

• 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• ½ small red chilli or ½-1 large red chilli, deseeded and finely diced
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• ½ tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 4 tbsp lime juice (juice from 2 limes)
• 1 tbsp freshly chopped mint leaves
• 2 tbsp freshly chopped coriander leaves, plus extra for garnish

Method

1. Peel the cucumber and cut it into fine slices, on the diagonal. Put slices in a colander (over a bowl) and sprinkle with sea salt, mixing it in gently. Leave for 1 hr, if time, to extract the water.
2. To make the dressing: Whisk all the ingredients together in a large bowl. Rinse the cucumber quickly under cold running water and pat dry in a clean tea towel.
3. Add the cucumber to the dressing and stir it in gently. Taste, and season if necessary. Put spinach leaves in 4 bowls, then spoon the pickled cucumber over.
4. Heat a pan, add 1 tsp of the sesame oil and the prawns; cook them for a few mins until they turn pink, tinged with brown. Spoon on top of the salad, add any leftover dressing and sprinkle with the rest of the oil. Garnish with coriander and serve straight away.

Top tips for making prawn salad with pickled cucumber

In general, smaller chillies are hotter than larger ones, so half of a small one should be sufficient. Of course you can adjust the heat as you like. For a more substantial meal serve the salad on a bed of rice noodles, which will add about 100 calories to the dish.

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