This easy Korean cucumber salad (oi muchim) is great as a side dish (ban chan) for hot summer days when you want something quick, sweet, tangy, and refreshing.
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If you're looking to serve something light and refreshing at a bbq, then this Korean cucumber salad is the one. Not only is it super easy to make, but the sweet tanginess and refreshing crunch also go very well with any type of grilled meat.
Keep in mind that cucumbers are very watery, so if you do plan to take this cucumber salad to a party or event, there are a few extra steps required if you plan to make it ahead of time to prevent a lot of waterlogging.
That being said, when I am looking to make a quick vegetable side, at home without much fuss, I will also make this to go with my lunches or dinners so this salad is pretty much great all year round.
What is Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim)?
Oi muchim (Korean Cucumber Salad) is a cucumber salad made with cucumbers, gochugaru, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, garlic, and toasted sesame seed oil.
Similar to sunomono which is a Japanese cucumber salad that doesn't have any spiciness or chili flakes in it, Korean cucumber salad is light and refreshing with a sweet and tangy flavor with a bit of spiciness from the gochugaru (Korean chili flakes).
There are many versions of oi muchim recipes out there and some have gochujang in them. This cucumber salad is made without gochujang because I like it less spicy and more light.
What Kind of Cucumbers To Use
Left: English Cucumber, Right: Mini Cucumbers
For the best tasting Cucumber salad, I like to use seedless cucumbers or cucumbers without a lot of seeds like the mini cucumbers or English\Persian cucumbers (which are almost the same thing).
Try to avoid field cucumbers, they usually have a dark green thick skin and have very large seeds in the middle. That being said, you can still use them, but if you do, use a spoon to scrape out all the seeds and peel the cucumber before using it.
Ingredients for Korean Cucumber Salad
- Cucumber - For the best tasting Korean cucumber salad, my first choice of cucumber to use are mini cucumbers, then English\Persian cucumbers. Try to avoid using field cucumbers (the dark green thick-skinned cucumbers).
- Green Onions - Raw onions can be very strong and spicy in salads, especially if you don't draw out the moisture with salt or soak them in water/acid for a long period of time. For this reason, I only use green onions/scallions in this salad. Green onions are much milder and still give that great oniony flavor without overpowering the salad.
- Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) - I only use gochugaru and do not use any gochujang in this cucumber salad because I wanted to keep it lighter and less spicy.
- Soy Sauce/Sugar/Sesame Oil - These 3 ingredients are also a must for the cucumber salad dressing. You can substitute soy sauce with fish sauce but other than that I wouldn't change this trio.
- Rice Vinegar - I like to use rice vinegar for the dressing because it is a milder vinegar, but if you don't have it you can substitute it with white vinegar.
- Sesame Seeds - Sesame seeds must be toasted to get the best flavor for the salad. If you want to skip toasting it, you can buy the pre-toasted at Korean supermarkets.
- Garlic - You definitely don't want to skip adding the garlic as it is the star of the recipe and brings the whole recipe together.
How to Make Korean Cucumber Salad
Preparation
- Cut both tips off the ends of the cucumbers and discard them.
- [English Cucumbers] Cut the cucumber in half length-wise and slice the cucumbers into ⅛-inch slices. They should look like thin half-moons.
- [Mini Cucumbers] Slice the cucumbers into ⅛-inch slices. They should look like round circles.
- Grate or finely mince the garlic and set it aside.
- Finely slice the green onions (including the whites, but discard the tips with the roots) and set them aside.
- Toast the sesame seeds until they are golden brown (unless you bought them pre-toasted) and set them aside to cool.
Make the Korean Cucumber Dressing
- In a small bowl, mix together the gochugaru (Korean chili flakes), soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, toasted sesame oil, and garlic.
Mix Everything Together
- In a larger bowl, mix together the cucumber, green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and the dressing until every cucumber slice is coated with the sauce.
- Serve immediately, or let it sit and marinate for 5-10 minutes before digging in!
Tips
- If you use cucumbers with a lot of seeds like garden or field cucumbers (the dark green cucumbers with thick skin), remove the seeds by scraping them out with a spoon before using them to prevent them from being waterlogged.
- If you find your cucumber skins are very tough, you can also peel it the skins off but any low-seed cucumbers will have a nicer crunch to them if you keep the skins on.
- Once the dressing draws out the water from the cucumbers, the extra sauce is delicious on plain white rice.
Can I Make it Ahead of Time?
Yes, you can make this ahead of time but it will require some extra steps to prevent it from being waterlogged.
- You will need to remove the seeds from the cucumber which has extra water in it. Use a spoon to scrape it out before slicing the cucumber.
