I love vegetables – as a side or a main – I’m not picky. And because I love them so much I am always looking for dishes that showcase vegetables that my family can enjoy. That’s what this dish is – Cucumber Curry Salad that looks and feels like a warm summer’s day.
If you read my writing – thank you – you know already, I love turmeric. It’s anti-inflammatory and healing properties make it a superfood that we should incorporate into our daily diets. A quick search on Google will offer up millions of ways to do just that – from curries to stews to golden milk and lattes galore. My current favourite though is this spicy cucumber curry salad.
Cucumber Curry Salad
Cucumber Curry Salad not only incorporates the superfood benefits of turmeric, but it also makes a salad irresistible. How often does that happen? The crunchy peanut topping is my mom’s trick to add texture and it totally works.
Easy Way to Get Half Your Plate of Veggies
The latest edition of Canada’s Food Guide highly recommends filling half our plate with fruits and veggies. It’s good for us and it balances out our dinner plate. With this colourful salad, you can feel good about your choices and enjoy the crunch.
Spicy Curry Salad with Cucumber and Bell peppers
This salad is full of fabulous flavour, crunch and colour, and it makes for a healthy side dish or even a light lunch. Either way, I have made it a few times and it’s super popular with everyone. I do tone the heat down when I want my kids to eat it. Best of all – this curry salad recipe is naturally vegan, dairy free, glutenfree, made-from-scratch and uses real ingredients. Did I miss anything?
Tips from My Kitchen
- If you’re avoiding peanuts use sunflower seeds. They add a similar crunch
- Skip the green chillies if your tolerance for spice is low or even medium.
- Traditional wisdom from India advises to heat turmeric up before eating it. That’s what I do here with the tempering.
Spicy Curry Salad Recipe
Spicy Curry Salad with Cucumber and Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped cucumber
- 1 cup chopped bell pepper red, yellow or orange – no green
For the tempering (dressing)
- 1 tbsp oil A mild-tasting oil like Canola works very well for this
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1/4 cup chopped peanuts blanched
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 chopped green chilli (skip if spicy)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Instructions
- Chop the vegetables. Toss with salt and lemon juice.
- Coarsely chop the peanuts too. I put them between two dishtowels and roll the rolling pin over them.
- For the tadka: Add oil to a hot pan
- Add mustard seeds and let them crackle -a couple of minutes.
- Add green chillies
- Let them crackle .Add turmeric powder and it will all sizzle
- Add the chopped peanuts and toss quickly for another minute
- Add a tsp of sugar and toss it in the end
- Pour the hot oil mixture on the vegetables.
- Serve on the side of something else delicious or on its own. I wont judge.