- Sprinkle salt on the cut cucumbers for 15 minutes to draw out more of the water from the cucumber. Rinse off the salt and dry the cucumbers with a towel.
- Premake the dressing (add the green onions and sesame seeds in with the dressing) but don't put it on until you are ready to serve it.
- When you are ready to make it or bring it to an event, mix in the dressing and store it in a well-sealed container. With the excess moisture removed from the cucumber, it will last for 1 day in the fridge. It may still contain some excess water, but we removed it as much as we could.
FAQs
You can store Korean cucumber salad for 1-2 days but it is best eaten fresh because the salt will draw water will come out of the cucumber and make it watery the next day.
If your cucumber salad becomes water the next day, you can make it flavorful again by mixing 1 teaspoon of gochujang into it.
To make this Korean cucumber salad not spicy, put in a little less gochugaru than what is called for in the recipe.
More Recipes You May Like
- Kani Salad (Japanse Crab Salad)
- Nam Khao (Lao Crispy Rice Salad)
- Yum Woon Sen (Thai Glass Salad)
- Watermelon Feta Salad
- Japchae (Korean Glass Noodle Stir Fry)
- Curtido (Salvadoran Pickled Slaw)
Did You Make This Cucumber Salad?
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Recipe Card
Easy Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim)
Recipe Notes
- If you use cucumbers with a lot of seeds like garden or field cucumbers (the dark green cucumbers with thick skin), remove the seeds by scraping them out with a spoon before using them to prevent them from being waterlogged.
- If you find your cucumber skins are very tough, you can also peel it the skins off but any low-seed cucumbers will have a nicer crunch to them if you keep the skins on.
- Once the dressing draws out the water from the cucumbers, the extra sauce is delicious on plain white rice.
- You will need to remove the seeds from the cucumber which has extra water in it.
- sprinkle salt on the cut cucumbers for 15 minutes to draw out more of the water from the cucumber. rinse off the salt and dry the cucumbers with a tea towel.
- Premake the dressing (add the green onions and sesame seeds in with the dressing)
- When you are ready to make it or bring it to an event, mix in the dressing and store it in a well-sealed container. With the excess moisture removed from the cucumber, it will last for the day. It may still contain some excess water, but we removed as much as we could.
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumber (or 4-5 mini cucumbers)
- 2 stalks green onions (finely sliced)
- 1½ tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Korean Cucumber Salad Dressing
- 1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)
- 1 clove garlic (grated or finely minced)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (or white vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Instructions
Preparation
- Cut both tips off the ends of the cucumbers and discard them. [English Cucumbers] Cut the cucumber in half length-wise and slice the cucumbers into ⅛-inch slices. They should look like thin half-moons.[Mini Cucumbers] Slice the cucumbers into ⅛-inch slices. They should look like round circles.
- Grate or finely mince the garlic and set it aside.
- Finely slice the green onions (including the whites, but discard the tips with the roots) and set them aside.
- Toast the sesame seeds until they are golden brown (unless you bought them pre-toasted) and set them aside to cool.
Make the Korean Cucumber Dressing
- In a small bowl, mix together the gochugaru (Korean chili flakes), soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, toasted sesame oil, and minced garlic.
Mix Everything Together
- In a larger bowl, mix together the cucumber, green onions, toasted sesame seeds and the dressing until every cucumber slice is coated with the sauce.
- Serve immediately, or let it sit and marinate for 5-10 minutes before digging in!
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is calculated using online tools and is an estimate*
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Mate Mate SG says
So mouth-watering and easy to make. Lovely addition. Go for it guys!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Mate!
Yay! Happy you liked it too!
Dionne says
This is why I love Korean cooking so much. The recipes are easy yet full of flavor. Yum!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Dionne!
I agree 😊
Angela says
OMG, these flavors are spot on! So delicious and perfect way to use up all these cucumbers. Thanks for the great recipe.
Joyce Lee says
Hi Angela!
haha I have a hard time using my cucumbers on time as well 😂 I'm so happy you liked it!
Mahy says
I can't believe how easy it is to make something as delicious as this cucumber salad. It is so good!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Mahy!
So happy you liked it! It's definitely one of my go-to's for an easy side dish.
Ieva says
A brilliant side dish to a BBQ! We tried it over the weekend with some Asian-style marinated meats and grilled fish and absolutely loved the flavours in this cucumber salad! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Joyce Lee says
Hi Ieva!
So happy you enjoyed it! I love serving this at BBQs as well! 😊
Claudia says
This salad is perfect for any meal love the freshness and will make it again soon!
Joyce Lee says
Hi Claudia!
So happy you liked it!